Reading screener practice, Kindergarten to Grade 3

Early reading practice tests

Most US schools screen every Kindergarten to Grade 3 child's reading two or three times a year. Some screeners are given one-to-one: a teacher with a stopwatch listens to the child name letters, say the sounds in words, read made-up words and real words, and read a story aloud, for one minute each. DIBELS works this way, and so do FastBridge's earlyReading and the TPRI in Texas. Others are given on a computer with headphones, such as Star Early Literacy, which Florida uses as its FAST screener from Pre-K.

Our early reading practice has both kinds. The one-minute tasks are DIBELS-style: your child reads our own page aloud while you mark along on the screen, or records the minute and the computer counts the words it hears; the result is a count per minute and how many were right, kept so you can see it grow. The question test is Star Early Literacy-style: 27 questions, untimed, read aloud and adapting to each answer, on sounds in words, phonics, sight words, word meanings and short stories and nonfiction. We never give a benchmark level, percentile or scale score.

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A look at the test

Questions in the early reading screener style

Written by us in the style of the published early reading screener question types.

  • Kindergarten, Phonemic Awareness: rhyming words

    Which picture rhymes with log?

    1. A
    2. B
    3. C
    Show the answer and why
    AnswerA

    1. Say "log" and listen to how it ends.

    2. Say the name of each picture. Find the one that ends the same way.

    3. Final answer

      A frog.

    Remember

    Say both words aloud and listen to how they END.

  • Kindergarten, Phonemic Awareness: first sounds

    Which picture begins with the same sound as boat?

    1. A
    2. B
    3. C
    Show the answer and why
    AnswerA

    1. Say "boat" slowly and listen to its first sound.

    2. Say each picture's name. Bell begins with that sound too.

    3. Final answer

      A bell.

    Remember

    Say the word slowly and stretch out its first sound (or its last).

  • Grade 1, Phonics: reading a word

    Read the word. Which picture shows it?

    1. A
    2. B
    3. C
    Show the answer and why
    AnswerA

    1. Say the sound of each letter, from left to right.

    2. Blend the sounds together.

    3. Final answer

      A sun.

    Remember

    Say the sound of each letter from left to right, then blend the sounds into a word.

  • Grade 1, High-Frequency Words

    Listen, then choose.

    1. Aseed
    2. Bsee
    3. Cshe
    Show the answer and why
    AnswerBsee

    1. Listen to the word, and think how it starts.

    2. Look at each choice, letter by letter.

    3. Final answer

      see.

    Remember

    Listen for how the word starts, then check every letter of each choice: saw and was use the same letters in a different order.

  • Grade 2, Phonics: spelling a word

    Listen to the word. Which shows how to spell it?

    1. Achree
    2. Btrea
    3. Ctree
    4. Dtre
    Show the answer and why
    AnswerCtree

    1. Say the word slowly and listen for each sound.

    2. Find the choice with a letter for every sound.

    3. Final answer

      tree.

    Remember

    Say the word slowly and write a letter (or letters) for every sound you hear.

  • Grade 3, Vocabulary: a word in a sentence

    Read: "The glass was fragile, so we carried it carefully." What does fragile mean?

    1. Avery heavy
    2. Bvery old
    3. Ceasy to break
    4. Dfull of water
    Show the answer and why
    AnswerCeasy to break

    1. Read the words around it for clues.

    2. Try each meaning in its place.

    3. Final answer

      Easy to break.

    Remember

    Read (or listen to) the whole sentence for clues.

The test

The tasks

TaskGradesQuestionsTimeWhat your child does
Letter namingK to Grade 1110 letters1 minuteName upper and lower case letters across the rows. A grown-up marks, or record it.
Sounds in wordsK to Grade 124 spoken words1 minuteA grown-up says a word; your child says each sound in it. A grown-up marks.
Made-up wordsK to Grade 350 words1 minuteRead made-up words whole or sound by sound; counted as letter sounds and whole words. A grown-up marks.
Word readingK to Grade 360 to 80 words1 minuteRead real words across the rows. A grown-up marks, or record it.
Reading a story aloudGrades 1 to 3One story or article1 minuteRead aloud; counted as words read correctly a minute. A grown-up marks, or record it.
Early literacy questionsK to Grade 327No time limitSounds in words, phonics, sight words, word meanings, and short stories and nonfiction, all read aloud and adapting to each answer.

The University of Oregon publishes DIBELS 8's measures, grades and one-minute timing; Renaissance publishes Star Early Literacy's sub-domains and length. Our pages, word lists, made-up words, passages and questions are our own, and our mix of questions is our estimate.

By grade

Free practice for each grade

Pricing

Three free practice tests. Unlimited tests and answers are US$49.

A free account includes 3 practice tests. A plan opens unlimited tests and shows your child what they got right, the right answers and how to reach them, on every MAP Growth, i-Ready and early reading test. Practicing for more than one kind of test? The US bundle covers them all for US$99.

MAP Growth and i-Ready packLaunch price

US$49

for 6 months

  • Which questions your child got right, after every practice test
  • The right answer to every question
  • A worked solution for every question, step by step
  • Every MAP Growth grade and subject we offer, in one pack
  • i-Ready-style Math and Reading, Kindergarten to Grade 8
  • Early reading: DIBELS-style one-minute measures and Star Early Literacy-style questions, Kindergarten to Grade 3

Every US testLaunch price

US$99

for 6 months

  • Everything in every US pack, in one payment
  • CogAT, NNAT, OLSAT and NGAT, for gifted and talented programs
  • SCAT-style practice for the CTY talent search, Grades 2 to 9
  • InView-style practice for gifted screening, Grades 2 to 12
  • Matrices-style and spatial reasoning practice
  • ISEE and SSAT, for private school entry
  • HSPT and TACHS, for Catholic high school entry
  • Hunter-style practice, for Hunter College High School
  • Math contest practice, Grades 1 to 8
  • MAP Growth practice, by grade and subject
  • i-Ready-style Math and Reading, Kindergarten to Grade 8
  • Early reading practice, Kindergarten to Grade 3
  • SHSAT practice for Grades 8 and 9, English and math
  • Iowa practice for Grades 3 to 8, all five Core tests
  • TerraNova, Stanford 10 and CTP-style practice for Grades 3 to 8
  • ACT-style English, Math, Reading and Science for Grades 10 to 12
  • SAT-style and PSAT-style practice, Grades 8 to 12, Reading and Writing and Math
  • State test practice: STAAR-style and CAASPP-style math and reading, Grades 3 to 8

One payment in US dollars for 6 months of access. No auto-renewal: when the 6 months end, access stops unless you buy again.

Questions

What parents ask

Are these real DIBELS or Star Early Literacy tests?
No. Their forms and questions are secure or licensed to schools. Ours are written by us in the same shape: one-minute measures read aloud, and read-aloud questions on a computer.
How does the computer count a recording?
The recording is turned into words by a speech-to-text service once, then deleted: we keep the words and the count, never the sound. The words heard are matched against the page, so a word said unclearly can count as missed. A grown-up marking along hears more, which is why we offer both.
Why are made-up words and sounds in words marked by a grown-up only?
Speech-to-text turns a made-up word like "jep" or a single sound like /s/ into the nearest real word, so it would mark right answers wrong.
Will you tell me if my child is at risk or on benchmark?
No. A benchmark or risk level comes from a school's own screener and its published goals, given by a trained adult. Our report shows the count per minute, how many were right, and the items worth another look. If you are worried about your child's reading, talk to their teacher.
Is it free?
A free account includes 3 question tests, and every one-minute task has one page to read as often as you like. The MAP Growth and i-Ready pack (US$49 for six months) opens a new page every time, unlimited question tests and the right answers with an explanation for each. The US bundle (US$99) covers every US test we offer.

DIBELS is a registered trademark of the University of Oregon. Star Early Literacy is a trademark of Renaissance Learning, Inc. FastBridge is a trademark of Renaissance. TPRI is a program of the Texas Education Agency. Scholar Tests is not affiliated with or endorsed by the University of Oregon (DIBELS) and Renaissance (Star Early Literacy), or by any school district. Our letter pages, word lists, made-up words, passages and questions are written by us in the style of the published measures; they are not real DIBELS or Star Early Literacy questions or forms, and a practice count is not a benchmark, score or percentile.