LOWA Core Subjects EC-6 practice test with
Rationale Questions & Answers
1.A teacher notices that some students in the class have trouble interacting
with peers during group assignments. Which of the following will best help
students learn more appropriate oral language skills to use in group
interac- tions?
A. Assigning students to play a game in groups and then using a rubric
to evaluate their interactions
B. Rehearsing positive group collaboration by using a script and
having students analyze productive conversations
C. Requiring students to practice effective social interactions with their par-
ents and siblings at home
D. Videotaping a group while the members work together and allowing the
class to view the video and then make suggestions for improving communi-
cation
Answer Option B is correct because giving students a script provides
them with a model of appropriate interaction that they can imitate and
recall during future group assignments.
2.Most students in a kindergarten class can identify two words that rhyme.
Which of the following phonemic skills is most appropriate for the teacher
to address next?
A. Naming the beginning sounds in words
,B. Blending the initial consonant sounds in words
C. Pronouncing all the sounds in words with two or three phonemes
D. Blending the final consonant sounds in words
Answer Option A is correct because this is the next phase in phonemic
awareness
development.
3.Students in a kindergarten class are learning to analyze and spell
phonet- ically regular words. They have learned to identify individual
phonemes and to blend onsets and rimes. Which of the following is the
most appropriate to teach next?
A. Vowel-consonant patterns
B. Types of syllables
C. Short and long vowels
D. Vowel diphthongs
Answer Option C is correct because once students have learned the
individual sounds made by letters and can blend the sounds at the
beginnings and ends of words, they must be able to analyze the vowels
within the word and determine whether the vowels are short or long so
they can assign meaning to the word as a whole.
4.Which of the following silent reading practices provides the best
conditions for students' individual reading improvement?
A. Engaging in sustained silent reading for an hour once a week while the
teacher reads a book to model engaged reading behaviors
,B. Dropping everything and reading several times a week for 30 minutes
while the teacher grades papers or prepares instructional materials
C. Reading silently any time independent work has been completed early
while the teacher keeps anecdotal records of student behaviors
D. Participating in scaffolded silent reading for 20 minutes every day while
the teacher confers with students individually about their reading
Answer Option D is correct because students are receiving support
through scaffolding.
This could be in the form of minilessons, conferencing, dialogue
journaling or other supports.
5.During a unit on propaganda, a sixth-grade teacher asks students to eval-
uate short statements made in advertising materials and to attempt to detect
any faulty reasoning. Which of the following levels of reading
comprehension is primarily being targeted in the lesson?
A. Literal
B. Inferential
C. Evaluative
D. Appreciative
Answer Option C is correct because evaluative comprehension includes
the skill of detecting faulty reasoning. Students must apply what they
have read to their
own lives and knowledge of the world to make judgments about text.
6.When selecting vocabulary from magazine or newspaper articles used
, in instruction, which of the following methods is most effective?
A. Selecting vocabulary based on the teacher's experience from
previous years of instruction
B. Asking students to identify words for further study when they read an
article for the first time
C. Using newspapers and magazines specifically made for school use,
with bolded vocabulary terms
D. Cross-referencing articles taught in class with district vocabulary lists to
identify key words
Answer Option B is correct because student selection of words for
further study is the best way to ensure that the class is studying words
that students will find useful and memorable.
7.Which of the following actions best represents the first step in the
process students should use to interpret graphs and charts containing
numerical information?
A. Looking at the title, axes, headings, and legends to develop a sense of
the content of the graph or chart
B. Analyzing whether the type of graph or chart used is the best method of
presenting the information given
C. Determining the largest and smallest values represented on the graph
or chart to get an impression of the data
D. Comparing and contrasting the various areas of the graph or chart to
determine high and low points of the data
Answer Option A is correct because this is the previewing phase. Before
Rationale Questions & Answers
1.A teacher notices that some students in the class have trouble interacting
with peers during group assignments. Which of the following will best help
students learn more appropriate oral language skills to use in group
interac- tions?
A. Assigning students to play a game in groups and then using a rubric
to evaluate their interactions
B. Rehearsing positive group collaboration by using a script and
having students analyze productive conversations
C. Requiring students to practice effective social interactions with their par-
ents and siblings at home
D. Videotaping a group while the members work together and allowing the
class to view the video and then make suggestions for improving communi-
cation
Answer Option B is correct because giving students a script provides
them with a model of appropriate interaction that they can imitate and
recall during future group assignments.
2.Most students in a kindergarten class can identify two words that rhyme.
Which of the following phonemic skills is most appropriate for the teacher
to address next?
A. Naming the beginning sounds in words
,B. Blending the initial consonant sounds in words
C. Pronouncing all the sounds in words with two or three phonemes
D. Blending the final consonant sounds in words
Answer Option A is correct because this is the next phase in phonemic
awareness
development.
3.Students in a kindergarten class are learning to analyze and spell
phonet- ically regular words. They have learned to identify individual
phonemes and to blend onsets and rimes. Which of the following is the
most appropriate to teach next?
A. Vowel-consonant patterns
B. Types of syllables
C. Short and long vowels
D. Vowel diphthongs
Answer Option C is correct because once students have learned the
individual sounds made by letters and can blend the sounds at the
beginnings and ends of words, they must be able to analyze the vowels
within the word and determine whether the vowels are short or long so
they can assign meaning to the word as a whole.
4.Which of the following silent reading practices provides the best
conditions for students' individual reading improvement?
A. Engaging in sustained silent reading for an hour once a week while the
teacher reads a book to model engaged reading behaviors
,B. Dropping everything and reading several times a week for 30 minutes
while the teacher grades papers or prepares instructional materials
C. Reading silently any time independent work has been completed early
while the teacher keeps anecdotal records of student behaviors
D. Participating in scaffolded silent reading for 20 minutes every day while
the teacher confers with students individually about their reading
Answer Option D is correct because students are receiving support
through scaffolding.
This could be in the form of minilessons, conferencing, dialogue
journaling or other supports.
5.During a unit on propaganda, a sixth-grade teacher asks students to eval-
uate short statements made in advertising materials and to attempt to detect
any faulty reasoning. Which of the following levels of reading
comprehension is primarily being targeted in the lesson?
A. Literal
B. Inferential
C. Evaluative
D. Appreciative
Answer Option C is correct because evaluative comprehension includes
the skill of detecting faulty reasoning. Students must apply what they
have read to their
own lives and knowledge of the world to make judgments about text.
6.When selecting vocabulary from magazine or newspaper articles used
, in instruction, which of the following methods is most effective?
A. Selecting vocabulary based on the teacher's experience from
previous years of instruction
B. Asking students to identify words for further study when they read an
article for the first time
C. Using newspapers and magazines specifically made for school use,
with bolded vocabulary terms
D. Cross-referencing articles taught in class with district vocabulary lists to
identify key words
Answer Option B is correct because student selection of words for
further study is the best way to ensure that the class is studying words
that students will find useful and memorable.
7.Which of the following actions best represents the first step in the
process students should use to interpret graphs and charts containing
numerical information?
A. Looking at the title, axes, headings, and legends to develop a sense of
the content of the graph or chart
B. Analyzing whether the type of graph or chart used is the best method of
presenting the information given
C. Determining the largest and smallest values represented on the graph
or chart to get an impression of the data
D. Comparing and contrasting the various areas of the graph or chart to
determine high and low points of the data
Answer Option A is correct because this is the previewing phase. Before
