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How to Create a High-Impact Boot Camp Test Review: Fun, Fast, and Effective!
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Preparing students for high-stakes testing is not only stressful, but it can be challenging to keep students engaged while covering all of the standards and testing skills to prepare students for success.
If you’re looking for an engaging and data-driven approach to test reviews, try a Boot Camp review!
What a Boot Camp review is:
Based on student performance, this style of review divides students into groups, focuses on the specific testing skills and standards they need to review, and rotates them through various learning styles to keep them engaged and mastering the material. It’s differentiated by need, driven by teacher collaboration, and is focused on data-based grouping.
What a Boot Camp review is not:
This review is not a one-size-fits-all approach to review, and it is not a deep dive into all the standards. It should focus on helping students master vocabulary, specific standards, and test-taking skills so that they can level-up in their proficiency. Focus on helping students take at least one step up; from below basic to basic, basic to proficient, etc.
What makes this style of review effective?
It focuses on data-based student need. Once grouped, teachers can develop remediation and enrichment for specific students while creating activities that focus on test-taking skills, standards, and vocabulary. In my personal experience, this style of review helped students master what they were able to focus on in the short review window. For some, this meant simply mastering the vocabulary so that they could perhaps score at basic or proficient on the assessment. For others, this meant they could take a deeper dive into the standards, allowing them to make connections that would help them score at an advanced level on state tests.
How do you create a Boot Camp review?
The key is to use data from your classroom: formative assessments, benchmarks, quizzes, and teacher observations, to form groups of students. Keep groups anonymous and data-focused. Ideally, three groups work best.
Each group should receive differentiated review at their level. Review should be targeted: focus on the standards where the students under-performed, reviewing 1-2 standards per review session.
Decide how to deliver the review. If you have more than one content teacher at your school (three US History teachers, for example), divide the student groups and each teacher takes one level during each class period. This may mean that some of your students see a teacher other than you for their review, but they are getting targeted review for their needs, and this can have a huge impact! If you do not have enough content teachers to divide students among several classrooms, develop the review based on station activities in your classroom, or whole-group review that is scaffolded.
Throughout the review, have students create a review document, either paper or digital, that will act as their study guide for the assessment and can be used as an assignment to complete the Boot Camp. They can use this study guide during class and at home to prepare for the test right up until the assessment date!
Want to learn more about exactly how to develop a Boot Camp review, see example activities, and get more details?
Check out our previously recorded Boot Camp Review webinars, where we covered the specifics for each Georgia-assessed high school course and Georgia Studies.
Still need more information? Have questions? Please reach out and let us know. We’re here to support you!
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