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NYC SHSAT Power Prep

Specialized High Schools Admissions Test (SHSAT) New York City for 8th graders is designed to build confidence, sharpen skills, and maximize test performance. Engaging, interactive lessons in verbal skills and reading comprehension.
Miss Sue MA MLIS
Average rating:
5.0
Number of reviews:
(8)
Class
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What's included

8 live meetings
7 hrs 20 mins in-class hours
Homework
2-4 hours per week. Homework assignments taken from the syllabus and the test prep book.
Grading
scores on the practice tests

Class Experience

US Grade 7 - 8
Test-taking Strategies
In NYC SHSAT Power Prep I teach time management, answer elimination, and confidence building.
I teach students how to pace themselves through practice tests;
how to eliminate incorrect answer choices to improve the odds; and how to focus on building resilience and dealing with test anxiety.

English Language Arts (ELA) 
Reading Comprehension: Practice with fiction and nonfiction passages. Focus on main ideas, supporting details, inferences, and author’s purpose.
Revising/Editing: I teach grammar, punctuation, sentence structure, and paragraph organization. Students will practice editing passages for clarity, conciseness, and correctness.

Practice Tests
Regular practice exams are assigned as homework under timed conditions to simulate the actual test.
As a class we will review incorrect answers to identify weaknesses and focus on areas for improvement.
Learning Goals
Students will acquire essential test-taking strategies that improve time management, answer selection, and overall performance under pressure.
Read and analyze both fiction and nonfiction passages to identify main ideas, make inferences, and draw conclusions. Demonstrate understanding of the author’s purpose and tone in reading selections.
learning goal

Syllabus

8 Lessons
over 8 Weeks
Lesson 1:
Day 1: Introduction to SHSAT Verbal Section
 Objective: Students will understand the structure of the SHSAT verbal section and the types of questions asked.
Assessment: Class discussion and completion of a quiz on the types of verbal questions.
Key Points: Overview of the SHSAT, importance of verbal skills, types of questions (vocabulary, reading comprehension).
Standard Addressed: CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.8.1 
55 mins online live lesson
Lesson 2:
Day 2: Vocabulary Development
 Objective: Students will learn strategies for improving vocabulary through context clues and word analysis.
Assessment: Vocabulary quiz using words from previous SHSAT exams.
Key Points: Context clues, prefixes, suffixes, and root words.
Standard Addressed: CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.L.8.4 
55 mins online live lesson
Lesson 3:
Day 3: Reading Comprehension Strategies
 Objective: Students will identify and apply effective reading comprehension strategies.
Assessment: Students will summarize a passage and answer comprehension questions.
Key Points: Skimming, scanning, main idea identification, and making inferences.
Standard Addressed: CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.8.2 
55 mins online live lesson
Lesson 4:
Day 4: Analyzing Literary Texts
 Objective: Students will analyze character, setting, and plot in a literary text.
Participation in discussion analyzing a character from a selected text.
Key Points: Elements of literature, character analysis, and theme identification.
Standard Addressed: CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.8.3 
55 mins online live lesson

Other Details

Learning Needs
As a reading specialist, I have tactics to make the test prep accessible to those with dyslexia, and share how to register for accommodations.
Supply List
Must come prepared to the first class with notecards and the test prep book. 
Tutorverse SHSAT isbn: 978-1732167766

Message me if you need a class on the HSPT, which I have also taught. I will create a separate curricula.
External Resources
Learners will not need to use any apps or websites beyond the standard Outschool tools.
Joined May, 2024
5.0
8reviews
Profile
Teacher expertise and credentials
Washington Teaching Certificate in Secondary Education
Master's Degree in Information Technology from University of Washington
Master's Degree in Theatre Arts from University of Washington
Bachelor's Degree in Education from University of Washington
MlIS, Library Science; MA Theatre Arts; BA Education and Drama, all from the University of Washington (Go DAWGS! woof)

Six years teaching standardized test preparation on the Varsity Tutors platform, and my own business, Threshold Tutoring. I can't begin to remember all the acronyms and levels from 4th grade to high school juniors SAT. All students have seen their scores go up. Since I am new on Outschool with few reviews, I'm including testimonials from my tutoring business web page. The first one is for test prep. 

I highly recommend Ms. Sue as a tutor. Her exceptional skills and experience in test preparation helped my son improve his SSAT score from 1490 to 1941 in just five months. Ms. Sue's dedication and ability to create an engaging learning environment have made a significant impact on my son's academic progress. With Ms. Sue's help, my son was able to get into his preferred school, which speaks to her effectiveness as a tutor. I strongly recommend Ms. Sue's tutoring services to anyone looking for academic support that can make a significant impact on their child's educational journey. Parent of 5th grade male SSAT Prep student

Excellent tutor! So thankful for how Sue educates and the breadth   of material she covers. Above and beyond!! Parent of 5th grade girl at Cincinnati Country Day creative writing and drama.
Fabulous, thoughtful, insightful tutor! Same parent of 8th grade brother at Cincinnati Country Day receiving enrichment ELA tutoring focusing on literature and academic writing.

Sue, thank you so much for your time and for sharing your expertise with our team and students! I appreciate your dedication towards finding the strengths and motivations for each of our students.
Teacher at the Seattle Children's Hospital School.

Ms. Sue is a very helpful tutor. She helped me pull up my grades. When we started a year ago I was below average. Now I am advanced. My reading scores went up. I have more confidence. She helped me become a better writer.  It was fun to read play scripts with Roderick. She also taught me better coping skills. I don’t burst out crying now. I don’t always think I’m gonna fail stuff anymore. Without her I don’t think I would have made it to where I am now. I’m ready for middle school. Most definitely ask if Ms. Sue can help your kid.
5th grader from Washington D.C.   (note: This student’s scores on “The Reading Inventory” given by her school 8/31/22 and 1/18/23 went from Lexile 788 to 1162; Percentile Rank 47 to 95; NCE (normal curve equivalent) 48 to 85; and Stanine 5 to 8.

Ms. Sue is kind and loving and smart. I could hardly read in 2nd grade and I just took the STAAR Reading and felt confident. I feel fine to read out loud in class. I’m sure you will like Ms. Sue as much as I do. She is forgetful sometimes and that makes her cool and so fun. 

4th grader from Texas who I have worked with for two years on word recognition using explicit, systematic instruction in phonics, spelling and sight recognition; and  teaching language comprehension including background knowledge, vocabulary, grammar and syntax, verbal reasoning, and reading fluency.

Reviews

Live Group Course
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$60

weekly or $480 for 8 classes
1x per week, 8 weeks
55 min

Live video meetings
Ages: 11-14
4-12 learners per class

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