Preface 2
Acknowledgements 3
Overview of Florida GED PLUS College Preparation Program 12
College Entrance Requirements 15
College Placement Remedial Cutoff Scores 15
Building Critical Thinking Skills 16
Overview of Critical Thinking Skills 16
Most Common Thinking Errors 18
What Can Teachers Do? 19
Applying Bloom’s Taxonomy in the Florida GED PLUS Classroom 22
Strategy - Use Critical Thinking Questions 23
Using PowerPoint in the Florida GED PLUS Classroom 24
Enhancing the Effectiveness of Classroom Instruction 26
Determining the Content 26
PowerPoint Graphic Organizer 28
General Guidelines for Developing Effective Presentation 29
Before Your Begin 29
Setting Up Text on Slides 29
Using Color on Slides 30
Using Special Effects 31
PowerPoint Tutorials and Resources 31
Overview 32
Objective 1 – Reading Materials at Beginning College Level 33
Overview of Readability Indices 35
Strategy – Comparing Readability Levels 36
Reading List for the College Bound 46
College Bound Reading List 48
Teaching Poetry in the Language Arts Classroom 71
Analysis of Poetry 72
Strategy – Analyzing a Poem in Four Paragraphs 72
Strategy – Comparing and Contrasting Two Poems In Six Paragraphs 72
Objective 2 – Increased Reading Rate and Fluency 73
Strategy – WARF Speed Ahead 75
Strategy – Determine Each Student’s Reading Rate 76
Strategy – Timed Reading 76
Strategy – Building Fluency 79
Strategy – Fluency Development Lesson 80
Strategy – Vocabulary Speed Drills 80
Strategy – Guided Oral Repeated Reading 80
Objective 3 – Reading Comprehension 83
Strategy – Skimming 83
Strategy – TIPP? 83
Strategy – Scanning 85
Strategy – Intensive or Careful Reading 85
Objective 4 – Appropriate Strategies to Increase Comprehension 91
Strategy – SQ3R: The Steps to Comprehension 91
Strategy – The Survey Q3R: Reading for Comprehension 93
Strategy – GIST: 5Ws and an H 94
Strategy – About Point 95
Strategy – Mapping and Graphic Organizers 97
Strategy – Scaffolding 101
Strategy – Cloze Procedure 103
Objective 5 – Read Diverse Passages 108
Strategy – Engaging Students in Reading 108
Objective 6 – Beginning College-Level Vocabulary 109
Strategy – Using Signal Words 110
Signal Words* 110
Strategy – Academic Word List 112
113
Academic Word List 114
Strategy – Before and After Vocabulary Grids 118
120
Objective 7 – Classroom Presentations and/or Speeches 120
Oral Presentations 120
Strategy – 7 P Approach to Public Speaking 120
Strategy – A Presentation Outline 121
Strategy – Use a Presentation Rubric 122
Objective 8 – Figurative Language 124
The Elements of Figurative Language 124
Strategy – Figurative Language in Music 126
Objective 9 – Summarize Elements within Literature 133
Strategy – Plot Grid 133
Strategy – Story Star 134
134
Strategy – Story Matrix 135
Strategy – Advanced Story Map 136
Strategy – Advanced Story Map 138
Strategy – Working with Basic Literary Terms 139
Objective 10 – Learn to Question 143
Questioning 143
Strategy – Previewing Text 145
Objective 11 – Build Research Skills 146
Strategy – Reading with Purpose 146
Overview 149
Objective 1 – Writing for Different Purposes 150
College Writing 150
Strategy – Sample CPT Essay Topics 151
Strategy - Sample Essay Topics Used by Various Colleges 151
CPT Placement Rubric 152
Sample Topics and Score Points for Selected Essays 155
Objective 2 – Conducts Research 163
Strategy – Choosing a Research Topic 163
Objective 3 – Diverse Writing Assignments 165
Strategy – Summarization 165
Strategy – GIST: 5 Ws and an H 166
Strategy – Transitional Expressions 167
Strategy – Writing with Clichés 168
Strategy – Word Tasting 171
Strategy – Headline Mania! 171
Strategy – Pick a Postcard 172
Strategy – Ten Minutes Only 172
Strategy – New Voices: New Choices 172
Strategy – Music to Our Ears 173
Strategy – Five Senses: A Descriptive Writing Exercise 173
Objective 4 – The Writing Process 175
The Writing Process 175
Strategy - 6+1 Traits of Writing – An Editing and Revision Process 176
The Standard Expository Essay Template 178
Strategy – Outline/Diagram 178
Objective 5 – Use Edited American English 179
Strategy – Organizational Activities 180
Activity 1: Scrambled Sentences 181
Activity 2: Scrambled Sentence Kernels 182
Activity 3: Scrambled Paragraphs 185
Answer Key 187
Objective 6 – Formats for College Writing 190
Style 190
Objective 7 – Basic Note-Taking 190
Strategy – The Cornell System 190
Strategy - Double-Entry Diaries 194
Objective 8 – Basic Question Types 197
Question Types 197
Content Guidelines for Florida GED PLUS Mathematics 200
Objective 1 – Problem Solving 201
Strategy – Use Multiple Steps to Solve Problems 201
Strategy – Identify Key Words 203
Strategy – Geometry Concentration 205
Strategy – Math Translation Guide 206
Strategy – Use a Graphic Organizer 208
Objective 2 – Algebraic Thinking 211
Algebraic Thinking 211
Strategy – Algebra Manipulatives 212
Algebra – Your Second Language 230
Objective 3 – Question Types 231
Descriptions and Sample Questions for CPT Mathematics Tests 231
Objective 4 – Real-Life Mathematics 236
What Should Students Learn for Today’s World? 236
Concepts or Procedures? 237
Strategy – Sample Lesson: Math in the Workplace 237
Objective 5 – Use a variety of strategies for solving problems 239
Identify an Appropriate Strategy 239
Objective 1 – Understand the College System 251
Types of Degrees 251
Credit System 252
College Classes 254
Choosing a College 254
Paying for College 255
Support for Students with Learning Disabilities 260
Objective 2 – Take Charge of Learning 261
Develop and Manage Short and Long-Term Goals 263
Objective 3 – Use Effective Time Management Skills 268
Skills Required for Effective Time Management 268
Objective 4 – Use Effective Study Skills 274
Active Listening 274
Note Taking 277
Objective 5 – Use Effective Study Skills to Prepare for Tests 283
Types of Tests 283
Critical Thinking Skills Required for College Tests 285
Test Anxiety 286
Linking New Knowledge with Experience 292
Strategies – Activating Personal Background Knowledge 293
Objective 6 – Has Basic Computer Literacy Skills 294
Reviewed Research and References 297
Academic Resources and References 302
Research Articles and References – Writing 302
Research Articles and References – Reading 303
Research Articles and References – Mathematics 306
Websites for Instructional Reference and Classroom Use 307
Websites – English 307
Websites - Reading 309
Websites - Mathematics 311
College Placement Test – Practice Tests and Information 314
GED, CPT (Accuplacer), ACT, and SAT Official Websites 315
Just for Fun – Game Templates 315
Just to Get You Started: Websites for Brainteasers and Teacher Made Materials 316
Websites – College Survival Skills 317
Financial Aid and Money Management 317
Time Management 318
Study Skills 319
Memory Development 320
Test-Taking Skills 320
Stress Management 321
Learning Styles 321
Setting Goals 322
General College Success Skills 322
Computer Literacy Skills 323
