HOW DO STUDENTS LOG IN?

1. Log in using star.bcschools.net (no www)

Or Double Click on the STAR icon that is a yellow star

2. Click on STUDENT

3. Click on the BLUE find user name

4. Search for your last name5. Click on your name (if your name appears more than once, click on the one in ALL CAPS)

(DO NOT CHANGE USER NAME, EVEN IF IT LOOKS LIKE A FUNNY CODE – IT IS RIGHT)

6. PASSWORD: ABC OR abc doesn’t matter7. Log In8. Take A Quiz – Under Accelerated Reader9. Choose the type of quiz you want to take10. Search for your quiz – then begin

HOW DO I RUN STUDENT REPORTS IN AR?Log In as Teacher

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Go down to the Accelerated Reader SectionClick on Reports

Under Reports, you can run reports on Reading Practice, and Other Reading (Treasures Quizzes)

One of the most popular reports under Reading Practice is student record

TO PRINT LABELS FOR BOOKSLog into AR/STARARReports

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School Management

Labels – Book

Select Quizzes = Click on “SOME” Button

HOW DO I DELETE AN AR TEST FROM A STUDENT’S RECORD?Log into program as Teacher/AdministratorGo down to the AR sectionClass Record BookReading Practice Quizzes

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Search for Quizzes and click in the squareClick on ADD at the bottom of pageSaveView ReportPrint

Click on Student’s Name

Find the Quiz Click on Delete

WHAT DO I DO WHEN A STUDENT IS LOCKED OUT?

Students will automatically be unlocked overnightBut, if you need to unlock right away you can:

Log into program as teacher/administrator1. Click on Personnel, Parents, and Students

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2. Click on Clear Locked Students

How do Students take a quiz on our Treasures Series?Students can quiz on your weekly main selection in the Treasures Series.

1. Students Log into the program2. Click on Take a Quiz

3. Click on Take an Other Reading Quiz

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4. Search for the name of the quiz.

Please note, when taking quizzes in Other Reading Quiz area such as this, it is not counted towards points. These quizzes will appear on a separate section of your reports.

How Do I Set Goals?1. Go to AR Goal Calculator http://argoals.renlearn.com/2. Select your goal period – 6 Weeks, 12, Weeks, 18 Weeks (If you want monthly, which I recommend, just select

12 weeks, then divide by 3)3. Put in Student Name4. Put in GE – Found from STAR report5. Click on Calculate

6. Enter the goals in AR ProgramLog into program as teacher/administrator

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Accelerated Reader SectionClass Record BooksReading Practice GoalsSelect the marking periods you choose to use (Monthly, 6 weeks, 12 weeks) and saveEnter the student’s individual goals that you created from goal calculator

7. It’s that easy

What if I teach K, 1, or 2nd and I want to set Goals, My student do not STAR Test

We can convert DRA levels for Goal Setting. Here is a goal setting chart, (page 9). After you establish each child’s goals, you can enter into the AR program:

Log into program as teacher/administratorAccelerated Reader SectionClass Record BooksReading Practice Goals

Select the marking periods you choose to use (Monthly, 6 weeks, 12 weeks) and saveEnter the student’s individual goals that you created from goal setting chart

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RALevels

Grade-Equivalent

Score ZPD

Point ValuesExpected from 60 Minutes per Day

of Reading Practice Point ValuesExpected from 30 Minutes per Day

of Reading Practice

Point ValuesExpected from 15 Minutes per Day

of Reading Practice

Average Range WK 4WKS6WK

S YR WK 4WKS6WK

S YR WK 4WKS6WK

S YR

10-12 1.0 1.5 1.0-2.0 1.7 6 10 60 0.85 3.4 5 30 0.4 0.6 1 15

14-16 1.5 2 1.5-2.5 1.9 7 11 68 1 3.6 5.5 34 0.5 1.8 2.8 17

18-20 2.0 2.5 2.0-3.0 2.1 8 13 75 1 4.3 6.5 37.5 0.5 2.1 3.2 18.7

24-28 2.5 2.8 2.3-3.3 2.3 9 14 84 1.2 4.8 7 42 0.6 2.3 3.5 21

30 3.0 3.1 2.6-3.6 2.5 10 15 90 1.2 5 7.5 45 0.6 2.5 3.8 22.5

34 3.5 3.4 2.3-4.0 2.7 11 16 97 1.3 5.2 8 48.5 0.7 2.6 4 24.2

38 4.0 3.7 3.1-4.3 2.8 12 17 100 1.4 5.6 8.5 50 0.7 2.8 4.2 25

40 4.5 4.1 3.4-4.7 3.2 13 19 116 1.6 6.4 9.5 58 0.8 3.1 4.7 29

44 5.0 4.4 3.7-5.1 3.5 14 21 125 1.8 7.2 10.5 62.5 0.9 3.4 5.2 31.2

  5.5 4.8 4.0-5.5 3.9 16 23 140 2 7.6 11.5 70 1 3.8 5.8 35

  6.0 5.1 4.3-5.9 4.2 17 25 150 2.1 8.4 12.5 75 1.1 4.1 6.2 37.5

  6.5 5.5 4.6-6.3 4.6 18 28 164 2.3 9.2 14 82 1.2 4.6 7 41

  7.0 5.8 4.9-6.7 4.9 20 29 175 2.5 10 14.5 87.5 1.3 4.8 7.2 43.7

  7.5 6.1 5.1-7.1 5.3 21 32 192 2.6 10.4 16 91 1.3 5.3 8 45.5

  8.0 6.3 5.2-7.5 5.6 22 34 200 2.8 11.2 17 100 1.4 5.6 8.5 50

  9 6.6 5.3-8.3 6.3 25 38 225 3.1 12.4 19 112.5 1.5 6.3 9.5 56.2

  10.0 6.9 5.4-9.1 6.9 28 41 250 3.5 14 20.5 125 1.7 6.8 10.2 62.5

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GOAL SETTING CHART CONVERTING DRA TO ZPD

  11 7.2 5.5-9.9 7.6 30 46 275 3.8 15.2 23 137.5 1.9 7.6 11.5 69

  12.0 7.5 5.6-10.7 8.3 33 50 300 4.1 16.4 25 150 2 8.3 12.5 75

This chart is a guideline only. Both grade-equivalent scores and book readability levels areapproximations. Use your professional judgment to adjust ZPD ranges to match individual students, taking into account such factors as a student's prior knowledge,

appetite for challenge, interest, and need for variety. When moving students to higher levels, consider suggesting shorter books.

How does Home Connect Work?Home connect is a wonderful resource for parents. Parents can set this up very simply. When they enter their e-mail address, they will get instant e-mails when their child takes an AR test or a Math Facts in a Flash test telling them their scores. Home connect is also a way parents can log into their child’s account and check on their progress, look up AR points and levels for books, and students can practice Math Facts from home in home connect.To learn more about AR home connect you can read about it in the program.Log into the program and on the home page there is a section on home connect.

How can parents access home connect?

http://star.bcschools.net/RenaissanceServer/HomeConnect/Login.aspx

When you click on Information Letter (above) a letter will print out for each child. In the letter the parents will receive the web address for home connect and also their child’s user name and password. That is all they need to access home connect and set up their instant e-mails.

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Parents can also access the website to home connect also through my website under the parent tab.

simonpam.weebly.com

AR BOOK FINDERIf Renaissance Learning wrote a test for a book, students can test on it! There are no limits. Books can be from their home collection, public library collection, school libraries, book fair, etc. To look up a book to check the AR level and the points, go to:www.arbookfind.comAR book finder can also be accessed through home connect.You can also find a link on my parent tab of my web page.simonpam.weebly.com

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS:10

Can a student AR test at home?No, students cannot AR test from home.

Can students practice Math Facts in a Flash at home?Yes, students can practice their Math Facts in the program from the Home Connect Page. http://star.bcschools.net/RenaissanceServer/HomeConnect/Login.aspx

Can students take a Math Facts in a Flash Test at home?No, they can only practice. Testing can only be done at school.

What if a student needs to test at school beyond the school day?They can, but a monitor password needs to be entered. The password is ADMIN

HOW TO PRINT STAR REPORTSSTAR TESTING IS GIVEN TO 3RD, 4TH, AND 5TH GRADE STUDENTS 3-4X A SCHOOL YEAR

Click on the Icon for AR/STAR/MF or

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star.bcschools.net (no www)Log in as Teacher Log in: _______________________________________Password: _1234___________(please do not change password)

Scroll down to the bottom STAR ReadingReports

You can choose the report you would likeYou can run individual reports for students or group reports for a classChoose the type of report you would likeUse the pull down menu to select your class or select specific students

If you have any questions or problems, please do not hesitate to e-mail me atsimonp@bcschools.net

WHAT DO THE CODES STAND FOR ON THE STAR REPORTS?STAR Reading scores represent how students performed on the test compared with the performance of a nationally representative sample of students, called the norms group. These scores present a snapshot of achievement at a specific point in time. As with any test, it is important to remember that many factors can affect a student’s test scores. STAR Reading test scores give only one picture of how a student is doing in school. Scaled score (SS) is useful for comparing student performance over time and across grades. A scaled score is calculated based on the difficulty of questions and the number of correct responses. Because the same range is used for all students, scaled scores can be used to compare student performance across grade levels. STAR Reading scaled scores range from 0 to 1400. All norm-referenced scores are derived from the scaled score. Percentile rank (PR) is a norm-referenced score that provides a measure of a student’s reading ability compared to other students in the same grade nationally. The percentile rank score, which ranges from 1 to 99, indicates the percentage of other students nationally who obtained scores equal to or lower than the score of a particular student. For example, a student with a percentile rank score of 85 performed as well as or better than 85 percent of other students in the same grade.

Percentile rank range (PR Range) indicates the statistical variability in a student’s percentile rank score. For example, a student with a percentile rank range of 32–59 is likely to score within that range if the STAR Reading test is taken again within a short time (i.e., four to six weeks). Normal curve equivalent (NCE) is a norm-referenced score that is similar to percentile rank, but is based on an equal interval scale. This means the difference between any two successive scores on the NCE scale has the same meaning throughout the scale. NCEs are useful in making comparisons between different achievement tests and for statistical computations—for example, determining an average score for a group of students. NCE scores range from 1 to 99 and are mostly used for research.

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Grade equivalent (GE) is a norm-referenced score that represents how a student’s test performance compares with other students nationally. For example, a fifth-grade student with a GE score of 7.6 performed as well as a typical seventh-grader after the sixth month of the school year. This score doesn’t necessarily mean that the student is capable of reading seventh-grade material—it only indicates that the student’s reading skills are well above average for the fifth grade.

Grade placement (GP) is a numeric representation of a student’s grade level, based on the specific month in which a student takes a STAR Reading test. STAR Reading considers the standard school year to run from September through June and assigns increment values of 0.0 through 0.9 to these months. The software automatically assigns grade placements using a student’s grade level and the month in which a STAR Reading test was taken. GP is important because PR and NCE values are based not only on the Scaled Score but also on the grade placement of the student at the time of the test.

Instructional reading level (IRL) is a criterion-referenced score that indicates the highest reading level at which a student is at least 80 percent proficient at recognizing words and understanding material with instructional assistance. For example, a seventh-grade student with a score of 8.0 reads eighth-grade words with 80 percent accuracy or better. IRL scores are Pre-Primer (PP), Primer (P), grades 1.0 through 12.9, and Post-High School (PHS).

Zone of proximal development (ZPD) is a range of readability levels from which a student should select books to read. It is a range that is neither too hard nor too easy, within which students can experience optimal growth. Students’ individual ZPDs are reported on the STAR Reading Diagnostic, Parent, Reading Range, and Summary reports. Remember that ZPDs are approximate and professional judgment should be used to adjust the range to fit the ability level of each student.

ATOS is a readability formula that estimates the reading difficulty levels of books and other texts. ATOS uses four factors to determine the readability of a text: average sentence length, average word length, vocabulary grade level, and the number of words in a book.

ATOS 2000 scale reported by Renaissance Learning is a transformation of a book’s ATOS level to a scale that is similar—but not identical—to the Lexile scale. The transformation was derived by analyzing ATOS and Lexile data on more than 19,000 books. Because ATOS uses four characteristics (average sentence length, average word length, vocabulary grade level, and the number of words in a book) to estimate reading difficulty, as opposed to only two measures used by Lexile (sentence length and word frequency), Renaissance Learning expects ATOS to be somewhat more accurate than Lexile. The ATOS 2000 scale information should be useful to anyone who is accustomed to using Lexiles, because its values are reasonable approximations in most cases. For the conversion chart, please see the Conversion Chart to ATOS 2000 Scale. Lexile and the Lexile Framework are registered trademarks of MetaMetrics, Inc.

ATOS 2000 is the scaled score converted to Renaissance Learning’s ATOS 2000 scale that is similar—but not identical—to the Lexile scale. Since Lexile uses BR (beginning reader) to indicate scores less than zero, the ATOS 2000 scale must also report some scores as BR. Lexile and the Lexile Framework are registered trademarks of MetaMetrics, Inc.

ZPD 2000 is a student’s ZPD converted to Renaissance Learning’s ATOS 2000 scale that is similar—but not identical—to the Lexile scale. For the conversion chart, please see the Conversion Chart to ATOS 2000 Scale. Lexile and the Lexile Framework are registered trademarks of MetaMetrics, Inc.

Estimated oral reading fluency (Est. ORF) is an estimate of a student’s ability to read words quickly and accurately in order to comprehend text efficiently. Students with oral reading fluency demonstrate accurate decoding, automatic word recognition, and appropriate use of the rhythmic aspects of language (e.g., intonation, phrasing, pitch, and emphasis). Est. ORF is reported in correct words per minute, and is based on a known relationship between STAR Reading performance and oral reading fluency.

Need Additional Help?

If at any time you need help with any of the Renaissance Programs: (Math Facts, AR, STAR, AM) you can call the Renaissance Help Desk. Any teacher in the district can call. You just need your customer number. The help desk phone number is:

1-800-656-674013

Customer Numbers:Auburn Elementary - #132487Hampton Elementary - #133134Lindsay Elementary - #133095Mackensen Elementary- #708371Washington Elementary- #133127MacGregor Elementary- #133113Kolb Elementary- #133034orContact your Media Specialist ore-mail Pam Simon: simonp@bcschools.net

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