Praxis Core 2023-2024 For Dummies (For Dummies (Career/Education))

✍ Scribed by Carla C. Kirkland, Chan Cleveland

• Publisher: For Dummies
• Year: 2022
• Tongue: English
• Leaves: 451
• Series: for dummies
• Edition: 4
• Category: Library

✦ Synopsis

Praxis Core 2023-2024 For Dummies provides you with the confidence you need to perform well on the Praxis Core Academic Skills for Educators Exam. With information on every section of the exam, plus full-length practice tests in the book and online, Dummies has got you covered. This study guide is essential if you’re serious about starting a career in education or pursuing teaching as career number two (or three, or four…we don’t judge).

With Praxis Core 2022-2023 For Dummies, prospective teachers get access to six complete practice tests: two in the book and an additional four online. You’ll also get deep content review on every test section, so nothing takes you by surprise on test day. College students, career changers, and job-seekers, step right up. You have the tools you need to prepare for the Praxis and the lowdown on how to score high on exam day—right here!

• Learn what’s on each section of the Praxis and review all the content in detail
• Practice, practice, practice with six full-length practice tests
• Demonstrate your readiness to enter the teaching profession right out of school or as a career change
• Launch a rewarding, meaningful, and in-demand career as an educator

The fun and friendly Dummies style will keep you peppy and smiling as you prepare to master the reading, writing, and mathematics basics that every teacher needs to know.

✦ Table of Contents

Title Page
Copyright Page
Table of Contents
Introduction
About This Book
Foolish Assumptions
Icons Used in This Book
Beyond the Book
Where to Go from Here
Part 1 Getting Started with the Praxis Core
Chapter 1 Previewing the Praxis
Why Take the Praxis?
Breaking Down the Praxis
Knowing what topics the Praxis covers
Seeing what types of questions you can expect
Understanding How the Test Is Scored
Chapter 2 Getting Ready for Test Day
Registering for the Test
Using Your Time Wisely
Budgeting your study time leading up to test day
Budgeting your time while taking the test
When Test Day Has Arrived
Knowing what to bring and what to leave at home
Getting familiar with computer testing
If You’re Retaking the Test
Chapter 3 Practicing the Praxis: Sampling Some Practice Questions
Going through the Pre-Assessment Questions
Reading practice questions
Writing practice questions
Mathematics practice questions
Looking at the Pre-Assessment Answers
Assessing Your Results
Identifying categories where you struggled
Understanding where you went wrong specifically
Part 2 Mastering Math Concepts
Chapter 4 Count on It: Number and Quantity
Working with Integers: Whole Numbers and Their Opposites
Doing basic operations with integers
Finding factors of whole numbers
Employing some helpful divisibility rules
Finding multiples of integers
Determining the greatest common factor and least common multiple
Exponents and square roots
Computing with Fractions and Mixed Numbers
Simplifying fractions
Converting between fractions and mixed numbers
Performing basic operations on fractions and mixed numbers
Working with Decimals and Percents
Converting among decimals, percents, fractions, and mixed numbers
Determining percent change
Performing basic operations on decimals
Understanding the Number Line
Interpreting numeration and place values
Knowing the basics of order
Finding orders of magnitude
Finding numbers in sequences
Following Orders: The Order of Operations
Remembering GEMDAS
Using the order of operations within itself
Reasoning with Quantities
Using the two major systems of measurement
Converting units of measurement
Basic word problems
Working with unit rates
Practice Questions about Number and Quantity
Answers and Explanations
Chapter 5 Introducing Letters: Algebra
Variables: When Letters Represent Numbers
Laying out the terms: Variable terms and expressions
Let’s get together: Combining like terms
Multiplying and dividing terms and expressions
Combining fractions that have variables
When variable values are given
Working with Equations
Solving for x and other variables
Undoing addition and subtraction
Undoing multiplication and division
Multistep equations
Proportions
Systems of equations
Solving for variables in terms of other variables
Solving Inequalities
Following two more rules when solving inequalities
Graphing inequalities
Describing solution steps
Factoring in Algebra
Factoring terms out of bigger terms
Using reverse FOIL
Decoding Algebra Word Problems
Translating English into mathematical language
Algebraic word problems
Thinking Outside the Algebra Box
Recognizing relational patterns
Algebraic reasoning
Practice Questions about Algebra
Answers and Explanations
Chapter 6 Grasping Geometry Concepts
Understanding the Building Blocks of Geometry
Getting to the point
Defining lines and parts of lines
Moving along planes in space
Getting the right angles on angles
Recognizing congruence
Understanding Angle Measures and Relationships
Distinguishing degrees of angle measure and naming angles
Working with angle relationships
Knowing Common Shapes and Their Basic Properties
Defining polygons in general
Analyzing triangles: Three-sided polygons
Identifying facts about quadrilaterals
Working with other types of polygons
Knowing the basic facts about circles
Working with Shapes that Are Alike
Forming conclusions about congruent shapes
Working with similar shapes
Figuring out Geometric Formulas
Finding the perimeter
Circling the circumference
Getting into the area
Finding the right volume
Combining Shapes
Coming together: Shapes that have joined without an invasion
Preparing for invasion: When one shape invades another
Knowing the Ways of the XY Coordinate Plane
Naming coordinate pairs
Identifying linear equations and their graphs
Using the distance and midpoint formulas
Finding meaning in intersecting graphs
Transforming coordinate plane figures
Touching on Right Triangles
Knowing what Pythagoras discovered
Working with special right triangles
Practice Questions about Geometry
Answers and Explanations
Chapter 7 Statistics and Probability
Representing Data
Tables
Bar graphs and line graphs
Pie charts
Stem-and-leaf plots
Box-and-whisker plots
Venn diagrams
Scrambling around scatter plots
Loitering around line plots
Analyzing Data
Combing through comparisons
Homing in on the range
Measuring arithmetic mean, median, or mode
Looking for outliers
Measuring the spread of data
Scrutinizing samples for data analysis
Interpreting linear models
Calculating Probability
Determining the likelihood of an event
Using complements
Pointing Out Scientific Notation Facts
Practice Questions about Statistics and Probability
Answers and Explanations
Chapter 8 Test-Taking Strategies for Core Math
Using Helpful Shortcuts
Solving equations versus determining what must be solved
Using estimation and approximation
Using the calculator
Identifying calculations you can make in your head
The art of guessing as a last resort
Working backward
Narrowing Down Answer Choices
Eliminating obviously wrong answer choices
Avoiding the most common wrong answers
Tackling the Constructed Response
Tips for preparing responses and answering questions
Some proper ways of representing answers
Avoiding careless errors
Part 3 Refining Your Reading Comprehension Skills
Chapter 9 Reading Comprehension: Finding Meaning and Identifying Purpose
Previewing the Praxis Reading Test
Knowing what the test contains
Applying a general strategy
Mastering Short-Passage Questions
Ferreting out the main idea
Discerning the author’s tone and intent
Putting vocabulary in context
Looking at Long-Passage Questions
Purpose and paraphrase
Arguments and support
Getting the hang of “If” questions
Sample questions for long passages
Visual- and Quantitative-Information Questions
Rethinking charts and graphs
Getting graphs
Practice Reading-Comprehension Questions
Answers and Explanations
Chapter 10 Test-Taking Strategies for Core Reading
Which to Read First: The Passage or the Question
Examining Strategies for the Various Passages
Approaching long and short passages
Approaching the paired passages
Approaching Questions about Charts and Graphs
Eliminating Wrong Answers
Part 4 Fine-Tuning Your Writing Skills
Chapter 11 Acing the Essay
Perusing the Types of Prompts: “Picking a Side” versus “Exploring an Idea”
Writing persuasively in the argumentative essay
Sticking to the facts in the informative essay
Creating a Solid Essay
Making an outline: Essential or overrated?
Dividing up your essay into sections
Don’t box yourself in: Theses aren’t set in stone
Citing the sources
Some additional writing pointers
Turning a Good Essay into a Great One
Adding interesting anecdotes
Painting a picture with words
Anticipating objections against your position
Understanding How the Essay Is Scored
Checking Out Some Practice Prompts
Prompts for argumentative essays
Prompts for informative/explanatory essays
Reviewing a Sample Essay
Evaluating Your Essay
Chapter 12 Giving Grammar a Glance
Getting a Grip on the Parts of Speech
Finding nouns as subjects and objects
Putting verbs to work
Using adjectives to describe people, places, and things
Calling on adverbs to describe actions and conditions
Getting the lowdown on pronouns
Considering conjunctions
Perusing prepositions
Making Sense of Sentence Structure
Independent clauses versus everything else
The sentence skeleton: Identifying the main subject and verb
Run-ons and comma splices
Pondering Punctuation
Commas
Semicolons
Apostrophes
Misplaced Modifiers
Redundancy and Double Negatives
Homophones: “They’re in there with their bear”
Which one has the apostrophe?
Spelled and used differently, but sound the same
Capitalization: What You Need to Know
Practice Questions about Grammar
Answers and Explanations
Chapter 13 Test-Taking Strategies for Core Writing
Knowing the Types of Selected-Response Writing Questions
Type 1: Answering usage questions
Type 2: Showing your research skills
Type 3: Making sentence corrections
Type 4: Regarding revision-in-context questions
Identifying and Correcting Errors in Selected-Response Items
Eliminating the obviously wrong choices
Don’t be afraid to say it’s right the way it is
The art of guessing as a last resort
A word of advice about trusting your ear
Mastering the Essay
Part 5 Tackling Praxis Core Practice Tests
Chapter 14 Practice Exam 1
Answer Sheet for Practice Exam 1
Part 1: Reading
Part 2: Writing
Argumentative Essay
Source-Based Essay
Part 3: Mathematics
Chapter 15 Practice Exam 1: Answers and Explanations
Part 1: Reading
Part 2: Writing
Argumentative essay
Source-based essay
Part 3: Mathematics
Answer Key
Chapter 16 Practice Exam 2
Answer Sheet for Practice Exam 2
Part 1: Reading
Part 2: Writing
Argumentative Essay
Source-Based Essay
Part 3: Mathematics
Chapter 17 Practice Exam 2: Answers and Explanations
Part 1: Reading
Part 2: Writing
Argumentative Essay
Source-Based Essay
Part 3: Mathematics
Answer Key
Part 6 The Part of Tens
Chapter 18 Ten Common Math Errors to Avoid
Misusing Negative Signs
Confusing Perimeter and Area
Incorrectly Combining Like Terms
Messing Up When Moving Decimals
Not Solving for the Actual Variable
Misrepresenting “Less Than” in Word Problems
Mixing Up Supplementary and Complementary Angles
Finding a False Median
Fearing Fractions
Forgetting about Fractions in Formulas
Chapter 19 Ten Mistakes to Avoid on the Praxis Reading and Writing Exams
Avoiding Mistakes Common to the Writing and Reading Tests
Don’t look for patterns in the answers
Don’t change answers merely for the sake of changing them
Sidestepping Mistakes on the Writing Test
Don’t equate different with wrong
Don’t assume something must be correct just because it sounds fancier or more complex
Don’t turn the essay into a thesaurus explosion
Don’t paint yourself into a corner with a rigid thesis
Evading Mistakes on the Reading Test
Don’t rule out the “too obvious”
Don’t word-match
Don’t ignore your outside knowledge
Don’t try to answer more than the question asks you to
Index
EULA