Book excerpt: In 2014-2015, Colorado's TCAP assessments will be replaced by the PARCC assessments. This book has been developed specifically to prepare students for the new PARCC assessments. It covers both the Performance-Based Assessment (PBA) and the End-of-Year Assessment (EOY). It includes practice for all the tasks students will encounter on the real PARCC tests. Complete Preparation for the PBA and the EOY - Separate sections cover the PBA and the EOY assessments - Each section mimics the content of the real assessments - Flexible format allows question sets to be completed to suit any schedule - Can be used as two complete PBA and EOY practice tests Matches the PARCC English Language Arts/Literacy Assessments - Covers the same skills assessed on the PARCC assessments - Includes the same question types found on the PARCC assessments - Provides practice completing selected-response, technology-enhanced, and constructed-response questions - Includes essay questions and narrative writing tasks Focuses on the Key Features of the Common Core Standards and PARCC Tests - Stronger emphasis on writing skills - Encourages close reading - Focuses on using evidence from texts - Greater emphasis on analyzing and evaluating texts - Increased rigor compared to previous tests