Virginia Standards of Learning

The Standards of Learning (SOL) for Virginia Public Schools establish minimum expectations for what students should know and be able to do at the end of each grade or course in English, mathematics, science, history/social science and other subjects.

SOL tests in reading, writing, mathematics, science and history/social science measure the success of students in meeting the Board of Education’s expectations for learning and achievement. All items on SOL tests are reviewed by Virginia classroom teachers for accuracy and fairness and teachers also assist the state Board of Education in setting proficiency standards for the tests. 

Students in grades three through six are assessed yearly on their reading and math skills. Additionally, fourth grade students are assessed in Virginia Studies and fifth grade students in Science. The fifth grade Science SOL covers content taught in both fourth and fifth grade. 

Universal Screener

Recently, FCPS adopted a universal screener assessment for use with all elementary school students in kindergarten through grade 6.

The purpose of this assessment is to identify students who may have gaps in reading and math skills so that teachers can plan supports appropriate for each child. 

The universal screener is an online, computer-adaptive assessment. Computer-adaptive means that the difficulty of questions will adjust based on each child’s performance. When your child gets a question correct, the next question will be a little harder. When your child gets a question wrong, the next question will be a little easier. Through this adjustment process, the computer will narrow in on just the right level for your child.

The universal screener tests will be given three times each year. For the exact dates when your child will test, please contact your child’s teacher. After each testing window, your child’s teacher will share your child’s universal screener results with you.