i-Ready Diagnostic Scores – A Guide

i-Ready diagnostic testing is used to help monitor students’ progress throughout their education, with testing typically taken three times a year from kindergarten to senior year.

The information gained from i-Ready math and reading testing enables parents and teachers to identify any areas where a child might be struggling or falling behind. This means that early interventions can be put in place so that they can catch up with their peers.

Equally, for children who are performing beyond their age-related expectation, i-Ready scores provide valuable insight. In these cases, students can be recommended for gifted and talented programs or moved into higher-ability classes for their strongest subjects.

In this article, you will learn more about the i-Ready diagnostic scores, how to interpret the results, how to improve a score, and how to support your child based on their results. 

Understanding i-Ready Diagnostic Scores

Scores for the i-Ready diagnostic test can be difficult to understand initially as they are made up of a number of different parts.

There are five different scores overall, with each one providing a different form of insight. These scores are tracked and compared throughout a student’s education to accurately monitor growth and progress.

Understanding what each score means and how to interpret the results is important. With this information, you will be able to easily identify your child’s individual strengths and weaknesses. 

Overall Scale

This is the overall result for your child across both the math and reading papers. The overall score will be a result between 100 and 800. When calculating the overall score, the total number of correct answers is taken into account alongside the difficulty of the questions answered.

The final score is then used to place pupils on a scale measuring according to their abilities. This will then show whether they are performing below, at, or above age-related expectation according to their current grade.

Domain-Level Scores 

In a similar way to the overall score, domain-level scores provide information about the number of correct answers and the difficulty of correctly-answered questions. 

However, the domain-level score does not combine results for individual tests and instead provides information on i-Ready reading scores and i-Ready math scores separately.

This information can then be used to identify specific areas of difficulty.

Diagnostic Norms 

Displayed as a percentile score, the diagnostic norms results compare all pupils of the same age nationwide.

The results of thousands of test papers are compared and collated to find the average. This is then presented as a percentage that indicates where your child performs in comparison to their peers.

For example, if your child achieves a diagnostic norms score of 46%, this would mean that they performed better than 46% of children their age.

Lexile Score i-Ready Test Scores

The lexile score (sometimes called i-Ready reading scores) predicts a child's current reading level.

Scores start at 0L for beginner readers at kindergarten level and range to above 1600L for advanced readers. 

Quantile Score 

In a similar way to the lexile score, the quantile score (sometimes called i-Ready math scores) gives an assessment of a child's current mathematical ability.

Scores range from 0Q for the youngest children, up to 1600Q for older students.

How to Interpret the i-Ready Results

Once you have your child’s i-Ready diagnostic scores, you will want to interpret them.

It’s a good idea to compare current results with previous ones. This will mean that you can see how much your child has progressed and whether they are maintaining the same level of growth.

Using your child’s results, you will be able to understand any areas or subjects that they are finding particularly tricky.

By working with the school, it will be possible to put interventions into place that help your child to catch up with their peers or fill any gaps in their learning.

Alternatively, if your child has performed particularly well in a subject, it might be deemed appropriate to enter them into a gifted or talented program, or to offer them a more challenging workload in their current classes. 

How to Support Your Child Based on Their i-Ready Diagnostic Scores 

By reading through your child’s results thoroughly, you will be able to identify any areas where they have perhaps not performed as well as anticipated.

Using this information, you can put steps in place that will help to strengthen any areas of weakness.

Targeted Activities and Exercises

Depending on the areas requiring improvement, there will be a number of different things you can easily do at home to strengthen skills and understanding:

• Reading – Daily reading strengthens language skills, comprehension, spelling, and a range of other literacy-related skills.
• Puzzle books – Practicing number and pattern related puzzles will help with logical thinking, number recognition, and a range of other skills.
• Crosswords and word searches – These will help with letter recognition and spelling.
• Card games and board games – These are a fun way of practicing basic calculations and math-related abilities as well as reading and logical thinking.

Resources and Tools

If you have tried the more general methods to improve your child’s i-Ready scores, but want to take things a little further, there are some more focused methods of doing this:

• Practice tests – One of the best ways to improve your child’s performance on a test is with practice papers and sample questions. You will find a number of different options online, with practice packs available to purchase. Those on TestPrep-Online are just one example. 
• Ask the teacher – If you don’t want to pay for practice papers, speak to your child’s teacher. They may have alternative resources and questions that you can use.

How to Improve Your i-Ready Score

There are a number of things you can do to help your child prepare for i-Ready tests and other assessments. 

Think About Specific Areas to Work On

The results of your child’s test will help to indicate how well they are doing in specific areas, as well as overall progress. This information will help you to identify whether there are specific areas in need of attention.

For example, if your child scores well in their reading test overall, but below-average in vocabulary, then this would be the area to practice most often.

Celebrate Strengths

If your child is disappointed by their scores, make sure to celebrate anyway.

Reassure them that they did the best they could and that you’re proud of the effort they put in. This will help to boost their confidence and motivation to do better next time.

Improve Sleeping Habits 

Making sure that your child gets enough sleep at night will not only benefit their mood, but can also help with recall and focus. 

Talk About Any Worries or Concerns

If there are areas of concern highlighted within the i-Ready diagnostic scores, talk about these with your child.

Find out how they feel about those particular subjects and whether they have any specific anxieties. Communicating in this way can help to focus your efforts in building up their skills and knowledge.

Communicate With Teaching Staff

If you have any questions or concerns about your child’s progress at school or the results of their i-Ready diagnostic test, it’s always a good idea to talk to their teacher. They may be able to offer advice and resources to help.

Frequently Asked Questions

What do i-Ready diagnostic scores mean?

i-Ready math diagnostic scores and i-Ready English diagnostic scores provide insight as to how well a student is doing in reading and math.

They provide information about strengths and weaknesses, which can help guide teachers in their approach.

How important are i-Ready scores?

When it comes to understanding how well a child is progressing in their education, regular testing is vital.

i-Ready math diagnostic scores and i-Ready English diagnostic scores provide a snapshot of a child’s understanding and ability which can then be used to adapt their learning.

How to improve i-Ready scores?

There are a number of things you can do at home with your child. Some, like reading at home and playing number games, are relatively simple.

Others, such as taking practice papers and studying sample questions, may require a little more effort.

What is a good i-Ready diagnostic score? 

What is a good i-Ready diagnostic score? Well, it’s one that meets or exceeds grade-level expectations, typically indicating a scale score in the 50th percentile or higher. If you’re interested, you can find i-Ready diagnostic scores by grade online. 

Where can I find the i-Ready diagnostic scores? 

i-Ready diagnostic scores can be obtained from your child's school, teacher, or online portal provided by the school district.

How to read i-Ready scores? 

i-Ready scores are read using the scale score and percentile rank, which indicate the student's level compared to grade-level standards and peers.

How do iReady diagnostic scores work? 

i-Ready diagnostic scores reflect a student's proficiency in reading and math, providing insights into strengths and areas for improvement based on a scaled scoring system.

What is a good score for i-Ready Math diagnostic? 

A good score for the i-Ready Math diagnostic typically falls at or above the 50th percentile, indicating that the student is at or above grade level.

What is a good i-Ready diagnostic score for 7th grade? 

A good i-Ready diagnostic score for 7th grade is generally around a scale score of 580 or higher, which suggests proficiency at or above grade level.

Final Thoughts

Regular assessment is a vital tool when it comes to ensuring that students are performing consistently. It also works as an indicator of the quality of teaching and can guide teachers to tailor their syllabuses to cover any areas that have previously been missed. 

i-Ready diagnostic testing can provide valuable insight into your child’s strengths and weaknesses.

Understanding your child’s scores will mean that you can better help them at home, strengthening the skills that need work and working to improve their overall performance.