Citizenship Test

[Dakine 26]

What I found very helpful in studying for the citizenship exam are the Civics Exam Flashcards. They are available for sale at government stores or you can also print them off from the USCIS website and assemble them yourselves. They have the exact question on one side and the answer on the other. There are 100 questions in total. What I found useful is that I was able to divide the questions into two piles - those I knew and those I wasn't sure about and keep working on the ones I wasn't sure about. I could just pick up the cards whenever I had a few minutes and review the questions. By the time of the exam the questions and answers were second nature.

With the new exam you need to get 60% to pass. They will ask up to 10 questions. If you get the first 6 right, then they generally stop right there because you have already passed. They will ask you to read a sentence from a sheet of paper that has three sentences written on it - they are all questions on the Civics Exam. They will then dictate a sentence that you have to write down - and again, the sentence is all of the cases I have heard of so far is the 'answer' to the question that you read aloud.

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Have extra ink for your printer if you print them from online as the 53 pages downloading the colored flashcards will "burn up" a LOT. Especially Magenta. BT-DT.

[antda 13]

Bora-Bora-Lol....Canadians don't speak Canadian....

Canadians speak English...(and French, in some cases as that's also Canada's official language)

Americans also speak English...not American (though there are different American accents, depending on where one lives in the USA)

But...Canadian English is different from American English

And Canadian English more resembles British English than American English, especially when it comes to spelling and grammar...

I personally prefer Canadian/British English over American English, as that's more "original and traditionall"....

Lol..To this day, I still debate with my husband about American English rules...

And has even said to me, "You better not be teaching our son Canadian English!"....lol....

But yeah, I'm now officially American...so I better learn and teach "American English" instead...

Must be pretty easy for an English speaking Canadian .

Thanks for the advice.

Kathryn41-I agree, those whose first language is not English certainly do have a harder time studying for the citizenship test and overall adapting to life in America. It is definitely an accomplishment for them, indeed! And I applaud them for their efforts and hard work in wanting to officially be an American by going through the citizenship process!

Heck, most Americans by birth and/or have grown up in America don't even know the answers to those questions....

It really makes me wonder what they teach in schools here in America...

Seriously, maybe they should make every American go through these study questions....Then let's see who are truly deserving of being American!

It is definitely easier, I agree. I didn't have to worry about misunderstanding or misinterpreting what I heard or read - issues that I imagine can cause real concern to those who have had to learn English as a second - or third (or more) language.

I have the greatest respect and admiration for those who chose to immigrate to the US (or other countries like Canada) and English isn't their native language. Not only are they coming to a new country and new culture, they are learning a new language. Obtaining citizenship and doing the test in English is an accomplishment in which they should take real pride. It is definitely an additional challenge; they deserve all of the congratulations they get because they have certainly earned them.

Dakine-Oh yeah...I realized that after the first 2 pages.....It's an ink waster, indeed!

Have extra ink for your printer if you print them from online as the 53 pages downloading the colored flashcards will "burn up" a LOT. Especially Magenta. BT-DT.

Everyone-So instead I did the following to study for the citizenship test, in lieu of printing out the "official" flash cards:

1) I downloaded the flashcard questions and answers from this USCIS link (which Kathryn41 suggested): http://www.uscis.gov/files/nativedocuments...rsed_colors.pdf

2) I got a stack of 50 index cards (lol..that's all I could find around the house at the time, and I didn't feel like buying any more), and then cut them in half to make 100 smaller pocket-sized cards (that's even more convenient to study with too)!

3) With a pen, I wrote down the questions on one side, and the answers on the other side.

3) It took a couple of hours to do..But....Voila...."Ant's Homemade USCIS Citizenship Civics Test Flash Cards!"

4) And yes, I agree, writing the questions and answers down and reading them out loud while I was doing such, certainly helped me (and my USC husband, though he doesn't need to study) know the material better. As well, I didn't see the point in wasting my printer ink with printing out these cards from the internet, nor in buying additional cards. So I just made my own....

5) Total Costs:

Cost of download from the USCIS website: Free, 1 hour to download (I have a slow internet connection, but it could be faster for you)

Cost of 50-100 index cards: $0.50-$1.00 or so

Cost of time: 3-4 hours (depending on how fast a person can write the questions and answers on the cards)

Cost of knowing the answers beforehand and passing the test: Priceless....

"There are some things money can buy...For others...There's FREE help here on VJ!"

Hope this helps you too. Good luck on the rest of your immigration journeys as well. Happy studying!

Ant

Edited January 9, 2010 by Ant+D+BabyA

[Kathryn41 3,205]

That's a good solution as well, Ant. It has the added benefit of writing out the questions and answers which is also a good way of studying.

[antda 13]

That's a good solution as well, Ant. It has the added benefit of writing out the questions and answers which is also a good way of studying.

Lol...Thanks....

Yes, writing the questions and answers over again, and reading them out loud while writing them, helps too, as it reinforces the information....

I remember I used to do that in my college days....writing my notes over again (partly too, because I couldn't read my own writing)...and that helped there...

Lol..Though I wasn't originally thinking about that when I made these citizenship study cards in the first place...

I just couldn't afford the extra ink at the time, and I had nothing else to do while I was waiting for labour to happen in the summer..

So I just made the cards...(and hoped that I would go into labour too..lol...but I didn't yet...)

By the way, I still have those cards...which are useless to me now that I'm done with citizenship...Oh well....

Regardless, good luck to everyone studying for the test, and all the best in studying there!

Ant

Edited January 10, 2010 by Ant+D+BabyA

[bora bora 1]

Duh Ant, I wasn't born yesterday.

I said English speaking Canadian - that means a Canadian who is an English speaker (vs a French speaker).

[antda 13]

Duh Ant, I wasn't born yesterday.

I said English speaking Canadian - that means a Canadian who is an English speaker (vs a French speaker).

Lol..I know...that's why I put the face....I know you know better than that, especially since you teach ESL!

But yeah, a lot of other less-intelligent people don't seem to know the difference.....

Believe it or not...people have said before that "Americans speak American" and likewise, "Canadians speak Canadian and live in igloos"!....

(don't mind me, I've been watching too much tv..lol...)

Humour me...lol...

Ant

Edited January 10, 2010 by Ant+D+BabyA

[bora bora 1]

Lol..I know...that's why I put the face....I know you know better than that, especially since you teach ESL!

But yeah, a lot of other less-intelligent people don't seem to know the difference.....

Believe it or not...people have said before that "Americans speak American" and likewise, "Canadians speak Canadian and live in igloos"!....

(don't mind me, I've been watching too much tv..lol...)

Humour me...lol...

Ant

Um, believe me, I know.

I worked with a guy years ago who told us he spoke three languages - Italian, English, and American. I'm a middle school teacher so I hear it ALL. One of my students even thought NY was a country.