Currently, the United States educational system is flooded with high stakes testing. Previous research shows that a student's test score can be impacted by factors unrelated to academic knowledge such as test anxiety, cultural disconnect, and procedural confusion. This study builds on prior research to explore how test taking strategy development and format exposure could support 1st graders ability's to solve math word problems. Sixteen first grade students were exposed to weekly strategy development interventions during their math class. The study's results suggest that strategy development helps students successfully answer complicated test questions regardless of age or academic needs. Findings also support the need for explicit test preparation and strategy development. If testing is to be a reoccurring theme in the contemporary student's schooling experience, it is important that all students understand how to be successful in our testing culture.