Home's Cool Mama: Surviving Test Week

ITBS Testing Booklet for Second Grade.

It is testing week for two of the Degonias. This is also known as boring and arduous week, No. 2 pencil week, keep up the hard work week, and no chores because you've suffered enough week. We will all be glad when it's over today.

A highlight of the week:
Seeing how well Denver can read!

Spencer does not enjoy standardized
tests. The only thing worse is
having your mom take pictures
of you while testing!

John Robert escaped standardized testing this year
because he dedicated himself to completing
ninth grade Algebra a year early.

Although Spencer seems to be handling it rather well, I won't know for sure until the results are in. He has been laughing about some of the questions since he feels they are outdated. For instance, in the Reference Materials section, the test asked questions about encyclopedias. Spencer only half jokingly said that he would rewrite this section offering Wikipedia as a possible answer, and it would be the correct choice almost every time!

For Denver, it's a different story. A lot of his test requires me to read statements to him. He then chooses the correct answer from a series of choices. He likes to entertain himself by shouting out a clearly incorrect answer and then watching me attempt to remain straight-faced.

Example
Me: Which of the following pictures is an example of a natural resource? I was a little concerned about this terminology. I knew I had never actively taught it.

Denver: Clearly, the answer is SOCKS!

Me: Looking away and down at the floor.

Denver: Don't worry Mom, I know what natural resources are. We search and dig for natural resources all the time on Minecraft in order to survive. Here, the natural resource is water.

Me: Grrr . . . Darn that little Smarty Pants!