Winter is fading – Spring is coming!
How are you doing homeschoolers? You’ve made it to the second half of the school year! Whether you’re where you want to be in your school calendar or not, you’ve made it to the beginning of the end.
For my family, the month of February starts a long stretch of time without many breaks. Coming off the holidays, we’re finally back into the groove and I hate to mess up our rhythm with an extended vacation again. But as the days grow longer and the sun grows warmer, it signals “outside fun” to my brain, and I am the one feeling the strain of a long school day. Tugging the kids outdoors to play for extended recesses and pretending I know how to garden are ways I keep myself going in this stretch of time between Christmas and Easter vacation.
What my kids look forward to during this time of year, however, may shock you. Or maybe you too have figured out the sneaky trick I have learned to employ: TESTING. I know. It sounds crazy, and, honestly, it came as happenstance, but my kids really look forward to their testing week.
For the Scotts, I choose to test my kids every year and use their standardized test scores, rather than a portfolio of work, to turn in to our local public school for their records. And the best part? My dad was the one who proctored my kids’ test week for years. Their choice of lunch with “Apa”, special snacks, and break times that included trying on my brother’s Air Force pilot training jet mask made testing week a memorable occasion.
As happens in life, circumstances change, and this year, my dad is unable to enjoy his testing weeks with the grandkids. But I am determined to make their testing week a fun and rewarding time anyways.
Maybe you could come up with your own ideas to transform a normally mundane, anxious time into a treasured one-on-one occasion your kiddos look forward to every year. A lunch date, a new pencil case or eraser, or maybe a trip to a park are things that could lighten the mood.
On the days my kids test, they get an early start and finish around lunch time. Then they get the rest of the day off from school. Could we get a few more hours of work in after lunch? Yes. Could we really use those hours to “catch up” on subjects we’ve left behind in the dust? Yes. But it’s their sigh of relief after a long morning and I want them to be able to fill-up their creative think tanks doing something that interests them.
If you haven’t already scheduled your standardized tests, don’t worry! You have lots of time, but I would encourage you to schedule them ASAP. Life gets busy and you don’t want to find yourself in the summer months competing with salty breezes and splash pads. Head over to CHOH’s website and click the tab “Kumu Waiwai”, then “Standardized Achievement Tests” for a great list of testing resources and answers to common questions.
Do you have any ideas for jazzing up testing week? What are some out-of-the-box ideas that have excited your kids? Let me know! We love to hear from our homeschooling families and stay connected to our CHOH ohana.
~~Melissa Scott
