Testing week sucks.

Testing week sucks.

Because testing sucks.

It is hard for kids to sit and work for hours on end in silence on boring, irrelevant material.

It just is.

Especially when the internet inexplicably crashes and carefully laid testing plans crumble down around our ears in a ruinous mess.

So for those of us lucky enough not to give an exam, making 90 minute classes meaningful can be a bit challenging.

It is also essential. We can't afford to just not do school for the week.


Tuesday went well.

Students read our novel and wrote about our novel. Not surprisingly, students were increasingly restless as the day wore on.

Yesterday, my student teacher made me a proud mama.

The first student to arrive came early because she has an injured knee and travels before the bell. She made a comment about testing and being silent.

Without any prompting, my student teacher looked at me and said, "You know what, um, I was thinking, what if we start with the poetry activity today? That way, the kids can talk first and don't have to read silently right away."

She was dead on. We rearranged the lesson and it was very successful, largely because of her suggestion to make the adjustment.

 It was a little thing, tiny even, but it shows good instincts and that is a very good thing.