Gifted Issues Discussion homepage Forums Parenting and Advocacy testing

Reading the "best high schools" as it got off topic, there was the whole ID question by testing.

Having been through OLSAT testing that went awry at 4, then flipped when she was 5 and got her into a pretty good G&T school. I know it isn't great, but I am glad I got something.

In NYC, we are crazy about testing and getting into certain schools, from preschool, through college. Each level is a stress inducer. But at least I know the parameters of getting her in and can manage it, just like I manage her education. I buy CTY for math. I pay for weekly science classes at the AMNH. I pay for Mandarin on Saturday mornings. And her education at school is decent, except for math. And the principal is adamant about it, the parents try to change it and many supplement. Since 90% is great, we deal with the 10%.

DD got the scores to get into Hunter but she is not the sit there quietly and do puzzles when exciting alternatives exist. She is really high energy and extroverted and didn't do well in the interview. Hence, testing alone kind of works for me.

To get into the U of T school she has to get a minimum on the SSAT, which I am not worried about, then sits in a classroom for further testing. Seeing her develop habits (I use a whip and stand over her, for parents with similar concerns--not exactly but she thinks so) her testing is great. Last year I really did go over the math, which was so easy but had multiple mistakes because she whipped through, assumed signs didn't change. But now she is checking, is it an addition or subtraction, what did they ask for? It is hard for this type of personality not to just whip through a test and get mistakes from sloppiness.

She will have testing until she finally walks out of the college and into a job and maybe after that. I really do not see an alternative before she is working.

Rem

I just bought the wrong kumon book for my toddler. I meant to get the book called "tracing" which looks like mazes, but I bought the kumon mazes book instead. It's too far to take it back and exchange it so I gave it to my son. Of course I knew it wouldn't last with him, it lasted less than 2 hrs. I went through and looked at all the pages. He got 90% right, scribbled a few pages that the answers weren't obvious, but what I noticed that several times if the answer was obvious he'd cut corners but you could tell he saw the answer...like he'd draw a line through the walls of a swirl but go the right way his eyes got too far ahead of the pencil. Translations: careless errors. And the skipping the ones that weren't obvious immediately. It amused me more than it worried me. It's nice to think I know much of what my child's thinking and how it all works. I'll just keep teaching him skills and he'll have the tools.
Many of your posts about providing for your daughters and preparing her to be open to many opportunities has really inspired me over the last couple of years. We're not using it yet but I have bought dvd's to teach my children Mandrin. We have a third grade Spanish Grammer program. I'm saving it for a couple of years because he's not completely solid on his readin', ritin', & rithmatic just yet. Darn close and making progress. Thanks to your comments about your PTA grant writing your school into many perks I signed up for the PTA last week and have scheduled a meeting with the principal on Tuesday to discuss how I can help the school that way. I have my eye on a traveling museum that brings dinosaur bones to elementary schools and gives them a lecture.

There seems to be a few threads lately about how to teach internal motivation to be engaged and diligent when working. I only know what I've seen. With kids don't you teach a new skill by first going easy on 'em and explaining and coaxing until you get speed and fluency, then once they can do it quickly you start checking their work and asking them to re-do the wrong ones? After a while it's done quicker if you just get it right the first time. After a while they can check their own work and redo the wrong ones. From what you're saying if I were you right now I would ask her to redo everything she gets wrong on her homework, even if the teacher doesn't want it back and it's not any extra credit. My son just got his fraction and decimals beginner book and he did the whole page wrong. I put x's by them all, explained how to add them again, he got them all right but one. I read that some kids don't like checks and x's.

Well, as a doctor, I am forced to retake my Board recertification exam every 10 years. I have 3 Boards, so that means three, 8-hour exams every 10 years! I will never be done with standardized testing.

Which you are free to try to change through political involvement with the people who are actually in charge of the testing.

These are human-created systems.

They aren't forces of nature.

And I say this as someone who is in the 99th percentile for "ability to take tests".