SOL "test" and cute craft idea
Scott P. Cook
We spent much of this weekend at the Fairfax County Fair, and one of the
booths in the Sci-Tech center was a computerized SOL test. For those
not in Va., SOL's are Standards of Learning tests. They're a bunch of
garbage that the state has put into effect to see how well the schools
are doing their job. Kids will have to pass them to graduate by the
time they finish implementing the program in a few years. Teachers hate
them because they take all the creativity out of teaching and make it
formulaic in order to get the kids to pass the stupid test. All four of
my kids sat down for the 10 question SOL mini-test. I was curious how
they would do, since we've been purely unschooling since they left
school a year and a half ago. It was very high tech - you could see
after each question what your score was and where you stood in the group
on a big screen. You took the test on little electronic machines. My
oldest son (12) stayed in 2nd place out of 10 kids through most of the
questions and ended up 3rd in the end. My older daughter and younger
son (10 & 9) finished up in 6th and 7th I think, and my youngest
daughter (7), was in last place. I was very pleased that all but the
youngest, who would be too young for these tests anyway if she were a ps
student held their own, and my oldest did quite well. And they've kept
up without putting up with all that school garbage!
At the fair there was a really cute craft at the kids crafts booth. You
take a hosiery knee-high, rye grass seed, sawdust, rubber bands, googly
eyes and a marker. You pour a small cup (dixie cup) of rye seed into
the knee high, then a larger cup of sawdust. Using a dixie cup with the
bottom cut out for a funnel with a wide bottom will make the pouring
easy. Tie a knot in the knee-high, and cut the excess off. Pinch a
bubble of the sawdust filled knee-high into a nose and secure with a
rubber band. Glue on googly eyes and draw a mouth. Soak the little guy
in water for a few minutes, then lay in a plate with a little water in
indirect light. Water every day and watch the grass grow into hair.
Voila, a homemade chia pet! My youngest accidentally did it upside down
at the fair, so hers will be bald with a beard! LOL!
Laurel in Burke, VA
--
Laurel A. Summerfield (scottcook@...)
Burke, Virginia USA
703-978-8390
703-978-8233 fax
---
Outgoing mail is certified Virus Free.
Checked by AVG anti-virus system (http://www.grisoft.com).
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[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
booths in the Sci-Tech center was a computerized SOL test. For those
not in Va., SOL's are Standards of Learning tests. They're a bunch of
garbage that the state has put into effect to see how well the schools
are doing their job. Kids will have to pass them to graduate by the
time they finish implementing the program in a few years. Teachers hate
them because they take all the creativity out of teaching and make it
formulaic in order to get the kids to pass the stupid test. All four of
my kids sat down for the 10 question SOL mini-test. I was curious how
they would do, since we've been purely unschooling since they left
school a year and a half ago. It was very high tech - you could see
after each question what your score was and where you stood in the group
on a big screen. You took the test on little electronic machines. My
oldest son (12) stayed in 2nd place out of 10 kids through most of the
questions and ended up 3rd in the end. My older daughter and younger
son (10 & 9) finished up in 6th and 7th I think, and my youngest
daughter (7), was in last place. I was very pleased that all but the
youngest, who would be too young for these tests anyway if she were a ps
student held their own, and my oldest did quite well. And they've kept
up without putting up with all that school garbage!
At the fair there was a really cute craft at the kids crafts booth. You
take a hosiery knee-high, rye grass seed, sawdust, rubber bands, googly
eyes and a marker. You pour a small cup (dixie cup) of rye seed into
the knee high, then a larger cup of sawdust. Using a dixie cup with the
bottom cut out for a funnel with a wide bottom will make the pouring
easy. Tie a knot in the knee-high, and cut the excess off. Pinch a
bubble of the sawdust filled knee-high into a nose and secure with a
rubber band. Glue on googly eyes and draw a mouth. Soak the little guy
in water for a few minutes, then lay in a plate with a little water in
indirect light. Water every day and watch the grass grow into hair.
Voila, a homemade chia pet! My youngest accidentally did it upside down
at the fair, so hers will be bald with a beard! LOL!
Laurel in Burke, VA
--
Laurel A. Summerfield (scottcook@...)
Burke, Virginia USA
703-978-8390
703-978-8233 fax
---
Outgoing mail is certified Virus Free.
Checked by AVG anti-virus system (http://www.grisoft.com).
Version: 6.0.370 / Virus Database: 205 - Release Date: 6/5/2002
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]