March 10 – “Standardized testing”

So Cailyn is taking the standardized tests at school.  She already took Reading and what sounds like some kind of grammar.  Today she goes for math.  I’m curious.  What do they testing for in first grade, anyway?  Is this some kind of pre-PSAT or something?  Maybe if she does well enough she can just skip high school and head on to college.

I asked her what the test was like.  Tried to keep the question as open-ended as possible.  She said, “You read a story and they ask you questions and you have to go back into it and answer them.  And then they take the staples out and push each page into a computer and the computer grades it so we can’t even make any pencil marks on it.”  There it is.  A first-grader’s take on standardized testing.  She even had Chris write out some test questions on our Family Worship story so she could answer them.  Oh, and of course she had to have two little ovals to fill in what her choice was on each one.  She did really well, too.

In fact she is really getting into the story of the Exodus.  After all, her Uncle Josh and her cousin Caleb are the only ones who get to go into the Promised Land with all the children.  Sounds like an awful lot of fun to me.  Oh, and she loves that her cousin (Caleb) is apparently older than her uncle (Josh) in the story.  “That’s just silly.”  And I have to add that she is not at all impressed with the Israelites’ whining and complaining and grumbling all the time.  We thought it interesting that she picked up on Moses’ disobedience right away when he “hit the rock two times” instead of just talking to it like God said.  I think the girl is learning to listen.  I was really impressed when she did some synthesis of events and commented, “And, I see a common thing in there.  Everybody’s name has ‘ites’ in it.”  She’s right, you know.  Amorites and Edomites and Moabites and Israelites.  We did have to do some teaching on one word that came up.  “Mourning.”  Happened when Aaron died.  Thirty days of crying and being sad?  Not fun, but it’s more about remembering the person you will miss because he is gone.

So how well do you think you would do on Chris’ little impromptu true or false quiz?  Cailyn was perfect.  Give it a try.  True or false?

1.  Jeremy and Calvin were spies.

2.  Moses talked to the rock for water.

3.  Everyone was happy when Aaron died.

So how did you do, Bible scholars?

Revelation 5:9-10 says, “And they sang a new song: ‘You are worthy to take the scroll

and to open its seals, because you were slain, and with your blood you purchased men for God from every tribe and language and people and nation.  You have made them to be a kingdom and priests to serve our God, and they will reign on the earth.’”

Father, thank you for teaching opportunities as well as learning ones.  Amen.