Monday Monday

Thankfully I spent the first half of today basking in the afterglow of my PR, (btw - I wonder how long I can milk that? ) as it was the first day of benchmark testing. This is how school districts asses progess of kiddos on the TEKS months prior to the TAKS test so the teacher can determine areas of weakness.

Yeah.

Picture this: you teach language arts to four different classes which will be tested simultaneously. First they will write a composition, related to what's usually a corny writing prompt that they act like they do not understand. Because is sucks. After they pour their guts out onto the front and back of a lined sheet of paper, revised and edited to the best of their energy level, they begin the objective portion. This means revising and editing some essays by fictitious students ("Please help Jeannette revise her essay on Mount St Helen's...") via multiple choice questions. Ok, it's actually not that bad, they just aren't up for it quite yet. It's October, people.

And Clearly you cannot put all 85 7th graders in the same room ALL DAY for a writing test, so you divvy them up.

First, you have to mentally asses which of your classes is the neediest, the squirreliest, and generally the biggest in the ass, and that's the class who you need to test.

Next, you have to choose the teachers on your grade level to test your "other" three classes, preferable teachers who are not pansies. You match up the personalities...then choose a couple of babies who you need to keep with you anyway.

Because completing this exam takes more than a couple of class periods, we shut down rotation. This means th students stay in the same room from 9 am until 3:30 pm, even if they finish the test a 1:30, and having to be completely quiet except during lunch.

Oh, and I'm trapped in there with them! Woo hoo!

And people wonder why I drink.