Star Testing

Today I got the opportunity to participate in the first day of Star Testing. Now when I think back to when I did star testing, I think of snacks, long testing periods, and only doing the tests during the day- no other content was taught. This bubble of a memory seemed to be different from what was planned to occur today, however as I found throughout the day, the actual testing, the stress, and the structure are actually very similar from to how it was back then. We began our morning, rushed, stressed out, and the students were extremely anxious. We tried to make a serene environment for them so we had classical music playing, they were able to read or write in their journal for the first twenty minutes of school, and we also had Cheeze-It snacks as a way to get their brain juices flowing. Even with all of this effort, the students and teachers in the room were tense because we all understand the importance and vital role that these tests play in our funding.

We began the testing week off with English Language Arts, which for some is the most difficult. Reading comprehension can be tricky. The students have as much time as they need and the room is silent, except for the murmur of Beethoven playing in the background. Almost all the students finished in the time allotted- those who didn't were sent to the library to finish and we went on with our day by participating in 20 minutes of recess.

When we came back in for recess we had multiple things planned such as a mini lesson on antonyms, math small group instruction, and a social studies group project. Only one of these things occurred. What many people do not realize is that on a day like this where the students come in expecting testing, then test- they are mentally drained. We had to change our schedule because the students weren't actively participating, they weren't wanting to work together, they were truly just tired from the anxiety and pressure of the testing. With a read aloud, and a fun educational activity, the students and teachers made it to the end of the day.

I have heard that the first day of testing is the most difficult for the students- I sure hope this is true!