Testing Week

So this week is our yearly standardized testing week. I have always opted to order the test from http://www.baysideschoolservices.com/. They are a fabulous company that rent out the testing materials and perform the scoring of your test and mail them back to you. We have never had any issues with them. I administer the test myself in our home. Now I know there are a lot of homeschoolers who may be a little affraid to take on this task themselves and they opt to have a testing group in their area administer the test with their children. My thinking behind chosing to do it myself is keeping my kids in their original school environment and with me, their teacher.

I may recieve some criticism for doing this myself. Like I'm going to cheat with my kids. I am after all trying to raise good peoples here. So what would that teach them. I don't help them with their answers. I repeat my famous line "mark your answer" over and over. LOL!!

After nine years of homeschooling and seven years of administering test at home things have always gone smoothly with nothing major coming up during our test week. But this year was a first. We woke up Monday morning all ready to get started and my 10 year old was not feeling well at all. He was complaining of his head, throat and ear hurting. As you all know that have boys, you know that they feel bad when they willingly lay on the couch all day.

As I started to freak out thinking, "Oh no, we aren't going to be able to get his test done. What am I going to do?" I started franticly looking through all the papers that the testing providers sent, and with a huge sigh of relief found that the company is forgiving if there is sickness and we are allowed to keep the test an extra week to get is finished. "PHEW"

So I'm off to get back to it and work on some more test!