For those of you who do annual testing AND have "littles"

[athena1277]

How do you handle standardized testing when you have littles? I'm starting to think to spring when dd will have to take a standardized test (required by the state). We have figured out how to get our regular schoolwork done around ds, but I want to ensure enough quiet time for dd when she tests. Do you have to have your dc test away from home with a group? Do you get a sitter for the littles so you can administer the test?

[abbeyej]

I administer the ITBS in a group, and moms of other kids being tested have kept my younger one for me in the past. Do you have friends with children in the same grade (some grades can be tested together, depending on the test, but generally the lower levels must be tested individually) who would trade off -- one of you administers the test while the other keeps the little ones?

[Tenaj]

I always work out a rotation schedule where one of the olders is always with the little in a different part of the house but I see that you don't have the extra hands I do. Does your two year old still nap (or will he be) in the Spring? If so, I think I'd just spread that test out as long as it takes and do it during nap time unless you can hire a sitter. The first grade test will probably require a LOT of reading on your part (we do the Iowa and I know it's true for that test) so you really have to be completely available - though - I was just remembering that there really isn't any timing on the first grade test so you could interrupt the process if you needed to deal with the two-year old, probably not ideal, but doable if necessary. If the two year old is easy to entertain, I've set them up with markers and pieces of paper at the other end of the table and let them go at it - or play dough. The testing sections are short enough that this may work if you don't try to do too much of the test at a time.

[JudoMom]

My dh administers the ITBS (he takes long lunch breaks to administer parts and has given parts on the weekends as well) and I take the others to another part of the house or out fo the house.

[Jean in Newcastle]

I take ds to a group test. This is his one "school" experience each year and he loves it. He loves the recesses and trading stuff at lunch.:D

 

Dd and I make a special day of it. We go to the mall and get lunch together.

[abbeyej]

I take ds to a group test. This is his one "school" experience each year and he loves it. He loves the recesses and trading stuff at lunch.:D

 

Testing is always a huge hit in our group. :) It's so novel to these kids --the sitting in assigned seats, the quiet, the rows... It's like something out of a movie, lol. And then the racing around outside (or playing in the gym inside, if the weather is nasty), and the roaring snack trade. They seem to have a great time.

 

Not to mention that it's easier to cut down on distractions during actual test time. We work hard to make sure it's as low pressure and positive as possible, while still providing an environment conducive to concentration during the actual testing.

[babysparkler]

We just finished our ITBS tests last week. We did afternoons while the littles were napping. That gave us a good 2 hours each day, plus, I would alternate my 4th and 2nd graders so that one was testing while the other "babysat" on their break upstairs when the boys woke up... giving us another hour or so per day. We put the air purifier in the kitchen where we were testing to drown out the play noise upstairs completely. It worked great!

[Pretty in Pink]

We also group test.

[MamaT]

We do not test in a group (unless you can call my kids a group), but we go to a small private classical school that offers testing to homeschoolers.

[ElizabethB]

I just let little brother run around like normal school, but the results so far have been purely for our own use and to get her used to testing in case we ever live in a state that requires testing.

 

If the testing was a requirement and accurate results mattered, I would probably hire a teen as a mother's helper or have my husband watch my son depending on his work schedule.

[lionfamily1999]

I send the little to Gramma's house. Normally, he can behave, but for some reason once you need him to be quiet and well mannered he becomes a beasty!

[G5052]

The sections are short for 1st and 2nd grade, and we fit it in to my younger one's naptime, before she got up, or when she was watching a video. You can take as many days as you need to finish it, and it's short enough that it doesn't stress the younger folks.

 

Then we switched to the PASS from Hewitt for 3rd and up, but I'm thinking that we'll do group testing this year with the Stanford because my oldest is almost a teenager.