"Intellectual distinction is a necessary but not a sufficient condition for election to a Rhodes Scholarship. Selection committees are charged to seek excellence in qualities of mind and in qualities of person which, in combination, offer the promise of effective service to the world in the decades ahead. The Rhodes Scholarships, in short, are investments in individuals rather than in project proposals..."

Saturday, September 25, 2010

What the tests reveal...

We did standardized testing yesterday.  I am both excited and afraid of what will be revealed (although I usually already know).   It was MOSTLY a glorious report.  I know where we need work and am thankful for the hard work my children have put forth in their studies.  The "achiever" in me wants to only go after the lower scores and bring them up but my husband reminds me that where their high scores are we find their highest interests - those things that will lead them to learning more and more (a la TJEd).   I will stay on course and not do much different than work on bringing score up only if they were below grade level.

What always surprises me most (and after years of doing this it shouldn't), is how much my kids pick up from just reading.  During the general knowledge portion of the test I am amazed by what questions they know.  I think to myself, "I didn't teach them that!" When I ask them later, they can usually site the source of their data right off the top of their head.  I just love that.

I ran into a lovely lady who attended one of my seminars at 2010 MCHEC.  I wanted to post this link for the handout to my talk on Learning Modalities for her.  Melanie - it's here.  Please speak up in the com box if there are other handouts you would like and I'd be glad to share.