Today starts the high-stakes state testing -- three mornings this week; two next week. In an effort to keep the students from tiring themselves out, I nix the idea of having them read silently for thirty minutes prior to the commencement of the literature reading and writing test. This seems like a great strategy until I remember that students may only enter the class room with a book to read (after testing is done).
Hmmm. No pencils. No binders. Not enough time for games (maybe Seven-Up, but that gets old fast). What to do, what to do?
That's when I spot the colored paper in a lazy pile on an extra desk. Before I know it, we have an entire class creating nose pinchers (also known as fortune tellers). We can't write anything on them because we don't have any pencils yet -- the pencils are inside the top-secret high-stakes testing box hidden under my desk. But, we now have twenty origami toys for later.
Because we are not allowed to have anything on our desks, I tell the students to put the blank, folded papers under their seats for good luck. When the test ends later and all of the materials have been collected and accounted for, more paper comes out. Origami cranes, hats, boxes, decorations, mustaches, airplanes, and various other creations come to life as I realize my class is not only kind and efficient (best lunchroom cleaners of all time), but they are ingenious, as well.
I'm not sure how we will top that tomorrow morning or the morning after that or the two mornings next week as we wait for the high-stakes testing to start. I'm open to suggestions, though.
