Discontent from parents and educators regarding standardized testing is nothing new, and PARCC, the new test which will be administered this year, is no exception. The Washington Post shared the words of Winnetka superintendent Trisha Kocanda as she shared concerns about the PARCC test with parents (Washington Post article).
By channeling our children’s thinking toward the end goal of a test and using classroom time for test prep rather than the authentic learning that our teachers could (and likely would rather) be doing, our children are missing a huge opportunity to grow as thinkers. The success of our future depends not on accountability of schools and their test scores, but on children who will grow to become great leaders through critical thinking and problem solving.
Here are ideas from Noggin Builders to help your children build critical thinking and problem solving skills that will help them with more than their PARCC score.
- Challenge your child to think…differently.
Take an ordinary item and ask your child to use it in an unusual way. Clean up blocks using a fork, create art using water and a straw, shoot a basketball without using your hands or brainstorm 10 new uses for a necktie. Thinking “outside the box” …prepares your child for the unknown challenges she will face in the future. - Build something…with your hands.
Whether you use toilet paper tubes and foil, a circuitry kit, or LEGO bricks, building helps your child to use both sides of his brain together. Designing something new requires both creativity and reasoning skills. Add a twist or challenge to the building process to give your child’s design process direction – build a model of a new apartment complex with three unusual features or create a device that can launch a ball into a target. - Give your child a problem to solve…a real one.
When your child is stuck, don’t give her the answer. Ask her how she can solve the problem. Help her brainstorm and select a method to try. If it doesn’t work, that’s great! We often learn the most from our attempts that do not succeed. Encourage her to try again and then celebrate her process as much as her final success.
So, when it’s time for your two-weeks of PARCC testing, encourage your child to – take a deep breath and relax, get a good night’s sleep and eat a healthy breakfast, and then come home after his test and get his mind moving with some hands-on science at home!
