Friday, April 29, 2011

Poetry Friday: State Testing & Idioms

In my school district, we start our state testing next Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday.  I have blogged and voiced my concerns about the state tests.  I was thinking about state testing and for some reason idioms came to mind.  My apologies for not a typical poem but thought it might be fun to share.


I throw my hat into the wind as testing starts next week.
I had a major chip on my shoulder however I know this test is a drop in the bucket when I reflect on my students' learning this year.
My hope would be that my parent community realizes a picture paints a thousand words and their child's picture has been a work of art since September and will continue to be painted through the end of May. 
I hope my students hit the hay early and don't get up on the wrong side of the bed the morning of the tests.
I predict  my students will  break a leg and go the extra mile on their 2 and 4 pt. responses. They need to go for broke as well and use their loaf
By the way I will enjoy testing when pigs fly


Best of luck to all students who are taking states tests next week and congratulations to all the teachers who have gone above and beyond in preparing their classes!!


Check out Poetry Friday @ The Opposite of Indifference. Thanks for hosting Tabatha.

4 comments:

  1. "Use your loaf" is an interesting saying -- I wonder where it comes from?

    Testing days are my kids' least favorite days of the year. I think the system could use a revamp.

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  2. Sigh. Testing. So much depends on it and it's so FAKE.

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  3. Oh, Maria, what a fun piece! My favorite part is:

    My hope would be that my parent community realizes a picture paints a thousand words and their child's picture has been a work of art since September and will continue to be painted through the end of May.

    That is simply beautiful. My hope would be that you include that in a parent newsletter or something, to help parents see the worth of their kids' efforts, regardless of the test results.

    Thanks for sharing, and hang in there for testing!

    (I've never heard "use your loaf" and, like Tabatha, wonder where it came from.)

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  4. After a little research this is what I found with the idiom "use your loaf."

    "This widely used example of Cockney rhyming slang is said by Eric Partridge in A Dictionary of Slang and Unconventional English to be late 19th century. I can't find examples of it in print from then though - the earliest I've come across being the definition in Fraser & Gibbons' Soldier and sailor words and phrases year 1925"

    "Loaf, head, e.g., 'Duck your loaf - i.e., keep your head below the parapet'."

    Thanks for your comments.

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