Post Secondary Planning Night

Testing Day Details

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Tomorrow, Wednesday, October 16th, Canton High School will be administering the Pre-ACT for sophomores, the PSAT for juniors, and the SAT for a small portion of seniors.  It is important that the students have the following materials for testing day: sharpened #2 pencils (not mechanical), the calculator students use in school for their math classes, water/snack, and a silent reading book.

The best way to prepare for these exams is to eat a well balanced dinner, get 8 hours of sleep, and eat breakfast tomorrow morning.  The Pre-ACT and PSAT are practice.  These practice tests give students the opportunity to experience what these tests are like, how the questions are formatted and asked, and how they need to pace themselves through a standardized test for college admissions. 

This is not an exercise to get them stressed out or to panic if they do not well.  These tests provide students information on their strengths and areas of growth, and what materials they should focus on before they take the actual SAT and ACT in junior and senior year.

For the seniors, the best way to prepare is the same as outlined in paragraph 2 above.  Positive self-affirmations go a long way in doing your best on the SAT.  Parents and guardians, give the best pep talks of your lives tonight and tomorrow morning.  Tell your teenagers you believe in them, you trust them, and you know that they will do their best because they are ready. That will have the biggest impact on them and you.

At the End of the Day

At the end of the day, when you feel like you need someone to hold your hand, we are here.
At the end of the day, when you cannot figure out the next step, we are here.
At the end of the day, when you do not know how to balance your priorities and what to do first, we are here.
At the end of the day, when you have no idea where to get the answer to your question, we are here.
At the end of the day, when you really aren't sure about that college essay, we are here.
At the end of  the day, when you have no idea how else to help your kid, we are here.
At the end of the day, when you feel like no understands how you feel, we are here.
At the end of the day, we are ALWAYS here.

I took this picture this weekend on Martha's Vineyard at The Trustees of Reservations Long Point Beach.  The summer beach access road is now closed; the winding road is nonsensical. It made me think about life a lot.  It made me think about the life of our students a lot.
The high school years are filled with nonsensical roads.  But always remember, they do lead somewhere.  And always know, we are here to help you find it when it seems impassable.