Test

Saturday was the annual Holland Area Piano Teachers Assoc. Student Achievement Tests at Hope College. This was Franchesca's first year for the test as she has always convinced her piano teacher that she just "wasn't ready" (read: nervous). Aside from the actual performing, the sheer number of kids/parents roaming the halls going here and there is overwhelming, not to mention the start time at 8:45 a.m. Who wouldn't rather stay in bed?

So, the students are tested in 4 areas including Performance, which is tested by playing 3 different pieces, from memory while the nice (you hope) judge sits, pencil and paper in hand...

The total of each section is worth 25 points for a total of 100 points possible. I had set a goal well in advance for each of the kids, telling them that if they reached a certain total points, there would be a reward (details aren't important) but Nathan went on for days whining about how that was totally unrealistic and they would never reach that. He has reached that score in the past so I told him to ask his teacher for a hefty goal. She told him almost nobody ever gets a 100 and that the goal was indeed large but not impossible.

I need to say here that we received a large book of piano's greatest classics with our piano and that Franchesca has always loved to sit and try to teach herself from the book. She played a few for her teacher, who encouraged her to play those for the test. Theses songs are Level 7 songs. She is in Level 3. These were difficult pieces.

The morning was a breeding ground for anxiety as each student has their own time for each test, so until that time you can find a practice room or WAIT. She wouldn't read her book, do crossword puzzles, nothing to distract. It is as though she needed to feel the agony, each minute tick by; WAITING.

At the end of the day they both felt fairly good about their work. We finally got off campus just in time to get caught in the traffic of the Green Parade, barely making our way to the Good Earth for some chow to settle our nerves.

Saturday night Mrs. Koeman left a voice mail telling the kids their scores. We were amazed to hear that Franchesca got a 99 on her total and Nathan scored 96.75. They surpassed their goal. I knew they could.