Surviving the CATS test

Contact: Lisa Deffendall • First Posted: Wednesday, April 18, 2007

Athens-Chilesburg Elementary School students are preparing to “outwit, outlast, and outplay” their way to success on the Commonwealth Accountability Testing System (known as CATS), which begins next week. Kids will be getting pumped up for the test by participating in Survivor: ACE.
 
Officer Don - in true Survivor host Jeff Probst fashion - will surprise the students by landing his helicopter on school grounds to deliver the “immunity eagle,” mock tests and T-shirts at 9:20 a.m. on Friday, April 20. The school is located at 930 Jouett Creek Drive.
 
Classes will be given an “immunity challenge” where they will choose a tribe name, design a flag, and decorate their classroom door for judging. The winning class will be announced during an assembly at 12:05 p.m. Students will compete in similar challenges throughout next week.
 
‘We want to replace the anxiety of testing,” said Lori Vogel, the guidance specialist at Athens-Chilesburg. “And we want the kids to think that testing can be fun and is a week of showing what they know. We wanted to give the kids something to look forward to and relieve some of the stress.”