Pressure and Press

Tis the season for the pressure of CSAPS and, at the same time, I received some very nice press in the March "Glendale, Cherry Creek Chronicle." I think if you read the article you can guess what I think of the test.  Why is McGraw Hill smiling while children and teachers are stressing? Could it be money in the bank?  In math there is one right answer. In life there often is not. Choose A,B, C. But what about "D" that is not even a choice? 
I am seeing phonics separated from other learning in Kindergarten.
I am seeing disconnected worksheets in place of experiences that are real and meaningful.  I am hearing boring stories read to get across information in place of wonderful picture books that promote a love of literature, good writing, and playful illustrations,with children wanting to hear it again. What happened to learning social skills in kindergarten? What happened to  being respectful and realizing that each behavior affects others in either a good way or a bad way? What happened to promoting the love of learning and the comfort of being a life-long learner, which involves taking risks, play and having fun?  What has happened to childhood?
Let's put a stop to teachers being the culprits and children being victims.  Let's honor teachers with respect and our support. Let's hope that teachers are life-long learners, doing the best they can and wanting to get better and better. Let's assess in a multitude of ways.
such as  teacher observation, work sample collection, check lists...Let's quit helping a lot of huge corporations make millions.
I recently had feathers put into my hair. "They make me happy" I told a kindergarten child who asked me why I had feathers in my hair. "Huh, huh, huh, she said. That starts with an "H." Why, I thought, can't I just be happy?