lamenting my inept knowledge of latin roots

Aldeka_

 In which I prove my inability to find synonyms and analogies and then whine to Mark about it when we're supposed to be writing...   me: did you take the SATs?

Mark Perini: yup

 the old ones though

5:07 PM me: so out of 1600?
 

 Mark Perini: yeah

 me: #1 took the SSAT last Saturday and we're going over scores and studying verbal stuff

5:08 PM it's soooo hard. omg

 Mark Perini: yeah its super hard what made you want to take it

5:09 PM me: I didn't take it. Just help kid #1 study for the secondary school version. He trying to get into a very selective high school

5:11 PM Mark Perini: gotcha gotcha yeah it's serious

5:12 PM me: based on his score and what I hear the average new admission scores, he's going to have to take it again. So we're studying...

  and it's making me feel very stupid

5:14 PM what is a synonym for Lament?

5:15 PM or Paltry?

  I can't believe 12 year olds are supposed to know this!

 Mark Perini: lol

5:16 PM lament maybe sadness

  paltry maybe cheap or poor

5:18 PM me: mourn is the answer for Lament. I guessed adhere

5:19 PM Mark Perini: yeah i suppose that's close

5:20 PM I think I got a 1280 on mine when I took it, it was out of 1600

  I took the old test

  without the writing part

5:21 PM me: on the old test #1 would have a 689 Verbal and 659 Math

 Mark Perini: that's really good!

5:22 PM me: he got a 644 on the writing/reading section

5:23 PM But it's only the 60th percentile. He needs to be in the 95-98th for this school

 Mark Perini: 1348 is awesome you can get into most colleges with that score....

  well I don't know how they weight the new one

5:24 PM the writing must be heavily weighted then

5:25 PM me: no it's all equal. Out of 2400. He'd have a 1941. It's an extremely competitive school. They only take 30 boys each year

 Mark Perini: O snap that's serious

5:26 PM yeah well he will have an easy time when it's college time he must be really smart

5:27 PM me: he's very smart.

  but not the best student.

 Mark Perini: yeah I suppose they don't go hand in hand

5:28 PM you can be a genius and not organized and really have a tough time in school

 me: this is my child for sure. And it's not the actual SAT that he took. It's a modified version, like the PSAT.

5:29 PM Mark Perini: oooooh

  gotcha

  that makes sense

5:31 PM me: All the parents from the private schools study for months with their kids for this test and then pay for prep courses and private tutoring...we haven't done any of that so I feel like maybe I smashed #1's chances of getting in

  and he really wants to get in

5:33 PM Mark Perini: yeah that's so tough and it's so early to have kids hearts broken about such things...by the sounds of it you probably took the more humane approach not ruining his life with excessive studying...if he can do that well on the SAT's he will have no issue's going wherever he wants

5:34 PM and this middle school stuff won't make any difference...I doubt colleges even look where you went to middle school...

5:36 PM Society puts so much pressure on kids

5:39 PM me: yeah, its not about college or anything. It's the perfect school for #1. Hands down. He needs to be challenged.

 Mark Perini: yeah he needs a different environment I suppose that's really tough

5:41 PM but college is like that too

  if you're a genius you can fail out of college because you don't hand stuff in

  I've seen it happen

 me: yeah but in college you don't get points for trying. You have to actually know the stuff and be smart enough to know it.

5:42 PM I just think his tests at school need to be so hard that he can't pass without doing the 20 problems every night or whatever. That's how real life is. Right now, he can skip homework and still ace the test.

  struggle. he doesn't know struggle

5:43 PM Mark Perini: yeah that's a sad truth

  if it's to easy he can coast

  and coasting is bad makes you lazy

 me: exactly what I'm worried about.

5:44 PM It's fun writing Eve's near perfect SAT scores. I think all my fictional characters will end up being good students

  opposite of me...lol

5:47 PM Mark Perini: lol I think that's one of the best parts of being a writer you can take on/write the persona of anyone you want..

  best part about improv/acting as well

5:48 PM me: I'm living vicariously through my characters academically...it's awesome.

 Mark Perini: hahahahaha

 me: ok, I have to go pick up #2 and #3 from gymnastics, then more vocab words...

5:49 PM Mark Perini: Sounds like its time for the batmobile...(minivan)

 me: oh boy...I don't actually have a mini van anymore

 Mark Perini: I'm glad

5:50 PM I was just thinking of the most momesk car I could think of

  That's my reasoning  Any of you out there take the SATs? Later,JC