This time of year, teachers talk a lot about the SOLs. As a freshman, I feel a bit nervous because I have important tests to pass, and it will take time to feel confident about them. I’m also curious about how others view the SOL.

Teachers must have strong opinions, since they guide us through it year after year, and some classes even revolve around preparing for the SOL. I wonder what thoughts teachers have about it—do they see it as a helpful tool, or does it limit more creative teaching? When asked about how classes help kids pass the SOL, Mr. Payne explained, “Developing Literacy, Continuing Literacy, and Literacy Lab are all intervention classes for up to three years of help if students need structured remediation in reading. They are meant to help close gaps in foundational word knowledge, grammar, and comprehension skills for students reading 3 or more levels below grade level and struggling to perform well on SOL reading assessments. We use the Lexia PowerUp intervention program as the basis of the course and supplement it with vocabulary, grammar, and some writing instruction. You can find more information on the Lexia PowerUp program online.”

That’s one class that helps with the SOLs, but students often have mixed feelings about testing, ranging from anxiety to a sense of accomplishment, depending on their progress in the class. I asked Mr. Leigh if he had to pass the SOL when he was in school. He replied, “When I was in school, I did not have SOLs, like that was not a thing; we just had a test here and there, but that was it.”

Next, I spoke to Alejahdro Sahtos about which subjects they thought they would pass or not and why. Alejahdro said, “I think I will pass my English SOL this year. I’m taking a class called Developing Literacies. I did not pass my English last year, but now that I have this extra support, I feel more confident that I can succeed.”

I then wondered aloud whether Developing Literacies would be a big help to some people and asked how long people think the SOL is going to take. Eferin Mancha responded, “I think the SOLs are going to take like the whole school day because we can’t do anything until everyone is done with their SOLs, so I do think it’s going to take a whole school day, and also because for the freshmen, they have to pass it now, so everyone is going to try their hardest.”

Will the SOL take the whole school day? I wonder which one is going to be the fastest. I asked Eferin Mancha which SOL might be the fastest and why. ”I think Biology is going to be the best because that class is like what happens in everyday life, so it’s not that hard, but a lot of people don’t like that class or suggest it because it’s not that fun,” said Efern Mancha.

How do you feel about the SOL coming up? Are you scared or are you ready? Tell us in the comments!