Hundreds of dads gather to cheer kids on before standardized test

Schools are coming up with all sorts of ways to help reduce the pain of taking standardized tests -- and this one is particularly heartwarming.

Hundreds of dads, granddads, uncles, step-fathers and father-figures across the Jackson Public School District in Mississippi gathered to cheer on students as they headed in to take standardized tests.

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At McWillie Elementary school, dads lined up to form a tunnel they called the "Academic Corridor of Success," according to the school district's Facebook page, and gave children high fives as they arrived at school.

It was all part of a national WATCH D.O.G.S. program to help get fathers more involved in their children's education.

"They said things like, 'Do a great job! I know you're going to ace that test!'... [They were] trying to rally the kids' morale," Fredrick Nolan, the district coordinator of the program told the Huffington Post.

And for some kids, it seemed to work.

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"I think they felt ... more encouraged and supported," McWillie Principal Sara Harper said. "When they see that parental support from their dads ... they feel less stressed out about a state exam. It was exciting."

We can just imagine how having so much encouragement and cheering could take the edge off leading into the dreaded standardized tests. If only we had that as kids!

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