Erasable Ink for SATS exams?

[TheCakeCrusader]

Hi, My children are taking their SATS next week and we’ve had a letter from school asking for children to be supplied with black writing pens or fountain pens. The children normally use the Frixion erasable roller-points but when I spoke to the stationary shop this afternoon, one of the assistants mentioned that the ink can disappear when scanned? Has anyone had this experience with SATS papers?

I’ve purchased some regular black ink pens as a precaution although my children are stressing now about not being able to rub out any errors or change their answers!

There’s no mention about not using erasable ink on the school letter and all the kids use these in class. Opinions/ advice appreciated TIA

If the ink gets left in the sun it disappears, so maybe something similar happens when scanned? i would send them with regular ink pens but let them practice writing with them and tell them that they can cross out their answers if needed x

I'd avoid using them just in case. Reassure your children that they are allowed to cross out mistakes with a single line through it, there is no need for them to stress.

They just have to put a neat line through their answer and write their new answer it's really not a big deal, I'm surprised they are allowed to use erasable ink in school at all as teachers generally like to see what has been crossed out as sometimes they cross out the right answer and replace with an incorrect answer and this helps the teacher teach them.

I use Frixion pens at work and I confirm they don't show up well on scanned docs, especially the blue pens

Thanks everyone for their responses. I’m surprised that the teachers didn’t mention this before and they’re fully aware that the majority of the children in class use these erasable pens.

I’ve just spoken to my children to say that they just need to put a line through if they need to change anything. There’s been some stressing out but most likely because of their ASD and general resistance to changes. I’m trying not to make it too much of an issue with them to keep them calm.

I'm amazed that the school is expecting the children to provide their own pens. Our children use pencils for all the tests, which we provide, along with a ruler, rubber, protractor and mirror.
In class most of them write in pen, except in maths when they use pencil, but they have to be handwriting pens.

Daft question I am sure, but what is the mirror for?

It's for the symmetry questions.

Frixion pens writing disappears with a small amount of heat, that's how the eraser works. I use them for fabric marking as the lines disappear with ironing. I can imagine an industrial size scanner might get warm enough to blank a paper, I wouldnt risk it.

I've heard the heat thing about them before - shame because they're one of the few pens I've found I actually like to write in (I'm picky as hell about pens)! Now realising I did my entire student finance one in one and hoping it's not done the "this ink will self destruct in 5 seconds" routine when they were starting to process that damned thing.

If you use fountain pens you can get some of those ink erasers that were all the rage in the 90's

Don’t know if it’s the same for SATS, but GCSEs have to be written in black ballpoint, specifically pens that can’t be erased. Tippex isn’t allowed either. Basically anything that means that answers can be altered after the exam is not allowed, to reduce potential for cheating.

I once had a child with ASD write something really beautifully in one of those friction pens, and the TA kindly laminated it for him. The paper came out completely blank. Thankfully said child was highly intelligent and interested in the science behind why it had happened so it didn’t lead to the melt down I had expected!!

The ink comes back sometimes if the items get cold. I heard reports of people using them on hand made quilts that were sent abroad to be entered in competition, the cold in the aircraft hold made the lines come back!

I once had a child with ASD write something really beautifully in one of those friction pens, and the TA kindly laminated it for him. The paper came out completely blank. Thankfully said child was highly intelligent and interested in the science behind why it had happened so it didn’t lead to the melt down I had expected!!

That reminds me of a conversation I had when I went for my first pregnancy scan. Sonographer was making chit-chat as you do and asked me what I did for a living. The second I replied I was a teacher she immediately yelled at me "OK DON'T LAMINATE THE SCAN PHOTOS!!! DON'T DO IT!"

For some reason the teaching profession have a bit of a reputation for laminating anything that stays still for a nanosecond.

DD1 already desperately has her beady eyes on my set (she's as much of a stationery geek as I cam) and if she finds out they can do the invisible ink thing with them she'll be unbearable!