Writing Assessment Covers - HIGHLAND LITERACY · 2013. 3. 25. · Increase class time spent on writing whole, original pieces through: establishing real purposes for writing and student

AssessingWriting

by Steve Peha

AssessingWriters

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“Every study of young writersI’ve done for the last twentyyears has underestimatedwhat they can do. In fact,

we know very little about thehuman potential for writing.”

—Donald Graves, A Fresh Look at Writing (p.99)

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Best Practice Writing Instruction Page 1

1995-2003 by Steve Peha Web www.ttms.org • E-mail [email protected]

What is Best Practice Writing Instruction?

Writing is very important in education today so everyone wants to know the best way to teach it. But that can be a challenge because there are so many different ideas out there. Fortunately, in the last decade, a national consensus has emerged regarding the essential elements of successful in-struction. In the book Best Practice: New Standards For Teaching and Learning in America’s Schools, written by Harvey Daniels, Steve Zemelman, and Arthur Hyde (2nd edition, 1999, pub-lished by Heinemann), the path to effective writing instruction is defined as follows:

Increase student ownership and responsibility by: helping students choose their own topics and goals for improvement; using brief teacher-student confer-ences; teaching students to review their own pro-gress.

Decrease teacher control of decision making by: teacher deciding on all writing topics; suggestions for improvement dictated by teacher; learning objectives determined by teacher alone; instruction given as whole-class activity.

Increase class time spent on writing whole, original pieces through: establishing real purposes for writing and student involvement in the task; instruction in and support for all stages of the writing process.

Decrease time spent on isolated drills on “subskills” of grammar, vocabulary, spelling, paragraphing, pen-manship, etc.

Increase teacher modeling writing as a fellow author and as a demonstration of processes.

Decrease teacher talks about writing but never writes or shares own work.

Increase learning of grammar and mechanics in con-text, at the editing stage, and as items are needed.

Decrease isolated grammar lessons, given in order determined by textbook, before writing is begun.

Increase writing for real audiences, publishing for the class and for wider communities.

Decrease assignments read only by the teacher.

Increase making the classroom a supportive setting for shared learning, using: active exchange and valu-ing of students ideas; collaborative small-group work; conferences and peer critiquing that give responsibil-ity for improvement to authors.

Decrease devaluation of students ideas through: stu-dents viewed as lacking knowledge and language abilities; sense of class as competing individuals; work with fellow students viewed as cheating or dis-ruptive.

Increase writing across the curriculum as a tool for learning.

Decrease writing taught only during “language arts” period—i.e., infrequently.

Increase constructive and efficient evaluation that in-volves: brief informal oral responses as students work; thorough grading of just a few student-selected, polished pieces; focus on a few errors at a time; cu-mulative view of growth and self-evaluation; encour-agement of risk taking and honest expression.

Decrease evaluation as negative burden for teacher and student by: marking all papers heavily for errors, making teacher a bottleneck; teacher editing paper, and only after completed, rather than student making improvements; grading seen as punitive, focused on errors, not growth.

The message of best practice is clear: the more we apply proven principles of successful teaching, the more engaged our students will be in successful learning. This is a gradual process that unfolds over time. Teachers proceed on a continuum of development just like their students. With ongoing exposure to effective teaching methods through high quality in-service training and consistent ad-ministrative leadership that supports and validates contemporary instruction, teachers gradually re-place less successful approaches with proven techniques that maximize student achievement. Since the early 1990s when the best practice movement in American education began to take shape, thousands of teachers and administrators have begun the process of making research-based instruction an integral part of their schools. There is already a large best practice community in our country and many resources to help teachers make the transition. In the face of increasing pressure to improve student learning, everyone is looking for solutions. Best practice defines those solutions and provides for us the most logical and responsible path we can take.

Best Practice Writing Instruction Page 2

1995-2003 by Steve Peha Web www.ttms.org • E-mail [email protected]

How Do Teachers Achieve Best Practice?

Learning about best practice is vital but it’s only the beginning. Knowing what best practice is helps us define where we want our teaching to end up. But it doesn’t necessarily tell us how to get there. In our work, we have found that teachers achieve best practice when they concentrate their efforts on the following six instructional areas:

Writer’s Workshop A system for classroom management and the development of an effective writing community.

Focused mini-lessons taught in the context of authentic writing; status of the class; the majority of class time reserved for writing; conferencing; sharing; students choosing their own topics and forms; emphasis on au-thentic audiences and purposeful communication; writer’s notebooks; frequent teacher modeling; five days a week, 45-60 minutes per day at elementary, three days a week at secondary; etc.

Writing Process Teaching students how to write the way real writers write.

Pre-writing to develop ideas; drafting to increase fluency and expres-sion; sharing to get feedback; revision to apply feedback; editing to pro-duce conventional writing; publishing to make work available with others (twice a month on average); assessing to understand strengths and weaknesses and determine goals for improvement.

Writing Strategies Reliable, re-usable techniques that help writers solve common problems.

Topic T-Chart; What-Why-How; Idea-Details; Tell-Show; Transition-Action-Details; Draw-Label-Caption; Action-Feelings-Setting; Content-Purpose-Audience; The Five Big Questions; The Five Facts of Fiction; lead strategies; ending strategies; pacing strategies, transition strate-gies, sentence strategies, conventions strategies; etc.

Six Traits A language of quality that defines good writing.

Ideas: main idea, details, showing, purpose, originality; Organization: leads, endings, transitions, pacing, sequencing; Voice: personality, style, respect for audience; honesty; control; Word Choice: strong verbs, spe-cific nouns and modifiers, appropriate vocabulary, memorable phrases, grammar and usage; Sentence Fluency: length, beginnings, sound, ex-pression, construction; Conventions: capitalization, ending punctuation, internal punctuation, paragraphing, spelling.

Authentic Forms Helping students explore and master the kinds of writing done by real peo-ple in the real world.

The creation of whole pieces that match as closely as possible the same types of writing done by adults; Primary emphasis on the personal essay (narrative, expository, persuasive) as the foundation of all writing; infor-mational writing, reviews; letters; newspaper and magazine journalism; secondary emphasis on career-related forms such as technical writing, business writing, proposals, etc.; Occasional work on fiction, poetry, drama; etc.

Reading-Writing Connection Helping students internalize reading and writing as complimentary aspects of literate communication.

Writing strategies used in “reverse” as comprehension strategies; ana-lyzing reading texts for writing techniques; Explicit training in expressive reading to improve understanding of conventions; Conventions reading; Studying the same forms in reading that we want students to write; Reading and evaluating the writing of other students; etc.

In addition to dramatic improvements in test scores, teachers who have based the development of their own writing programs on the model presented here note the following advantages over the traditional approaches they used in the past: (1) Students enjoy writing; (2) Students write signif i-cantly more; (3) Low students often make as much progress as high students; (4) Students work in-dependently with significantly greater on-task performance; (5) The burden of correcting and grad-ing is reduced significantly; (6) Parents are thrilled; (7) Overall literacy improves across a broad range of reading, writing, and thinking skills; (8) Students gain confidence; (9) Students demon-strate more accountability and demonstrate greater effort; (10) Success in writing carries over into other subjects; (11) Student behavior improves making the classroom easier to manage; (12) Stu-dents enjoy school more.

What Do I Look For in Writing? Page 1

1995-2003 by Steve Peha Web: www.ttms.org · E-mail: [email protected]

1. Quality What is good writing? What does it look like? How can we describe it in words? What criteria do we use to say that some pieces are better than others? How do we justify our judgments and support our analyses? The goal of this area of the writing curriculum is to provide students with an effective vocabulary that matches real world standards for appreciating the quality of a piece of writing and identifying oppor-tunities for improvement. 1.1 General __ Uses a shared language of quality to express judgments in

ways that others understand. __ Knows that different quality standards apply in different situa-

tions. __ Knows that some traits are more important than others. __ Knows that some traits are more important in some forms. __ Understands how the traits interact, knows that strengths and

weaknesses in one trait may be linked with other traits. __ Knows that Voice is the most important trait. __ Knows that, in general, the communication of ideas is more im-

portant than correctness, but also understands community values with regard to conventions and strives to meet this standard.

__ Knows that success in all traits is required in order to produce successful writing.

1.2 Ideas __ Defines and develops an important main idea. __ Supports ideas with interesting and relevant details. __ Uses "showing" or "descriptive" detail effectively. __ Produces writing that demonstrates a clear and consistent sense

of purpose. __ Occasionally includes something unusual or unexpected that is

appropriate and effective. __ Produces writing that displays insight, knowledge, experience,

and depth of thought. __ Produces writing that makes sense. __ Values the meaning of ideas over organizational structure.

1.3 Organization __ Chooses organizational structure based on structure of own

ideas. __ Uses authentic organizational structures, avoids inauthentic "rec-

ipe" and "fill-in" approaches. __ Creates effective beginnings that catch the audience's attention

and make them want to read more. __ Creates effective endings that feel finished and give the audience

something to think about. __ Determines sequencing based on the logical progression of ideas

and the needs of the audience. __ Paces writing effectively, spends the right amount of time on each

part. __ Produces writing that is easy to follow from section to section. 1.4 Voice __ Chooses own topics. __ Cares about own writing. __ Takes ownership of own writing. __ Writes in ways that make readers care. __ Respects the needs of the audience. __ Writes with honest statements and strong feelings. __ Shows own personality in appropriate ways. __ Writes with energy under thoughtful control. __ Uses humor appropriately. __ Takes risks with writing that lead to new learning. __ Demonstrates an understanding of the connection between Voice

and choice. __ Consistently asserts personal preferences in ways that make own

writing more effective. __ Produces writing that shows evidence of originality and unique-

ness. __ Attempts to develop and assert a personal writing style. __ Asserts individuality in ways that are valued by the community. __ Constructively resists conformity when it is inconsistent with per-

sonal values.

What Do I Look For in Writing?



1.5 Word Choice __ Uses language that is appropriate to content, purpose, audience,

and form. __ Uses strong verbs effectively. __ Writes with specific and precise adverbs and adjectives. __ Produces writing that includes memorable words and phrases. __ Demonstrates effective usage. __ Uses appropriate grammar. __ Demonstrates an understanding of the difference in vocabulary

between formal and informal writing. __ Knows the meanings of words used including connotative mean-

ings. __ Uses colloquial language effectively and appropriately. __ Engages in word play. __ Demonstrates a basic understanding of etymology. 1.6 Sentence Fluency __ Reads own writing with expression. __ Displays effective variety in sentence beginnings. __ Displays effective variety in sentence lengths. __ Produces writing that is easy to read expressively. __ Uses rhythm, rhyme, alliteration and other "sound" effects appro-

priately. __ Constructs sentences in ways that make them easy to under-

stand. __ Modifies sentence structure for audience. __ Uses fragments effectively. 1.7 Conventions __ Applies conventions in ways that makes sense to the audience. __ Alters writing conventions appropriately according to content,

purpose, audience, and form. __ Understands the vocabulary of writing conventions and uses

terms appropriately. __ Knows that conventions are not hard and fast rules but agree-

ments within communities and that these agreements change from time to time.

__ Knows that specific rules are determined by publishers who follow a particular "style" that may, in some respects, be unique to their particular publications.

__ Uses capitalization to indicate where new ideas begin; capitalizes the word "I" as well as names, places, and things that are one of a kind.

__ Uses marks of terminal punctuation—periods, question marks, and exclamation marks—to indicate the ends of statements, questions, and exclamatory remarks.

__ Uses marks of internal punctuation—commas, colons, semico-lons, dashes, and parentheses—to improve readability and en-hance meaning by indicating clause boundaries and logical rela-tionships.

__ Uses apostrophes to indicate possession and contractions. __ Uses quotation marks to indicate dialog, to indicate an uncom-

mon use of a word or phrase, and to signal irony. __ Uses the ellipsis to indicate that text is missing or that something

repeats indefinitely. __ Uses paragraphs to indicate groups of related ideas and to signal

a new speaker when writing dialog; indents or skips a line be-tween paragraphs according to appropriate style.

__ Uses hyphens to indicate the breaking of a word, at a syllable boundary, that is continued on the next line.

__ Spells words correctly as defined by audience or publisher's style. 1.8 Presentation __ Produces legible writing. __ Produces work that is visually appealing. __ Uses appropriate letter formation, size, slant, and spacing. __ Stays on the lines. __ Uses appropriate margins. __ Uses appropriate fonts and other computer formatting. __ Uses layout techniques that increase readability and visual ap-

peal. __ Uses effective illustrations and other visual components such as

diagrams, tables, charts, photographs, etc.



2. Process How do writers write? What stages do they go through to turn raw ideas into polished pieces? What do writers attempt to accomplish at each stage? How do writers develop and refine their own writing process? The goal of this part of the writing curriculum is to help students de-velop an effective and reliable process for creating finished pieces. 2.1 General __ Knows the stages of the "generic" writing process—pre-writing,

drafting, revising, editing, publishing. __ Understands the purpose of each stage in the writing process. __ Understands the cyclical nature of the writing process. __ Develops and uses own writing process. __ Demonstrates an appreciation of or tolerance for the writing

processes of others. 2.2 Pre-writing __ Pre-writes when necessary. __ Uses a variety of pre-writing strategies,. __ Selects appropriate pre-writing strategies for specific situations. __ Saves pre-writing materials for use at other times. __ Develops own pre-writing strategies. __ Saves pre-writing material for later use. __ Devotes an appropriate amount of time to pre-writing.

2.3 Drafting __ Skips spaces between lines to facilitate easier revision when writ-

ing by hand. __ Makes use of pre-writing to generate material. __ Attends to conventions as they arise in accordance with ability but

does not let correctness impact fluency. __ Writes fluently for sustained periods of time with reasonable pro-

duction. __ Handles writer's block effectively. __ Expresses self freely and unselfconsciously. __ Puts thoughts into words comfortably and naturally. __ Demonstrates a willingness to take risks. __ Writes until ideas are thoroughly expressed, not for word or page

counts, arbitrary periods of time, or other quantitative measures. 2.4 Sharing __ Shares regularly at all stages of the writing process. __ Acknowledges feedback. __ Understands feedback, asks for clarification or elaboration when

confused. __ Asks audience for specific help when sharing. __ Shares parts of a piece when the whole might be too long. __ Gives other writers an equal opportunity to share. __ Allows another writer or the teacher to share own writing when

unwilling or unable to read own work. __ Reads own work with confidence in a loud, clear, and pleasant

manner. __ Demonstrates an understanding of the value of sharing to self,

others, and the writing community as a whole. 2.5 Revising __ Uses specific revision strategies to solve common problems. __ Regular revises beginnings and endings. __ Applies feedback from sharing to improve writing; makes good

decisions about when and when not to apply feedback. __ Often makes more than one revision pass. __ Revises to meet the needs of an authentic audience. __ Adds material when needed based on own analysis or the re-

quests of others. __ Re-organizes material to improve sequencing. __ Deletes material when it is unnecessary or when length require-

ments apply. __ Spends more time in revision than in other stages.



2.6 Editing __ Finds own errors. __ Corrects own writing. __ Uses editing marks when necessary. __ Helps other writers edit their writing. __ Asks for specific help with specific conventions. __ Finds and fixes one type of error at a time when engaged in for-

mal proofreading. __ Makes several "passes" over a piece to insure correctness. __ Asks others to review own writing for correctness, accepts feed-

back and applies it. __ Expends reasonable effort to make writing as correct as it can be

using all available resources and strategies. 2.7 Publishing __ Publishes writing regularly. __ Produces finished pieces with legible handwriting. __ Illustrates work when appropriate using drawings, photographs,

graphics, artwork, etc. __ Types and formats own writing using a computer or typewriter. __ Keeps a portfolio of work. __ Displays and/or distributes work for appreciation by others. __ Has some familiarity with desktop publishing, computer-aided

slideshows, and web publishing. __ Submits finished work for formal publications like school or class-

room newspapers, or for other situations like contests, admis-sions requirements, etc.

__ Produces finished writing outside of school without being told to do so.

__ Shows good judgment with regard to the publication of personal information and ideas others may find troubling or offensive.

2.8 Assessing __ Expresses judgments of quality using appropriate criteria. __ Produces written reflections about own writing. __ Assesses both process and product of own writing. __ Understands own writing process. __ Accurately assesses own writing and the writing of others. __ Understands own strengths and weaknesses. __ Sets goals for improvement __ Achieves most learning goals. __ Asks for specific help and uses it. __ Sees self as a writer. __ Understands how to improve or seeks to find out. __ Finds writing enjoyable and valuable. __ Focuses on growth and improvement over time rather than on the

success or failure of a single piece.



3. Forms What kinds of writing are most likely to help students become better writers? What kinds of writing should students practice occasionally in order to develop familiarity though perhaps not mastery? What kinds of writing exist in the world today? What kinds of writing are relevant and practical for each individual student? The goal of this area of the writing curriculum is to expose students to the most common authentic forms of writing that exist in the world today and to help them develop competence in those forms that are most valuable to them. Note: I recognize that this section could be very long as hundreds of forms of writing exist in the world and new forms continue to arise. In this draft, I have chosen to focus on those forms which I feel are es-sential for learning how to write and are beneficial to all students. New forms, and new learning goals, should be added as needed, es-pecially with regard to authentic forms in subject areas outside of the Language Arts. 3.1 General __ Uses a variety of authentic forms to express ideas, to demon-

strate learning, and to clarify and formalize thinking. __ Knows the difference between authentic and inauthentic forms. __ Chooses own forms. __ Expresses personal preferences about forms, has favorite forms. __ Knows different forms have different requirements. __ Can identify key elements that make one form different from an-

other. __ Has some familiarity with the history of some writing forms, knows

that forms change over time in response to technology and cul-ture.

__ Understands the connection between content, purpose, audience, and form.

__ Practices the forms that are mostly likely to improve own writing ability.

__ Focuses on those forms that are most relevant and valuable to own life.

__ Uses all modes of argument (narrative, expository, persuasive, descriptive) effectively, can mix and move between them effec-tively in the same piece.

3.2 Personal Narrative __ Knows that personal narrative writing is the best form for improv-

ing writing skills and the basis for all other forms. __ Writes accurately and honestly from own experience. __ Draws connections in personal narrative writing between own ex-

perience and the experiences of others. __ Interprets events, draws meaningful conclusions, explores life les-

sons. __ Effectively explores own beliefs and world view in ways that others

find entertaining and thought provoking. __ Relates personal experiences naturally in ways the audience can

appreciate. __ Draws on a variety of experiences for material. 3.3 Informational and Expository __ Selects own topics for research based on personal interest within

the framework of the curriculum. __ Produces writing with a clear and well-defined thesis. __ Focuses on a narrowly defined topic area or small set of ques-

tions. __ Knows how to develop good questions for study, pursues follow-

up questions thoroughly. __ Uses a variety of authentic sources such as: original documents,

interviews, the experience of colleagues, personal experience, etc.

__ Constructs logical arguments that are sound, meaningful, and ef-fective.

__ Supports conclusions with reasons and evidence. __ Models informational writing after contemporary newspaper and

magazine journalism.

3.4 Persuasive __ Demonstrates strong belief in positions. __ Understands the perspective of the audience. __ Anticipates and handles all reasonable objections. __ Argues respectfully. __ Supports opinions with ample detail. __ Asserts positions with clarity. __ Uses credible and effective evidence to sustain arguments. __ Demonstrates thoroughness by dealing with all relevant aspects

of a given issue. __ Occasionally succeeds in persuading some readers.



3.5 Book Reviews and Literary Criticism __ Selects own texts to be reviewed. __ Assesses the quality of the text. __ Draws meaningful connections and comparisons within and

across texts. __ Summarizes effectively. __ Offers thoughtful commentary and original insights based on

thorough analysis. __ Provides sufficient information to allow others to decide if they

would like to read a text. __ Sites sections of the text to support opinions. 3.6 Journaling __ Uses journaling as an opportunity for personal reflection. __ Uses journaling as a means of saving thoughts for use in other

writings. __ Uses journaling to record and track progress. __ Uses journaling to increase fluency. 3.7 Correspondence __ Demonstrates an understanding of the formal conventions of

various kinds of correspondence. __ Writes letters regularly, replies when written to. __ Demonstrates an understanding of e-mail and instant message

etiquette. __ Writes letters of inquiry for research topics and other needs. __ Writes letters to family and friends. __ Writes letters to express opinions about school, community, and

the world. __ Writes "thank you" letters. __ Demonstrates familiarity with common business correspondence. 3.8 Note Taking __ Takes notes in ways that are useful at a later time. __ Knows some specific note taking strategies. __ Knows when and when not to take notes. __ Shows good judgment about what and what not to write down. __ Saves notes for later use.

3.9 Fiction __ Occasionally attempts, but may not always finish, short fiction. __ Demonstrates a familiarity with strategies for creating stories, de-

veloping characters, constructing plots, etc. __ Demonstrates an understanding of how fiction works. __ Demonstrates a knowledge of common sub-genres. __ Uses information learned through the writing of fiction to improve

ability to read fiction. __ Attempts some of the common techniques used by professional

fiction writers. 3.10 Test Writing __ Knows how to write appropriately and effectively for tests. __ Understands the criteria of the test and the process of how work

will be scored. __ Uses specific test taking strategies when necessary. __ Knows that test writing is not the same as authentic writing,

merely a genre of writing that is practiced only occasionally. 3.11 Other Forms __ Has attempted the common forms of newspaper and magazine

journalism—straight news, feature story, interview, commentary, editorial, etc.

__ Has attempted the commonly used authentic forms of writing in mathematics, the physical sciences, and the social sciences.

__ Has attempted to write poetry, songs, and drama. __ Has attempted technical writing. __ Has practiced writing college entrance essays or similar works

produced for similar situations. __ Has some familiarity with important business documents—

business plan, request for proposal, invoice, job cost estimate, letter of complaint, memorandum, job offer, employment contract, etc.

__ Has written a resume. __ Writes successfully in forms that match a personal interest but

may not be taught in school: sports writing, travel writing, restau-rant and movie reviews, spiritual writing, interactive writing, televi-sion and movie scripts, e-mail and instant messaging, etc.



4. Strategies What is a writing strategy? What are the problems writers face and which strategies do writers use to solve them? Which strategies are most efficient and effective? Which strategies are best for which types of writing? What does it mean to think strategically about writing? The goal of this area of the writing curriculum is to provide students with a large repertoire of reliable techniques for solving the common problems writers face and to expose students to the idea of thinking strategically about writing. 4.1 General __ Notices frequent problems and selects appropriate strategies for

solving them. __ Develops a repertoire of strategies for elements in the criteria for

quality, for each stage in the writing process, and for relevant forms.

__ Uses a large repertoire of authentic and reliable strategies that can be used in a variety of writing situations.

__ Chooses strategies to match genre, form, or mode of writing. __ Uses many strategies for selecting effective topics, knows what a

good topic is. __ Uses at least one strategy for creating or refining a main idea,

knows what a main idea is and how it functions in a piece of writ-ing.

__ Uses at least one strategy for identifying and clarifying purpose and writing toward that goal.

__ Uses strategies for determining and meeting the needs of an au-dience.

__ Uses strategies for determining when a piece is finished. __ Uses strategies for sounding out words independently. __ Uses many strategies for the creation of supporting details,

knows what a detail is and how it functions in a piece of writing. __ Uses single strategies or strategy sets that are particularly effec-

tive for certain forms, genres, or modes of writing. __ Uses many strategies for creating effective beginnings, often tries

several different beginnings for a piece. __ Uses many strategies for creating effective endings, often tries

several different endings for a piece. __ Uses strategies to identify and correct errors in writing conven-

tions. __ Uses strategies to determine the meaning or correct spelling of a

word. __ Uses strategies for dealing with writer's block. __ Uses strategies for effective summarizing. __ Uses strategies for narrative sequencing and procedural writing. __ Develops own repertoire of personal strategies based on own

writing process. __ Demonstrates an eagerness to learn new strategies. __ Thinks strategically about writing.

5. Community What is a writing community? What value is there in working with other writers when learning to write? How do we create and sustain a supportive environment for writing? What rules or other agree-ments should we follow so that all writers have an opportunity to learn? What format or structure should we use in our writing class-room? The goal of this area of the writing curriculum is to provide students with the knowledge and abilities they need to work together effectively as writers and to establish guidelines that assure the success of all participants and the teacher. 5.1 General __ Contributes to the success of the writing community. __ Shares regularly. __ Provides helpful responses to other writers. __ Conferences regularly with the teacher. __ Applies conference suggestions offered by the teacher. __ Peer conferences effectively. __ Participates effectively in small group sharing. __ Requests specific feedback and incorporates it as needed. __ Moves from stage to stage in the writing process independently. __ Makes good decisions about when to move on to a new piece. __ Functions independently when required. __ Requests specific help and applies it effectively. __ Knows which writers to ask for certain kinds of help. __ Makes deadlines. __ Helps others. __ Participates appropriately. __ Shares "status" when asked. __ Works well during work time. __ Attends well to mini-lessons. __ Applies lesson content. __ Takes writing seriously. __ Has appropriate writing materials. __ Observes the rules of the writing community.



6. Connection What is the reading-writing connection? How are reading and writ-ing related? How can we learn about one subject while engaging in the other? What is the value of studying reading and writing as two parts of the same thing? How do we define reading and writing as complimentary processes? The goal of this area of the writing curriculum is to help students use the knowledge and skills of reading to improve their knowledge and skills in writing and vice versa. 6.1 General __ Analyzes and assesses reading models to learn more about writ-

ing. __ Acquires new writing techniques from reading. __ Identifies forms and analyzes their components. __ Applies writing strategies in reverse to improve reading compre-

hension. __ Demonstrates knowledge of the complimentary nature of reading

and writing. __ Imitates texts read in writing. __ Demonstrates an understanding of the connection between ex-

pressive reading, sentence fluency, and writing conventions. __ Reads own writing thoroughly. __ Reads the writing of other student writers. __ Learns about the use of conventions from examples in books. __ Analyzes and attempts to emulate the writing style of favorite au-

thors. __ Writes down and keeps favorite passages from other texts. __ Uses sentences in other texts as models for sentence structures

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at h

e or

she

is a

“ba

d” o

r a “

good

” wr

iter;

you’

re ju

st tr

ying

to fi

nd o

ut, a

s be

st y

ou c

an, w

hat t

he p

aper

’s st

reng

ths

and

weak

ness

es a

re.

Idea

s Th

e he

art o

f the

mes

sage

, the

con

tent

of t

he p

iece

, the

mai

n th

eme

toge

ther

with

the

deta

ils th

at e

nrich

and

dev

elop

that

them

e.

5 T

he p

aper

is c

lear

and

focu

sed.

It h

olds

the

read

er’s

at-

tent

ion.

Rel

evan

t ane

cdot

es a

nd d

etai

ls en

rich

the

cent

ral

them

e or

sto

ry li

ne.

4 Id

eas

are

fresh

and

orig

inal.

4

The

writ

er s

eem

s to

be

writin

g fro

m k

nowl

edge

or e

xper

ience

and

sh

ows

insig

ht: a

n un

ders

tand

ing

of lif

e an

d a

knac

k fo

r pick

ing

out

what

is s

igni

fican

t. 4

Rele

vant

, sho

wing

, qua

lity d

etail

s gi

ve th

e re

ader

impo

rtant

info

rma-

tion

that

goe

s be

yond

the

obvio

us o

r pre

dict

able.

4

The

writ

er d

evelo

ps th

e to

pic

in a

n en

light

enin

g, p

urpo

sefu

l way

that

m

akes

a p

oint

or t

ells

a st

ory.

4 E

very

piec

e ad

ds s

omet

hing

to th

e wh

ole.

3

The

writ

er is

beg

inni

ng to

def

ine

the

topi

c, e

ven

thou

gh

deve

lopm

ent i

s st

ill b

asic

or g

ener

al.

4 It

is p

retty

eas

y to

see

wher

e th

e wr

iter i

s he

aded

, tho

ugh

mor

e in

-fo

rmat

ion

is ne

eded

to “

fill in

the

blan

ks.”

4 T

he w

riter

see

ms

to b

e dr

awin

g on

kno

wled

ge o

r exp

erien

ce, b

ut h

as

diffi

culty

goi

ng fr

om g

ener

al ob

serv

atio

ns to

spe

cifics

. 4

Idea

s ar

e re

ason

ably

clear

, tho

ugh

they

may

not

be

deta

iled,

per

-so

naliz

ed, o

r ext

ende

d en

ough

to s

how

in-d

epth

und

erst

andi

ng o

r a

stro

ng s

ense

of p

urpo

se.

4 S

uppo

rt is

atte

mpt

ed, b

ut d

oesn

’t go

far e

noug

h ye

t in

flesh

ing

out

the

main

poi

nt o

r sto

ry lin

e.

4 D

etail

s of

ten

blen

d th

e or

igin

al wi

th th

e pr

edict

able.

1

As

yet,

the

pape

r has

no

clear

sen

se o

f pur

pose

or c

en-

tral t

hem

e. T

o ex

tract

mea

ning

from

the

text

, the

read

er m

ust

mak

e in

fere

nces

bas

ed o

n sk

etch

y de

tails

. The

writ

ing

refle

cts

mor

e th

an o

ne o

f the

se p

robl

ems:

4

The

writ

er is

still

in s

earc

h of

a to

pic,

or h

as n

ot b

egun

to d

efin

e th

e to

pic i

n a

mea

ning

ful,

pers

onal

way.

4 In

form

atio

n is

very

limite

d or

unc

lear.

4 T

he te

xt m

ay b

e re

petit

ious

, or m

ay re

ad lik

e a

colle

ctio

n of

disc

on-

nect

ed, r

ando

m th

ough

ts.

4 E

very

thin

g se

ems

as im

porta

nt a

s ev

eryt

hing

else

; the

read

er h

as a

ha

rd ti

me

siftin

g ou

t wha

t’s c

ritica

l.

Orga

niza

tion

The

inte

rnal

stru

ctur

e of

a p

iece

, the

thre

ad o

f cen

tral m

eani

ng, t

he

logi

cal p

atte

rn o

f ide

as.

5 T

he o

rgan

izat

ion

adva

nces

and

sho

wcas

es th

e ce

ntra

l id

ea o

r sto

ry li

ne. T

he o

rder

, stru

ctur

e, o

r pre

sent

atio

n of

in-

form

atio

n is

com

pelli

ng a

nd m

oves

the

read

er th

roug

h th

e te

xt.

4 D

etails

seem

to fit

whe

re th

ey ar

e plac

ed; s

eque

ncing

is lo

gical

and

effec

tive.

4 A

n in

vitin

g in

trodu

ctio

n dr

aws

the

read

er in

; a s

atisf

ying

conc

lusio

n lea

ves

the

read

er w

ith a

sen

se o

f res

olut

ion.

4

Pac

ing

is we

ll con

trolle

d; th

e wr

iter k

nows

whe

n to

slo

w do

wn a

nd

elabo

rate

, and

whe

n to

pick

up

the

pace

and

mov

e on

. 4

Tho

ught

ful t

rans

itions

clea

rly s

how

how

idea

s co

nnec

t. 4

Org

aniza

tion

flows

so

smoo

thly

the

read

er h

ardl

y th

inks

abo

ut it

. 3

The

org

aniz

atio

nal s

truct

ure

is st

rong

eno

ugh

to m

ove

the

read

er th

roug

h th

e te

xt w

ithou

t und

ue c

onfu

sion.

4

The

pap

er h

as a

reco

gniza

ble

intro

duct

ion

and

conc

lusio

n. T

he in

-tro

duct

ion

may

not

crea

te a

stro

ng s

ense

of a

ntici

patio

n; th

e co

nclu

-sio

n m

ay n

ot ti

e up

all l

oose

end

s. 4

Seq

uenc

ing

is us

ually

logi

cal,

but m

ay s

omet

imes

be

so p

redi

ctab

le th

at th

e st

ruct

ure

take

s at

tent

ion

away

from

the

cont

ent.

4 P

acin

g is

fairl

y we

ll con

trolle

d, th

ough

the

write

r som

etim

es s

purts

ah

ead

too

quick

ly or

spe

nds

too

muc

h tim

e on

det

ails

that

do

not

mat

ter.

Tran

sitio

ns o

ften

work

well

; at o

ther

tim

es, c

onne

ctio

ns b

e-tw

een

idea

s ar

e fu

zzy.

4 T

he o

rgan

izatio

n som

etime

s sup

ports

the m

ain p

oint o

r sto

ry lin

e; at

othe

r tim

es, th

e rea

der f

eels

an ur

ge to

slip

in a t

rans

ition o

r mov

e thin

gs ar

ound

. 1

The

writ

ing

lack

s a

clear

sen

se o

f dire

ctio

n. Id

eas,

de-

tails

, or e

vent

s se

em s

trung

toge

ther

in a

loos

e or

rand

om

fash

ion,

or e

lse th

ere

is no

iden

tifia

ble

inte

rnal

stru

ctur

e. T

he

writi

ng re

flect

s m

ore

than

one

of t

hese

pro

blem

s:

4 S

eque

ncin

g ne

eds

work

. 4

The

re is

no

real

lead

to s

et u

p wh

at fo

llows

, no

real

conc

lusio

n to

wr

ap th

ings

up.

4

Pac

ing

feels

awk

ward

; the

writ

er s

lows

to a

craw

l whe

n th

e re

ader

wa

nts

to g

et o

n wi

th it

, and

vice

vers

a.

4 C

onne

ctio

ns b

etwe

en id

eas

are

conf

usin

g or

miss

ing.

4

Pro

blem

s wi

th o

rgan

izatio

n m

ake

it ha

rd fo

r the

read

er to

get

a g

rip

on th

e m

ain p

oint

or s

tory

line.

Voice

Th

e he

art a

nd s

oul o

f a p

iece

, the

mag

ic, th

e wi

t. It

is th

e wr

iter’s

un

ique

and

per

sona

l exp

ress

ion

emer

ging

thro

ugh

word

s.

5 T

he w

riter

spe

aks

dire

ctly

to th

e re

ader

in a

way

that

is

indi

vidua

listic

, exp

ress

ive, a

nd e

ngag

ing.

Cle

arly

, the

writ

er is

in

volve

d in

the

text

, is

sens

itive

to th

e ne

eds

of a

n au

dien

ce,

and

is wr

iting

to b

e re

ad.

4 T

he re

ader

feels

a s

trong

inte

ract

ion

with

the

write

r, se

nsin

g th

e pe

rson

beh

ind

the

word

s. 4

The

tone

and

voi

ce g

ive fl

avor

to th

e m

essa

ge a

nd s

eem

app

ropr

iate

for t

he p

urpo

se a

nd a

udien

ce.

4 T

he w

ritin

g se

ems

hone

st, a

ppea

ling,

and

writ

ten

from

the

hear

t. 4

The

writ

ing re

flects

a st

rong

com

mitm

ent t

o th

e to

pic, a

nd a

n eff

ort t

o br

ing th

e to

pic to

life

by a

ntici

patin

g th

e re

ader

’s qu

estio

ns, a

nd sh

owing

wh

y the

read

er sh

ould

care

or w

ant t

o kn

ow m

ore.

3 T

he w

riter

see

ms

since

re, b

ut n

ot fu

lly e

ngag

ed o

r in-

volve

d. T

he re

sult

is pl

easa

nt o

r eve

n pe

rson

able

, but

not

co

mpe

lling

. 4

The

writ

ing

com

mun

icate

s in

an

earn

est,

plea

sing

man

ner.

Mom

ents

he

re a

nd th

ere

surp

rise,

am

use,

or m

ove

the

read

er.

4 V

oice

may

em

erge

stro

ngly

on o

ccas

ion,

then

retre

at b

ehin

d ge

n-er

al, d

ispas

siona

te la

ngua

ge.

4 T

he w

ritin

g hi

des

as m

uch

of th

e wr

iter a

s it

reve

als.

4 T

he w

riter

seem

s awa

re o

f an

audie

nce,

but o

ften

tend

s to

weigh

wor

ds

care

fully

or d

iscar

d pe

rson

al ins

ights

in fav

or o

f safe

gen

erali

ties.

1 T

he w

riter

see

ms

indi

ffere

nt, u

ninv

olve

d, o

r dist

ance

d fro

m th

e to

pic

and/

or th

e au

dien

ce. A

s a

resu

lt, th

e wr

iting

is

lifel

ess

or m

echa

nica

l; de

pend

ing

on th

e to

pic,

it m

ay b

e ov

erly

te

chni

cal o

r jar

goni

stic.

The

pap

er re

flect

s m

ore

than

one

of

the

follo

wing

pro

blem

s:

4 It

is h

ard

to se

nse

the

write

r beh

ind th

e wo

rds.

The

write

r doe

s not

seem

to

reac

h ou

t to

an a

udien

ce, o

r to

antic

ipate

their

inte

rests

and

que

stion

s. 4

The

writ

er s

peak

s in

a k

ind

of m

onot

one

that

flat

tens

all p

oten

tial

high

s or

lows

of t

he m

essa

ge.

4 T

he w

ritin

g m

ay c

omm

unica

te o

n a

func

tiona

l leve

l, bu

t it d

oes

not

mov

e or

invo

lve th

e re

ader

. 4

The

writ

er d

oes

not s

eem

suf

ficien

tly a

t hom

e wi

th th

e to

pic

to ta

ke

risks

, sha

re p

erso

nal in

sight

s, or

mak

e th

e to

pic/

stor

y pe

rson

al an

d re

al fo

r the

read

er.

Sco

re fo

r the

trait

of I

deas

: __

____

_ S

core

for t

he tr

ait o

f Org

aniz

atio

n: _

____

__

Sco

re fo

r the

trait

of V

oice

: ___

____

Word Choice

The use of rich, colorful, precise language that moves and enlightens

the reader. It is the love of language, a passion for words, combined

with a skill in choosing words that creates just the right mood.

5 W

ords convey the intended message in a precise, inter-

esting, and natural way. 4

Words are specific and accurate; it is easy to understand just what the writer m

eans. 4

The language is natural and never overdone; phrasing is highly indi-vidual.

4 Lively verbs energize the writing. Precise nouns and m

odifiers create pictures in the reader’s m

ind. 4

Striking words and phrases often catch the reader’s eye—and linger

in the reader’s mind.

4 Clichés and jargon are used sparingly, only for effect.

3 The language is functional, even if it lacks punch; it is

easy to figure out the writer’s meaning on a general level.

4 Words are alm

ost always correct and adequate; they simply lack flair.

4 Fam

iliar words and phrases comm

unicate, but rarely capture the reader’s im

agination. Still, the paper may have one or two fine m

o-m

ents. 4

Attempts at colorful language com

e close to the mark, but som

e-tim

es seem overdone.

4 Energetic verbs or picturesque phrases liven things up now and then; the reader longs for m

ore. 1

The writer struggles with a limited vocabulary, searching

for words to convey meaning. The writing reflects m

ore than one of these problem

s: 4

Language is so vague (e.g., It was a fun time, She was neat, It was nice, We did lots of stuff) that only the m

ost general message com

es through.

4 Persistent redundancy distracts the reader.

4 Jargon or clichés serve as a crutch.

4 Words are used incorrectly, som

etimes m

aking the message hard to

decipher. 4

Problems with language leave the reader wondering what the writer

is trying to say.

Sentence Fluency The rhythm

and flow of the language, the sound of word patterns, the way the writing plays to the ear—

not just to the eye.

5 The writing has an easy flow and rhythm

when read aloud. Sentences are well built, with strong and varied struc-ture that invites expressive reading. 4

Sentences are constructed in a way that helps make m

eaning clear. 4

Purposeful sentence beginnings show how each sentence relates to and builds upon the one before it.

4 The writing has cadence, as if the writer has thought about the sound of the words as well as the m

eaning. 4

Sentences vary in length as well as structure. 4

Fragments, if used, add style.

4 Dialog, if used, sounds natural.

3 The text hum

s along with a steady beat, but tends to be m

ore pleasant or businesslike than musical, m

ore mechanical

than fluid. 4

Sentences may not seem

artfully crafted or musical, but they are

usually gramm

atical. They hang together. They get the job done. 4

There is at least some variation in sentence length and structure.

Sentence beginnings are not all alike. 4

The reader sometim

es has to hunt for clues (e.g., connecting words and phrases like however, therefore, on the other hand, to be spe-cific, for example, etc.) that show how sentences interrelate.

4 Parts of the text invite expressive oral reading; others m

ay be stiff, awkward, choppy, or gangly. Overall though, it is pretty easy to read the paper aloud with a little practice.

1 The reader has to practice in order to give this paper a

fair interpretive reading. The writing reflects more than one of

these problems:

4 Sentences are choppy, incom

plete, rambling, or awkward; they need work.

4 Phrasing does not sound natural, the way som

eone might speak.

The reader must som

etimes pause or read over to get the m

eaning. 4

Many sentences begin the sam

e way—and m

any follow the same

patterns (e.g., subject-verb-object) in a monotonous pattern.

4 Endless connectives (and, and so, but then, because, and then, etc.) create a m

assive jumble of language in which clear sentence begin-

nings and endings get swallowed up. 4

The text does not invite expressive oral reading.

Conventions The m

echanical correctness of the writing.

5 The writer dem

onstrates a good grasp of standard writing conventions and uses conventions effectively to enhance readability. Errors tend to be so few and so m

inor that the reader can easily overlook them

unless hunting for them spe-

cifically. 4

Paragraphing tends to be sound; it reinforces organizational structure. 4

Gramm

ar and usage contribute to clarity and style. 4

Punctuation is accurate and guides the reader through the text. 4

Spelling is generally correct, even on more difficult words.

4 The writer m

ay manipulate conventions—

especially gramm

ar and spelling—

for stylistic effect. 4

The writing is sufficiently long and complex to allow the writer to show

skill using a wide range of conventions. 4

Only light editing is required to polish the text for publication. 3

The writer shows reasonable control over a limited range

of standard writing conventions. Conventions are sometim

es handled well and enhance readability; at other tim

es, errors are distracting. 4

Paragraphing is attempted. Paragraphs som

etimes run together or

begin in the wrong places. 4

Problems with gram

mar or usage are not serious enough to distort m

ean-ing.

4 Terminal (end-of-sentence) punctuation is usually correct; internal punctua-tion (commas, semicolons, dashes, colons, etc.) is sometimes missing or wrong.

4 Spelling is usually correct or reasonably phonetic on com

mon words.

4 M

oderate editing is required to polish the text for publication. 1

Errors in spelling, punctuation, gramm

ar, captalization, etc., repeatedly distract the reader and m

ake the text difficult toread. The writing reflects m

ore than one of these problems:

4 Paragraphing is m

issing, irregular, or so frequent (e.g., every sentence) that it has no relationship to the organizational structure of the text.

4 Errors in gram

mar or usage are very noticeable, and m

ay affect meaning.

4 Punctuation is often m

issing or incorrect. 4

Spelling errors are frequent, even on comm

on words. 4

The reader must read once to decode, then again for m

eaning. Ex-tensive editing is required.

Score for the trait of Word Choice: _______

Score for the trait of Sentence Fluency: _______ Score for the trait of Conventions: _______

1

BEGINNING The writer is searching, exploring, struggling; looking for a sense of purpose or a way to begin working with this trait. This is an early perform

ance; there is great need for revision.

2 EM

ERGING There are brief m

oments when we get a glim

pse of the writer’s ability with this trait, but no consistent use. The paper shows prom

ise, a hint of things to com

e, but there is a need for revision as weak-nesses clearly outweigh strengths.

3 DEVELOPING

The writer is beginning to take control of this trait. The paper shows a balance between strengths and weaknesses. There is definite direction, coherence, m

omentum

, and a sense of purpose, but some revi-

sion is called for.

4 M

ATURING The writer is showing m

ore control of this trait including the confidence to experim

ent. Strengths definitely outweigh weaknesses. One m

ore revision will probably bring it to closure.

5 STRONG

The writer has control of this trait and is able to use it skillfully to shape the direction of the writing. This is a very strong and controlled perform

ance (though not necessarily perfect). Little or no revision is needed.

For more inform

aton visit www.nwrel.org Official Six Traits Criteria From

NWREL (Page 2)

Adapted by Steve Peha

[email protected]

From

“Cre

atin

g W

riter

s”

L

ayou

t by

Stev

e Pe

haby

Ric

k St

iggi

ns a

nd V

icki

Spa

ndel

ww

w.tt

ms.

org

1

996

Addi

son-

Wes

ley/

Long

man

stev

epeh

a@ao

l.com

Six

Trai

ts C

riter

ia F

or R

esea

rch

Pape

rs

Rate

r:___

____

____

____

____

____

____

____

____

____

_ Pa

per:_

____

____

____

____

____

____

____

____

____

___

Date

:___

____

____

____

____

____

____

____

____

____

_

Inst

ruct

ions

: (1)

Rea

d th

e pa

per a

ll th

e w

ay th

roug

h. (2

) Sta

rt w

ith th

e cr

iteria

for a

“5” a

nd w

ork

dow

n. (3

) Rea

d ea

ch it

em a

nd e

nter

“Y” f

or “y

es”;

“N” f

or “n

o”; “

S” fo

r “so

rt of

”; M

ark

your

sco

re a

t the

bot

tom

of t

he a

ppro

pria

te c

ol-

umn.

(4) Y

ou n

eed

not m

ark

ever

y ite

m; o

nly

thos

e th

at y

ou fe

el s

erve

to ju

stify

you

r sco

re.

(5) D

on’t

agon

ize;

trus

t you

r gut

reac

tion.

(6) T

here

are

no

right

or w

rong

sco

res.

Jus

t be

sure

you

can

just

ify y

our a

sses

smen

t usi

ng th

e cr

iteria

. (7)

Be

accu

rate

, not

em

otio

nal.

You’

re n

ot g

ivin

g ou

t a g

rade

or t

ellin

g so

meo

ne th

at h

e or

she

is a

“bad

” or a

“goo

d” w

riter

; you

’re ju

st tr

ying

to fi

nd o

ut, a

s be

st y

ou c

an, w

hat t

he p

aper

’s s

treng

ths

and

wea

knes

ses

are.

IDE

AS

The

hear

t of t

he m

essa

ge, t

he c

onte

nt o

f the

pie

ce, t

he m

ain

them

e to

geth

er w

ith th

e de

tails

that

enr

ich a

nd d

evel

op th

at th

eme.

5 T

he p

aper

is c

lear

and

focu

sed.

It th

orou

ghly

ans

wer

s a

wel

l-def

ined

key

que

stio

n in

und

erst

anda

ble,

con

vinc

ing,

and

ex

pans

ive

term

s.

4 T

he m

ain

idea

, the

sis,

or r

esea

rch

ques

tion

is c

lear

ly d

efin

ed a

nd

deta

iled.

The

re m

ay b

e m

ore

than

one

key

poi

nt, b

ut th

e pa

per i

s no

t si

mpl

y a

list.

4 T

he w

riter

see

ms

wel

l inf

orm

ed a

nd, a

s ap

prop

riate

, dra

ws

on re

le-

vant

info

rmat

ion

from

a v

arie

ty o

f res

ourc

es (e

.g.,

pers

onal

exp

eri-

ence

, rea

ding

, inv

estig

atio

n, in

terv

iew

s, o

bser

vatio

ns, f

ilms)

. 4

The

writ

er c

ontin

uous

ly a

ntic

ipat

es a

nd re

spon

ds to

the

read

er’s

in-

form

atio

nal n

eeds

and

que

stio

ns.

4 S

uppo

rting

det

ails

(exa

mpl

es, f

acts

, ane

cdot

es, q

uota

tions

, etc

.) ar

e ac

cura

te, s

igni

fican

t, an

d he

lpfu

l in

clar

ifyin

g or

exp

andi

ng th

e m

ain

idea

(s).

3 T

he p

aper

add

ress

es a

n id

entif

iabl

e ke

y qu

estio

n by

of-

ferin

g th

e re

ader

gen

eral

, bas

ic in

form

atio

n.

4 T

he re

ader

can

iden

tify

or in

fer a

t lea

st o

ne m

ain

asse

rtion

or t

hesi

s.

4 S

ome

supp

ort s

eem

s gr

ound

ed in

rese

arch

or e

xper

ienc

e. S

ome

seem

s ba

sed

on c

omm

on k

now

ledg

e or

bes

t gue

sses

. 4

The

writ

er s

omet

imes

resp

onds

to th

e re

ader

’s in

form

atio

nal n

eeds

; at

oth

er ti

mes

, im

porta

nt q

uest

ions

are

left

unan

swer

ed.

4 M

ore

inve

stig

atio

n, s

trong

er s

uppo

rt, a

nd g

reat

er a

ttent

ion

to d

etai

l w

ould

stre

ngth

en th

is p

aper

. 1

The

writ

er h

as n

ot y

et c

larif

ied

an im

porta

nt q

uest

ion

or

issu

e th

at th

is p

aper

will

add

ress

. One

or m

ore

of th

e fo

llow

-in

g pr

oble

ms

may

be

evid

ent:

4 T

he p

aper

may

wan

der o

r dis

solv

e in

to a

ram

blin

g lis

t of i

deas

. It

need

s fo

cus.

4

Sup

port

is e

ither

mis

sing

, or t

oo v

ague

or q

uest

iona

ble,

to b

e he

lp-

ful.

4 T

he w

riter

doe

s no

t see

m to

hav

e th

e qu

estio

ns, n

eeds

, or i

nter

ests

of

the

audi

ence

cle

arly

in m

ind.

4

The

writ

er d

oes

not y

et h

ave

or u

se th

e in

form

atio

n ne

eded

to h

elp

a re

ader

und

erst

and

this

topi

c.

OR

GA

NIZ

AT

ION

Th

e in

tern

al s

truct

ure

of a

pie

ce, t

he th

read

of c

entra

l mea

ning

, the

lo

gica

l pat

tern

of i

deas

.

5 A

stro

ng in

tern

al s

truct

ure

give

s pu

rpos

e an

d di

rect

ion

to

the

mai

n th

esis

. The

org

aniz

atio

n pr

opel

s th

e re

ader

tow

ard

the

key

poin

t(s) o

r log

ical

con

clus

ions

the

writ

er w

ants

to e

mph

a-si

ze.

4 T

he in

trodu

ctio

n en

gage

s th

e re

ader

and

sho

ws

whe

re th

e w

riter

is

head

ed.

4 P

lace

men

t of d

etai

ls, a

necd

otes

, fac

ts, a

nd e

xam

ples

see

ms

wel

l th

ough

t out

, del

iber

ate,

and

hel

pful

to th

e re

ader

’s u

nder

stan

ding

. 4

Pur

pose

ful tr

ansit

ions

gui

de th

e re

ader

to k

ey p

oint

s an

d co

nclu

sions

. 4

The

con

clus

ion

effe

ctiv

ely

reso

lves

lefto

ver q

uest

ions

and

sho

ws

the

read

er h

ow e

very

thin

g tie

s to

geth

er.

4 T

he re

ader

’s u

nder

stan

ding

of t

he to

pic

grow

s th

roug

hout

the

pape

r. 3

The

org

aniz

atio

nal s

truct

ure

is s

trong

eno

ugh

to m

ove

the

read

er th

roug

h th

e te

xt w

ithou

t und

ue c

onfu

sion

. 4

The

intro

duct

ion

offe

rs a

t lea

st a

hin

t of t

hing

s to

com

e.

4 D

etai

ls, e

xam

ples

, fac

ts, a

nd o

ther

sup

porti

ve fe

atur

es a

re u

sual

ly lin

ked

to m

ain

idea

s, th

ough

they

may

som

etim

es p

op u

p in

illog

ical p

lace

s.

4 T

rans

ition

s ar

e at

tem

pted

, but

the

writ

er s

omet

imes

mis

ses

oppo

r-tu

nitie

s to

gui

de th

e re

ader

’s th

inki

ng.

4 T

he c

oncl

usio

n w

raps

up

the

disc

ussi

on, b

ut m

ay le

ave

loos

e en

ds

unat

tend

ed.

4 D

espi

te s

ome

ques

tions

, the

read

er c

an fo

llow

wha

t is

bein

g sa

id.

1 T

he o

rgan

izat

iona

l stru

ctur

e ne

eds

a st

rong

er s

ense

of

purp

ose

and

dire

ctio

n. T

he re

ader

may

feel

con

fuse

d ab

out

wha

t to

focu

s on

or w

hat c

oncl

usio

ns to

dra

w. O

ne o

r mor

e of

the

follo

win

g pr

oble

ms

may

be

evid

ent:

4 A

stro

ng le

ad is

nee

ded

to s

et u

p th

e pa

per;

it ju

st s

tarts

in.

4 Id

eas

and

supp

ortin

g de

tails

see

m ra

ndom

ly o

rder

ed; t

he re

ader

of-

ten

won

ders

whe

re th

e w

riter

is h

eade

d.

4 S

trong

er tr

ansit

ions

and

con

nect

ions

wou

ld h

elp

the

read

er lin

k id

eas.

4

The

read

er m

ay m

iss

the

who

le p

oint

or h

ave

grea

t diff

icul

ty fo

llow

-in

g w

hat t

he w

riter

is tr

ying

to s

ay.

4 T

he c

oncl

usio

n do

es n

ot h

elp

the

read

er m

ake

grea

ter s

ense

of

wha

t has

alre

ady

been

sai

d.

VO

ICE

Th

e he

art a

nd s

oul o

f a p

iece

, the

mag

ic, th

e w

it. It

is th

e w

riter

’s un

ique

and

per

sona

l exp

ress

ion

emer

ging

thro

ugh

wor

ds.

5 T

he w

riter

add

ress

es th

e au

dien

ce in

a v

oice

that

is li

vely

, en

gagi

ng, a

nd w

holly

app

ropr

iate

to th

e to

pic

and

purp

ose

of

the

pape

r. 4

The

writ

er’s

pas

sion

and

ent

husi

asm

for t

his

topi

c ar

e ev

iden

t th

roug

hout

the

piec

e.

4 T

he w

riter

see

ms

to k

now

his

or h

er a

udie

nce

wel

l and

to s

peak

rig

ht to

them

, dra

win

g th

em in

to th

e di

scus

sion

and

sho

win

g co

ncer

n fo

r the

ir un

ders

tand

ing

of th

e to

pic.

4

Fro

m o

peni

ng to

clo

se, t

he w

riter

sus

tain

s a

kind

of e

nerg

y th

at

hold

s th

e re

ader

’s a

ttent

ion.

4

The

read

er fi

nds

him

self

or h

erse

lf ca

ught

up

in th

is to

pic.

3

The

writ

er p

roje

cts

a to

ne a

nd v

oice

that

see

m s

ince

re,

plea

sant

, and

gen

eral

ly a

ppro

pria

te fo

r the

topi

c an

d au

di-

ence

. 4

Ent

husi

asm

and

com

mitm

ent t

o th

e to

pic

are

som

etim

es e

vide

nt,

thou

gh o

ften

rest

rain

ed.

4 M

omen

ts o

f spo

ntan

eity

enl

iven

the

piec

e bu

t may

be

som

ewha

t da

mpe

ned

by a

mor

e pr

osai

c vo

ice

that

see

ms

less

invo

lved

. 4

The

writ

er s

eem

s oc

casi

onal

ly a

war

e of

the

info

rmat

iona

l nee

ds o

r in

tere

sts

of th

e au

dien

ce.

4 T

he re

ader

feel

s in

form

ed b

ut n

ot re

ally

“inv

ited

in.”

1 T

he w

riter

see

ms

indi

ffere

nt to

eith

er to

pic

or a

udie

nce,

an

d as

a re

sult,

the

tone

may

be

dist

ant,

flat,

jarg

onis

tic,

stilt

ed, o

r jus

t ina

ppro

pria

te. O

ne o

r mor

e pr

oble

ms

may

be

evid

ent:

4 T

he w

riter

doe

s no

t see

m to

reac

h ou

t to

the

audi

ence

or t

o th

ink

how

the

tone

, sty

le, o

r lan

guag

e of

the

piec

e m

ight

affe

ct th

eir r

e-sp

onse

. 4

The

writ

er s

eem

s bo

red,

dis

tract

ed, o

r jus

t anx

ious

to b

e do

ne w

ith

it; c

onse

quen

tly, i

t is

hard

for t

he re

ader

not

to fe

el th

e sa

me.

4

Mom

ents

of e

xcite

men

t, w

hich

mig

ht h

ave

brou

ght t

his

topi

c to

life

, ju

st a

re n

ot th

ere.

4

The

writ

er m

ay b

e w

ritin

g m

ore

for h

imse

lf or

her

self

than

for a

n au

-di

ence

, and

the

resu

lt is

impe

rson

al—

calc

ulat

ed m

ore

to s

how

off

the

writ

er’s

spe

cial

ized

kno

wle

dge

than

to e

ngag

e th

e re

ader

.

Sco

re fo

r the

trai

t of I

deas

: __

____

_ S

core

for t

he tr

ait o

f Org

aniz

atio

n: _

____

__

Sco

re fo

r the

trai

t of V

oice

: ___

____

W

OR

D C

HO

ICE

The use of rich, colorful, precise language that moves and enlight-

ens the reader. It is the love of language, a passion for words, com

-bined w

ith a skill in choosing words that creates just the right m

ood.

5 W

ell-chosen words convey the w

riter’s message in a

clear, precise, and highly readable way, often taking the

reader to a new level of understanding.

4 The vocabulary suits the w

riter, the subject, and the audience. 4

The writer uses the language of the content area w

ith skill and ease, alw

ays helping to make m

eaning clear from context.

4 Technical or little-know

n words are defined or clarified as appropri-

ate, with the w

riter always taking into account w

hat the audience (probably) already know

s. 4

The writer consistently chooses explicit, vivid w

ords and phrases that m

ake the message both clear and m

emorable.

3 W

ords are reasonably accurate and make the m

essage clear on a general level. 4

Though most language in the paper is both correct and functional,

the vocabulary is sometim

es inappropriate (too difficult, technical, or inform

al) for the topic, audience, or both. 4

The writer com

municates broad concepts but m

ay not have suffi-cient vocabulary to explore the finer points w

ith precision, detail, or confidence.

4Technical or special term

s may som

etimes be used w

ithout suffi-cient explanation or contextual clarity.

1 The w

riter struggles with a lim

ited vocabulary that re-stricts w

hat he or she is able to convey, or the writing is so

technical and difficult to penetrate that the reader feels shut out. O

ne or more of the follow

ing problems m

ay be evident: 4

Vocabulary may be inappropriate (incorrect or too general, technical,

or informal) for the topic, audience, or both.

4 Technical language or specialized vocabulary m

ay be overused, used incorrectly, or m

issing where it w

ould be really helpful in mak-

ing a particular point. 4

Language lacks the precision needed to convey an explicit, clear message.

4 The w

riter may be using language that “speaks” to an insider but

does not help other readers understand or appreciate the topic.

SE

NT

EN

CE

FL

UE

NC

Y

The rhythm and flow

of the language, the sound of word patterns,

the way the w

riting plays to the ear—not just to the eye.

5 The writing has an easy flow

and rhythm w

hen read aloud. Sentences are w

ell built, with strong and varied struc-

ture that invites expressive reading. 4

Sentences are constructed in a way that helps m

ake meaning clear.

4 Purposeful sentence beginnings show

how each sentence relates to

and builds upon the one before it. 4

The writing has cadence, as if the w

riter has thought about the sound of the w

ords as well as the m

eaning. 4

Sentences vary in length as well as structure.

4 Fragm

ents, if used, add style. 4

Dialog, if used, sounds natural.

3 The text hums along w

ith a steady beat, but is more pleasant

or businesslike than musical, m

ore mechanical than fluid.

4 Sentences m

ay not seem artfully crafted or m

usical, but they are usually gram

matical. They hang together. They get the job done.

4 There is at least som

e variation in sentence length and structure. Sentence beginnings are not all alike.

4 The reader som

etimes has to hunt for clues (e.g., connecting w

ords and phrases like how

ever, therefore, naturally, after a while, on the

other hand, to be specific, for example, next, first of all, later, but as

it turned out, although, etc.) that show how

sentences interrelate. 4

Parts of the text invite expressive oral reading; others may be stiff,

awkw

ard, choppy, or gangly. Overall though, it is pretty easy to read

the paper aloud with a little practice.

1 The reader has to practice in order to give this paper a fair interp-retive reading. The writing reflects m

ore than one of these problems:

4 Sentences are choppy, incom

plete, rambling, awkward; they need work.

4 Phrasing does not sound natural, the w

ay someone m

ight speak. The reader m

ust sometim

es pause or read over to get the meaning.

4 M

any sentences begin the same w

ay—and m

any follow the sam

e patterns (e.g., subject-verb-object) in a m

onotonous pattern. 4

Endless connectives (and, and so, but then, because, and then, etc.) create a m

assive jumble of language in w

hich clear sentence beginnings and endings get sw

allowed up.

4 The text does not invite expressive oral reading.

CO

NV

EN

TIO

NS

The mechanical correctness of the w

riting.

5 The writer dem

onstrates a good grasp of standard writing

conventions and also uses specialized conventions (titles and subtitles, footnotes, a table of contents, a bibliography) effectively to enhance layout and readability of the text. 4

Basic conventions are essentially correct; errors are so few and so minor

the reader could skip right over them unless searching for them

specifically. 4

The writer uses titles and subtitles as needed to effectively set off

sections of the text. 4

The writer uses a table of contents as needed and sets it up w

ith care; each section is easy to locate.

4 Footnotes and/or bibliography are form

atted and punctuated correctly. 4

The writer m

ay manipulate conventions for stylistic effect.

4 O

nly light editing would be required to prepare this text for publication. 3 Errors in w

riting conventions, while not overw

helming,

begin to impair readability.

4 Errors in basic conventions occur often enough or are serious enough to be som

ewhat distracting and noticeable.

4 The w

riter sometim

es uses titles and subtitles, but more frequent or

different division of the text would be helpful.

4 A table of contents is present but requires som

e editing in order to be use-ful.

4 Footnotes and/or bibliography are present but require som

e editing. 4

Moderate editing would be required to prepare this text for publication.

1 Numerous errors in w

riting conventions consistently dis-tract the reader and m

ake the text difficult to read. One or

more of the follow

ing problems m

ay be evident. 4

Errors in basic conventions are frequent or serious enough that it is som

etimes hard to understand or focus on the m

essage. 4

Titles or subtitles would be helpful but are not used.

4 A table of contents w

ould be helpful but is not used; if used, it con-tains m

any errors that need correcting. 4

Footnotes and/or bibliography are needed but are not used; if used, they contain m

any errors that need correcting. 4

Extensive editing would be required to prepare this text for publication.

Score for the trait of Word Choice: _______

Score for the trait of Sentence Fluency: _______ Score for the trait of Conventions: _______

1 BEG

INNING

The writer is searching, exploring, struggling;

looking for a sense of purpose or a way to begin

working w

ith this trait. This is an early perform-

ance; there is great need for revision.

2 EM

ERGING

There are brief m

oments w

hen we get a glim

pse of the writer’s ability with this trait, but no consis-tent use. The paper show

s promise, a hint of

things to come, but there is a need for revision as

weaknesses clearly outw

eigh strengths.

3 DEVELO

PING

The writer is beginning to take control of this

trait. The paper shows a balance betw

een strengths and w

eaknesses. There is definite di-rection, coherence, m

omentum

, and a sense of purpose, but som

e revision is called for.

4 M

ATURING

The writer is show

ing more control of this trait

including the confidence to experiment.

Strengths definitely outweigh w

eaknesses. One

more revision w

ill probably bring it to closure.

5 STRO

NG

The writer has control of this trait and is able to

use it skillfully to shape the direction of the writ-

ing. This is a very strong and controlled per-form

ance (though not necessarily perfect). Little or no revision is needed.

____ Not Assessable. The paper could not be assessed using these criteria because: ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

From “C

reating Writers” by R

ick Stiggins and Vicki Spandel Six Traits Research Paper Criteria (Page 2) Layout by Steve Peha

[email protected]

use,

mos

t pe

ople

thi

nk o

fas

sess

men

t as

a s

ynon

ymfo

r te

stin

g. T

o te

st c

hild

ren

is t

o as

sess

the

m. A

ndw

hat’s

mor

e, it

’s t

he o

nly

way

to

asse

ss t

hem

beca

use

only

pre

cise

nu

mbe

rs c

an p

reci

sely

asse

ss le

arni

ng. O

r so

it

goes

.B

ut t

rue

asse

ssm

ent

has

little

to

do w

ith g

athe

r-in

g st

atis

tical

info

rmat

ion

abou

t st

uden

t le

arni

ng a

ndev

eryt

hing

to

do w

ith h

oww

e us

e th

at in

form

atio

n.A

sses

smen

t is

the

gath

erin

g of

info

rmat

ion

for

the

purp

ose

of g

uidi

ngin

stru

ctio

n.If

the

info

rma-

tion

we

gath

er d

oesn

’tdi

rect

ly in

form

our

teac

hing

,th

en it

’s n

ot tr

ue a

sses

s-m

ent.

The

trut

h is

tha

t th

eva

st m

ajor

ity o

f da

ta

gene

rate

d by

tes

ting

indi

vidu

al s

tude

nts

is n

ever

used

to

dete

rmin

e th

e

spec

ific

inst

ruct

ion

thos

est

uden

ts s

houl

d re

ceiv

e.Ta

ke t

he t

radi

tiona

lsp

ellin

g te

st, f

or e

xam

ple.

One

stu

dent

get

s 10

0%,

one

stud

ent

gets

75%

and

one

stud

ent

gets

50%

. Is

itlik

ely

that

the

se t

hree

st

uden

ts w

ill r

ecei

ve

appr

opria

tely

diff

eren

tiate

din

stru

ctio

n b

ased

on

thei

rsc

ores

? N

o. S

o ho

w d

oes

the

test

hel

p th

e te

ache

r or

the

stu

dent

s?A

nd t

hat’s

the

pro

blem

:w

hat

we

call

asse

ssm

ent

isof

ten

som

ethi

ng e

lse

that

ista

king

up

our

valu

able

tim

ean

d pr

ecio

us r

esou

rces

, and

give

s us

litt

le in

ret

urn.

Effe

ctive

Lea

rnin

g Se

ries

hat

Are

We

Talk

ing

Ab

out

Her

e?Th

e fr

ustr

atin

g th

ing

abou

t as

sess

men

t is

fig

urin

g ou

t w

hat

it is

. Do

I ass

ess

my

stud

ents

by

givi

ng t

hem

a t

est?

Are

gr

ades

a f

orm

of

asse

ss-

men

t? Is

the

Was

hing

ton

Ass

essm

ent

of S

tude

ntLe

arni

ng (

WA

SL)

tes

t an

asse

ssm

ent

beca

use

it ha

sth

e w

ord

"ass

essm

ent"

in

the

title

? P

eopl

e th

ink

of a

sses

s-m

ent

as m

any

diffe

rent

thin

gs. F

or t

each

ers,

adm

inis

trat

ors

and

polic

y-m

aker

s, it

’s h

ard

to m

ake

sens

e of

ass

essm

ent

whe

nth

ere’

s so

muc

h co

nfus

ing

info

rmat

ion

goin

g ar

ound

.P

aren

ts a

nd k

ids

don’

t ge

tit

eith

er.

In a

wor

ld w

here

eve

rytis

sue

is a

Kle

enex

, eve

ryco

py a

Xer

ox, a

nd la

ngua

geev

olve

s ac

cord

ing

to it

s

You’

ll fin

d m

ore

info

rmat

ion

abou

t as

sess

men

t in

The

Sea

ttle

Tim

es N

IE s

ectio

n of

the

Teac

hing

Tha

t M

akes

Sen

seW

eb s

ite. Y

ou c

an e

ven

dow

n-lo

ad fr

ee c

opie

s of

art

icle

s or

send

the

m t

o yo

ur fr

iend

s vi

a e-

mai

l. Ju

st g

o to

ww

w.tt

ms.

org.

For

mor

e in

form

atio

n ab

out

NIE

,vi

sit

seat

tletim

es.c

om/n

ie.

On

the

Web

Take

a lo

ok a

t bu

sine

ss, s

port

s or

wea

ther

info

rmat

ion

in T

heS

eatt

le T

imes

and

hav

e st

uden

tsm

ake

asse

ssm

ents

. Hel

p st

uden

ts d

raw

sol

id c

oncl

usio

nsba

sed

on d

ata

and

not

on

conj

ectu

re. H

elp

them

dis

tingu

ish

betw

een

mea

ning

less

ass

ess-

men

ts a

nd t

hose

pro

vidi

ng

good

val

ue.

In t

he N

ewsp

aper

Talk

to

your

stu

dent

s ab

out

the

asse

ssm

ents

you

con

duct

, and

how

you

use

tha

t in

form

atio

n to

dete

rmin

e w

hat

you

teac

h ne

xt.

Hel

p th

em t

o se

e th

at y

ou h

ave

a sp

ecifi

c ra

tiona

le fo

r w

hat

you

ask

them

to

do, b

ased

on

wha

t yo

u ne

ed t

o kn

ow t

o te

ach

them

effe

ctiv

ely.

Begi

nnin

g A

ctivi

ty

Issu

e 3

4: A

sse

ssm

en

t T

ha

t M

ak

es

Se

nse

,P

art

1(1

of

3)

The

Effe

ctiv

e Le

arni

ng S

erie

s is

par

t of

a 3

5-w

eek

curr

icul

umfo

r im

prov

ing

basi

c th

inki

ng s

kills

.Use

ful f

or t

each

ers,

hom

esc

hool

ers,

par

ents

and

stu

dent

s al

ike,

new

issu

es a

ppea

r in

The

Sea

ttle

Tim

es o

n M

onda

y, W

edne

sday

and

Frid

ay.I

f yo

um

isse

d an

y in

thi

s se

ries,

you

can

ord

er b

ack

issu

es b

y ca

lling

Circ

ulat

ion

back

cop

ies

at 2

06/4

64-2

001.

206/

652-

6290

•

1-88

8/77

5-26

55

Asse

ssm

ent T

hat M

akes

Sen

se,P

art 1

W

‘@ @

33333333333333333333333333333

©1995–2000 by Steve Peha.Used by permission.Copies may be made for non-commercial purposes only.

Ste

ve P

eha

is t

he P

resi

dent

of

Teac

hing

Tha

t M

akes

Sen

se, a

n ed

ucat

ion

cons

ultin

g co

mpa

ny in

Sea

ttle

, WA

. Vis

it hi

s W

eb s

ite a

tw

ww

.ttm

s.or

g or

sen

d hi

m a

co

mm

ent

abou

t th

is a

rtic

le a

t st

evep

eha@

ttm

s.or

g.

Ass

essi

ng A

sses

smen

tYo

u kn

ow y

ou’re

ass

essi

ng w

hen:

• I

look

ed a

t my

stud

ents

’ las

t pub

lishe

d w

ritin

g pi

eces

. I n

otic

edm

any

kids

hav

ing

trou

ble

with

run

-on

sent

ence

s. T

hey’

re u

sing

"and

" an

d "t

hen"

like

per

iods

.•

In o

ur la

st r

eadi

ng c

onfe

renc

e, I

notic

ed M

ary

Ann

e ha

d tr

oubl

e de

codi

ng lo

nger

wor

ds b

ecau

se s

he r

ead

too

quic

kly.

• I

notic

ed J

osh

still

uses

fing

er c

ount

ing

as h

is m

ain

stra

tegy

fo

r ad

ding

and

sub

trac

ting

even

whe

n w

orki

ng w

ith

two-

digi

t num

bers

.

You

know

you

’re n

ot a

sses

sing

whe

n yo

u’re

thin

king

:

• M

y st

uden

ts c

an’t

punc

tuat

e se

nten

ces

beca

use

they

did

po

orly

on

our

gram

mar

wor

kshe

et.

• M

ary

Ann

e is

a lo

w r

eade

r be

caus

e sh

e co

uldn

’t an

swer

the

ques

tions

abo

ut th

e st

ory

we

read

in c

lass

.•

Jos

h is

ver

y sl

ow in

mat

h. W

hen

we

do o

ur "

mat

h-a-

min

ute"

wor

kshe

ets,

he

com

plet

es fa

r fe

wer

pro

blem

s th

an th

e ot

hers

.

What

’s a

Good A

sses

smen

t?A

goo

d as

sess

men

t:

• U

ses

spec

ific

and

appr

opria

te la

ngua

ge to

des

crib

e th

e da

taga

ther

ed a

nd th

e pa

ttern

s th

at a

re o

bser

ved.

• U

ses

dire

ct r

efer

ence

s to

act

ual s

tude

nt w

ork

and

beha

vior

.•

Is b

ased

on

auth

entic

dat

a ga

ther

ed in

an

auth

entic

man

ner

from

with

in a

n au

then

tic c

onte

xt.

Bef

ore

you

do a

ny a

sses

sing

, ask

you

rsel

f thi

s qu

estio

n: "

How

do I

plan

to u

se th

e in

form

atio

n I a

m g

athe

ring

to g

uide

m

y in

stru

ctio

n?"

If yo

u do

n’t k

now

wha

t you

’re g

oing

to d

o w

ith th

e da

ta,

don’

t was

te ti

me

gath

erin

g it.

Ass

essm

ent i

s ex

trem

ely

time

cons

umin

g; it

sho

uldn

’t be

don

e ca

sual

ly. A

nd it

sho

uld

only

be

done

to d

eter

min

e w

hat t

o te

ach

next

.

If yo

u’re

gat

herin

g in

form

atio

n ab

out y

our

stud

ents

is to

com

e up

with

a g

rade

, you

’re m

akin

g tw

o m

ista

kes

at th

e sa

me

time:

(1

) You

’re s

pend

ing

valu

able

tim

e an

d en

ergy

gat

herin

g in

form

atio

n th

at h

as li

ttle

or n

othi

ng to

do

with

you

r te

achi

ng o

ryo

ur s

tude

nts’

lear

ning

, and

(2) Y

ou’re

usi

ng th

at in

form

atio

n to

form

ill-c

onsi

dere

d ju

dgm

ents

abo

ut y

our

stud

ents

that

cou

ldha

ve s

erio

us c

onse

quen

ces

for

thei

r fu

ture

.

Teac

hers

, par

ents

and

stu

dent

s: t

hese

thi

nkin

g sk

ills

stra

tegi

es a

re b

roug

ht t

o yo

u by

our

New

spap

ers

In E

duca

tion

prog

ram

. Th

is s

trat

egy

prov

ides

sen

sibl

e ad

vice

on

a se

nsiti

ve t

opic

tha

t af

fect

s ev

ery

teac

her

and

ever

y st

uden

t.

12/4

Exa

mple

the

pers

on b

eing

ass

esse

d?H

ow d

oes

the

asse

ssor

com

mun

icat

e as

sess

men

tin

form

atio

n to

the

per

son

bein

g as

sess

ed?

… w

ould

rea

lly u

se …

Wha

t in

form

atio

n ca

n be

gath

ered

with

out

affe

ctin

gth

e re

sults

? W

hat

info

rmat

ion

can

be u

sed

to g

uide

our

inst

ruct

ion?

How

is s

peci

ficin

stru

ctio

n co

nnec

ted

to

spec

ific

outc

omes

?

… in

the

rea

l wor

ld.

How

is t

his

asse

ssm

ent

info

rmat

ion

used

in t

he

real

wor

ld?

Wha

t ar

e th

eas

sess

or’s

ulti

mat

e re

al-

wor

ld g

oals

? W

hat

is t

heva

lue

of t

he a

sses

smen

tpr

oces

s?N

o cl

assr

oom

ass

ess-

men

t is

eve

r 10

0% a

uthe

ntic

.Th

e be

st w

e ca

n do

whe

nga

ther

ing

info

rmat

ion

abou

tou

r st

uden

ts is

to

ask

ours

elve

s th

ese

ques

tions

and

do o

ur b

est

to a

nsw

erth

em.

Aut

hent

icity

det

erm

ines

the

relia

bilit

y of

the

ass

ess-

men

t in

form

atio

n yo

u ga

ther

.Th

e m

ore

auth

entic

ally

it is

gath

ered

, the

mor

e it

will

help

you

fig

ure

out

wha

t to

tea

ch.

Whe

neve

r po

ssib

le, t

ryto

bas

e yo

ur in

stru

ctio

nal

deci

sion

s on

info

rmat

ion

you

have

gat

here

d in

an

auth

entic

way

. Try

als

o to

redu

ce t

he a

mou

nt o

f tim

e,ef

fort

and

ene

rgy

you

put

into

inau

then

tic m

etho

ds

of g

athe

ring

asse

ssm

ent

info

rmat

ion

such

as

test

s,w

orks

heet

s, t

extb

ook

exer

cise

s an

d so

on.

Effe

ctive

Lea

rnin

g Se

ries

hat

is

Auth

enti

cA

sses

smen

t?Th

e w

ord

"aut

hent

ic"

sim

ply

mea

ns "

real

."A

uthe

ntic

ass

essm

ent

is a

real

way

of g

athe

ring

perf

orm

ance

info

rmat

ion

that

a r

eal p

erso

n w

ould

real

ly u

se in

the

rea

l wor

ld.

So

wha

t do

es t

hat

real

lym

ean?

Wel

l, if

you

brea

k it

dow

n an

d ap

ply

it to

the

activ

ities

you

ass

ess

inyo

ur c

lass

room

, you

can

thin

k ab

out

it th

is w

ay:

A r

eal w

ay o

f ga

ther

ing

real

per

form

ance

in

form

atio

n …

H

ow is

info

rmat

ion

gath

ered

abo

ut t

his

activ

ityin

the

rea

l wor

ld?

Wha

tin

form

atio

n is

wor

th

gath

erin

g? W

hy d

o pe

ople

in t

he r

eal w

orld

do

this

?

… t

hat

a re

al p

erso

n …

Wha

t ro

le d

oes

this

per

son

play

in t

he r

eal w

orld

? In

the

real

wor

ld, w

hat

is t

heas

sess

or’s

rel

atio

nshi

p to

You’

ll fin

d m

ore

info

rmat

ion

abou

tas

sess

men

t in

The

Sea

ttle

Tim

esN

IE s

ectio

n of

the

Tea

chin

g Th

atM

akes

Sen

se W

eb s

ite. Y

ou c

anev

en d

ownl

oad

free

cop

ies

ofar

ticle

s or

sen

d th

em t

o yo

urfr

iend

s vi

a e-

mai

l. Ju

st g

o to

ww

w.tt

ms.

org.

For

mor

e in

form

atio

n ab

out

NIE

,vi

sit

seat

tletim

es.c

om/n

ie.

On

the

Web

Hav

e st

uden

ts s

urve

y Th

eS

eatt

le T

imes

to

find

thin

gspe

ople

do

in t

he r

eal w

orld

that

the

y co

uld

purs

ue in

clas

s. T

he n

ewsp

aper

feat

ures

ever

y ki

nd o

f pro

fess

iona

lca

reer

or

past

ime.

It is

a fa

irre

pres

enta

tion

of t

he w

orld

arou

nd u

s an

d a

good

mod

elw

e ca

n us

e fo

r in

stru

ctio

nal

cont

ent.

In t

he N

ewsp

aper

Talk

to

kids

abo

ut a

uthe

ntic

ity.

Tell

them

how

thi

ngs

done

insc

hool

rel

ate

to r

eal t

hing

sou

tsid

e of

sch

ool;

how

writ

ers

real

ly w

rite,

how

rea

ders

rea

llyre

ad, a

nd h

ow s

cien

tists

and

mat

hem

atic

ians

go

abou

t th

eir

wor

k. A

nd d

o yo

ur b

est

tom

odel

cla

ssro

om p

ract

ice

onth

e re

al w

orld

.

Inte

rmed

iate

Act

ivity

Issu

e 3

5: A

sse

ssm

en

t T

ha

t M

ak

es

Se

nse

,P

art

1(2

of

3)

The

Effe

ctiv

e Le

arni

ng S

erie

s is

par

t of

a 3

5-w

eek

curr

icul

umfo

r im

prov

ing

basi

c th

inki

ng s

kills

.Use

ful f

or t

each

ers,

hom

esc

hool

ers,

par

ents

and

stu

dent

s al

ike,

new

issu

es a

ppea

r in

The

Sea

ttle

Tim

es o

n M

onda

y, W

edne

sday

and

Frid

ay.I

f yo

um

isse

d an

y in

thi

s se

ries,

you

can

ord

er b

ack

issu

es b

y ca

lling

Circ

ulat

ion

back

cop

ies

at 2

06/4

64-2

001.

206/

652-

6290

•

1-88

8/77

5-26

55

Asse

ssm

ent T

hat M

akes

Sen

se,P

art 1

W

‘@ @

33333333333333333333333333333


Ste

ve P

eha

is t

he P

resi

dent

of

Teac

hing

Tha

t M

akes

Sen

se, a

n ed

ucat

ion

cons

ultin

g co

mpa

ny in

Sea

ttle

, WA

. Vis

it hi

s W

eb s

ite a

tw

ww

.ttm

s.or

g or

sen

d hi

m a

co

mm

ent

abou

t th

is a

rtic

le a

t st

evep

eha@

ttm

s.or

g.

What

is

an A

uth

entic

Act

ivity?

Onc

e yo

u se

e th

e va

lue

of a

uthe

ntic

ass

essm

ent,

you

begi

n to

see

the

nece

ssity

of h

avin

g st

uden

ts p

ursu

e au

then

tic a

ctiv

ities

.B

ut w

hat e

xact

ly is

an

auth

entic

act

ivity

?

An

auth

entic

act

ivity

is s

omet

hing

rea

l tha

t rea

l peo

ple

in th

e re

alw

orld

rea

lly d

o, d

one

the

way

rea

l peo

ple

real

ly d

o it,

for

real

re

ason

s th

at r

eally

mat

ter.

Thin

k of

it th

is w

ay:

Som

ethin

g r

eal …

Is th

e ac

tivity

per

form

ed in

the

real

wor

ld?

Can

I sh

ow th

e ki

ds a

rea

l wor

ld m

odel

? C

an w

e de

velo

p re

alw

orld

crit

eria

to d

escr

ibe

the

proc

ess

and/

or th

e re

sult?

… t

hat

rea

l peo

ple

in t

he

real

worl

d r

eally

do, …

Who

does

this

? C

an w

e le

arn

abou

t rea

l peo

ple

who

do

this

rea

l ac

tivity

? U

nder

wha

t circ

umst

ance

s do

they

do

it?

… d

one

the

way

rea

l peo

ple

rea

lly d

o it,

…H

ow d

o re

alpe

ople

do

this

? W

hat i

s th

eir

"wor

k pr

oces

s”?

Wha

t str

ateg

ies

do th

ey u

se to

sol

ve th

e pr

oble

ms

they

enc

ount

er?

… f

or

real

rea

sons

that

rea

lly m

atte

r.W

hy d

o pe

ople

do

this

? W

ho is

the

audi

ence

? H

ow c

an w

e pr

ovid

e a

"rea

l wor

ld"

soci

al c

onte

xt fo

r th

is a

ctiv

ity?

Ther

e’s

noth

ing

wro

ng w

ith d

oing

inau

then

tic a

ctiv

ities

. We

doth

em a

ll th

e tim

e in

our

ow

n liv

es. I

n th

e cl

assr

oom

we

do th

emto

bui

ld c

omm

unity

, eas

e te

nsio

n or

just

to h

ave

fun.

Not

ev

eryt

hing

we

do in

sch

ool n

eed

be a

uthe

ntic

, nor

is th

ere

any

such

thin

g as

a c

ompl

etel

y au

then

tic s

choo

l act

ivity

. (S

choo

l is

artif

icia

l, af

ter

all.)

But

aut

hent

ic a

ctiv

ities

sho

uld

acco

unt f

or

mos

t of w

hat o

ur c

hild

ren

do in

sch

ool b

ecau

se th

e m

ore

auth

entic

an

activ

ity is

, the

mor

e lik

ely

it is

that

chi

ldre

n w

ill de

velo

p au

then

tic s

kills

by

doin

g it.

Teac

hers

, par

ents

and

stu

dent

s: t

hese

thi

nkin

g sk

ills

stra

tegi

es a

re b

roug

ht t

o yo

u by

our

New

spap

ers

In E

duca

tion

prog

ram

. Th

is s

trat

egy

prov

ides

sen

sibl

e ad

vice

on

a se

nsiti

ve t

opic

tha

t af

fect

s ev

ery

teac

her

and

ever

y st

uden

t.

12/6

Exa

mple

the

pers

on b

eing

ass

esse

d?H

ow d

oes

the

asse

ssor

com

mun

icat

e as

sess

men

tin

form

atio

n to

the

per

son

bein

g as

sess

ed?

… w

ould

rea

lly u

se …

Wha

t in

form

atio

n ca

n be

gath

ered

with

out

affe

ctin

gth

e re

sults

? W

hat

info

rmat

ion

can

be u

sed

to g

uide

our

inst

ruct

ion?

How

is s

peci

ficin

stru

ctio

n co

nnec

ted

to

spec

ific

outc

omes

?

… in

the

rea

l wor

ld.

How

is t

his

asse

ssm

ent

info

rmat

ion

used

in t

he

real

wor

ld?

Wha

t ar

e th

eas

sess

or’s

ulti

mat

e re

al-

wor

ld g

oals

? W

hat

is t

heva

lue

of t

he a

sses

smen

tpr

oces

s?N

o cl

assr

oom

ass

ess-

men

t is

eve

r 10

0% a

uthe

ntic

.Th

e be

st w

e ca

n do

whe

nga

ther

ing

info

rmat

ion

abou

tou

r st

uden

ts is

to

ask

ours

elve

s th

ese

ques

tions

and

do o

ur b

est

to a

nsw

erth

em.

Aut

hent

icity

det

erm

ines

the

relia

bilit

y of

the

ass

ess-

men

t in

form

atio

n yo

u ga

ther

.Th

e m

ore

auth

entic

ally

it is

gath

ered

, the

mor

e it

will

help

you

fig

ure

out

wha

t to

tea

ch.

Whe

neve

r po

ssib

le, t

ryto

bas

e yo

ur in

stru

ctio

nal

deci

sion

s on

info

rmat

ion

you

have

gat

here

d in

an

auth

entic

way

. Try

als

o to

redu

ce t

he a

mou

nt o

f tim

e,ef

fort

and

ene

rgy

you

put

into

inau

then

tic m

etho

ds

of g

athe

ring

asse

ssm

ent

info

rmat

ion

such

as

test

s,w

orks

heet

s, t

extb

ook

exer

cise

s an

d so

on.

Effe

ctive

Lea

rnin

g Se

ries

hat

is

Auth

enti

cA

sses

smen

t?Th

e w

ord

"aut

hent

ic"

sim

ply

mea

ns "

real

."A

uthe

ntic

ass

essm

ent

is a

real

way

of g

athe

ring

perf

orm

ance

info

rmat

ion

that

a r

eal p

erso

n w

ould

real

ly u

se in

the

rea

l wor

ld.

So

wha

t do

es t

hat

real

lym

ean?

Wel

l, if

you

brea

k it

dow

n an

d ap

ply

it to

the

activ

ities

you

ass

ess

inyo

ur c

lass

room

, you

can

thin

k ab

out

it th

is w

ay:

A r

eal w

ay o

f ga

ther

ing

real

per

form

ance

in

form

atio

n …

H

ow is

info

rmat

ion

gath

ered

abo

ut t

his

activ

ityin

the

rea

l wor

ld?

Wha

tin

form

atio

n is

wor

th

gath

erin

g? W

hy d

o pe

ople

in t

he r

eal w

orld

do

this

?

… t

hat

a re

al p

erso

n …

Wha

t ro

le d

oes

this

per

son

play

in t

he r

eal w

orld

? In

the

real

wor

ld, w

hat

is t

heas

sess

or’s

rel

atio

nshi

p to

You’

ll fin

d m

ore

info

rmat

ion

abou

tas

sess

men

t in

The

Sea

ttle

Tim

esN

IE s

ectio

n of

the

Tea

chin

g Th

atM

akes

Sen

se W

eb s

ite. Y

ou c

anev

en d

ownl

oad

free

cop

ies

ofar

ticle

s or

sen

d th

em t

o yo

urfr

iend

s vi

a e-

mai

l. Ju

st g

o to

ww

w.tt

ms.

org.

For

mor

e in

form

atio

n ab

out

NIE

,vi

sit

seat

tletim

es.c

om/n

ie.

On

the

Web

Hav

e st

uden

ts s

urve

y Th

eS

eatt

le T

imes

to

find

thin

gspe

ople

do

in t

he r

eal w

orld

that

the

y co

uld

purs

ue in

clas

s. T

he n

ewsp

aper

feat

ures

ever

y ki

nd o

f pro

fess

iona

lca

reer

or

past

ime.

It is

a fa

irre

pres

enta

tion

of t

he w

orld

arou

nd u

s an

d a

good

mod

elw

e ca

n us

e fo

r in

stru

ctio

nal

cont

ent.

In t

he N

ewsp

aper

Talk

to

kids

abo

ut a

uthe

ntic

ity.

Tell

them

how

thi

ngs

done

insc

hool

rel

ate

to r

eal t

hing

sou

tsid

e of

sch

ool;

how

writ

ers

real

ly w

rite,

how

rea

ders

rea

llyre

ad, a

nd h

ow s

cien

tists

and

mat

hem

atic

ians

go

abou

t th

eir

wor

k. A

nd d

o yo

ur b

est

tom

odel

cla

ssro

om p

ract

ice

onth

e re

al w

orld

.

Inte

rmed

iate

Act

ivity

Issu

e 3

5: A

sse

ssm

en

t T

ha

t M

ak

es

Se

nse

,P

art

1(2

of

3)

The

Effe

ctiv

e Le

arni

ng S

erie

s is

par

t of

a 3

5-w

eek

curr

icul

umfo

r im

prov

ing

basi

c th

inki

ng s

kills

.Use

ful f

or t

each

ers,

hom

esc

hool

ers,

par

ents

and

stu

dent

s al

ike,

new

issu

es a

ppea

r in

The

Sea

ttle

Tim

es o

n M

onda

y, W

edne

sday

and

Frid

ay.I

f yo

um

isse

d an

y in

thi

s se

ries,

you

can

ord

er b

ack

issu

es b

y ca

lling

Circ

ulat

ion

back

cop

ies

at 2

06/4

64-2

001.

206/

652-

6290

•

1-88

8/77

5-26

55

Asse

ssm

ent T

hat M

akes

Sen

se,P

art 1

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Ste

ve P

eha

is t

he P

resi

dent

of

Teac

hing

Tha

t M

akes

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se, a

n ed

ucat

ion

cons

ultin

g co

mpa

ny in

Sea

ttle

, WA

. Vis

it hi

s W

eb s

ite a

tw

ww

.ttm

s.or

g or

sen

d hi

m a

co

mm

ent

abou

t th

is a

rtic

le a

t st

evep

eha@

ttm

s.or

g.

What

is

an A

uth

entic

Act

ivity?

Onc

e yo

u se

e th

e va

lue

of a

uthe

ntic

ass

essm

ent,

you

begi

n to

see

the

nece

ssity

of h

avin

g st

uden

ts p

ursu

e au

then

tic a

ctiv

ities

.B

ut w

hat e

xact

ly is

an

auth

entic

act

ivity

?

An

auth

entic

act

ivity

is s

omet

hing

rea

l tha

t rea

l peo

ple

in th

e re

alw

orld

rea

lly d

o, d

one

the

way

rea

l peo

ple

real

ly d

o it,

for

real

re

ason

s th

at r

eally

mat

ter.

Thin

k of

it th

is w

ay:

Som

ethin

g r

eal …

Is th

e ac

tivity

per

form

ed in

the

real

wor

ld?

Can

I sh

ow th

e ki

ds a

rea

l wor

ld m

odel

? C

an w

e de

velo

p re

alw

orld

crit

eria

to d

escr

ibe

the

proc

ess

and/

or th

e re

sult?

… t

hat

rea

l peo

ple

in t

he

real

worl

d r

eally

do, …

Who

does

this

? C

an w

e le

arn

abou

t rea

l peo

ple

who

do

this

rea

l ac

tivity

? U

nder

wha

t circ

umst

ance

s do

they

do

it?

… d

one

the

way

rea

l peo

ple

rea

lly d

o it,

…H

ow d

o re

alpe

ople

do

this

? W

hat i

s th

eir

"wor

k pr

oces

s”?

Wha

t str

ateg

ies

do th

ey u

se to

sol

ve th

e pr

oble

ms

they

enc

ount

er?

… f

or

real

rea

sons

that

rea

lly m

atte

r.W

hy d

o pe

ople

do

this

? W

ho is

the

audi

ence

? H

ow c

an w

e pr

ovid

e a

"rea

l wor

ld"

soci

al c

onte

xt fo

r th

is a

ctiv

ity?

Ther

e’s

noth

ing

wro

ng w

ith d

oing

inau

then

tic a

ctiv

ities

. We

doth

em a

ll th

e tim

e in

our

ow

n liv

es. I

n th

e cl

assr

oom

we

do th

emto

bui

ld c

omm

unity

, eas

e te

nsio

n or

just

to h

ave

fun.

Not

ev

eryt

hing

we

do in

sch

ool n

eed

be a

uthe

ntic

, nor

is th

ere

any

such

thin

g as

a c

ompl

etel

y au

then

tic s

choo

l act

ivity

. (S

choo

l is

artif

icia

l, af

ter

all.)

But

aut

hent

ic a

ctiv

ities

sho

uld

acco

unt f

or

mos

t of w

hat o

ur c

hild

ren

do in

sch

ool b

ecau

se th

e m

ore

auth

entic

an

activ

ity is

, the

mor

e lik

ely

it is

that

chi

ldre

n w

ill de

velo

p au

then

tic s

kills

by

doin

g it.

Teac

hers

, par

ents

and

stu

dent

s: t

hese

thi

nkin

g sk

ills

stra

tegi

es a

re b

roug

ht t

o yo

u by

our

New

spap

ers

In E

duca

tion

prog

ram

. Th

is s

trat

egy

prov

ides

sen

sibl

e ad

vice

on

a se

nsiti

ve t

opic

tha

t af

fect

s ev

ery

teac

her

and

ever

y st

uden

t.

12/6

Exa

mple

test

ing

is e

xpen

sive

, tim

eco

nsum

ing

and

som

e-tim

es u

ncom

fort

able

. The

sam

e is

tru

e of

tes

ting

inth

e cl

assr

oom

.

Eva

luat

e th

e P

rob

lem

,P

rop

ose

the

Solu

tion

Imag

ine

how

fru

stra

ting

it w

ould

be

if yo

u w

ere

told

by y

our

doct

or

that

you

had

a pr

oble

m —

and

tha

tw

as it

. No

advi

ce, n

oco

urse

of

trea

tmen

t. N

oin

form

atio

n ab

out

how

the

prob

lem

aro

se o

r w

hat

todo

abo

ut it

in t

he f

utur

e.Fo

rtun

atel

y, m

ost

of t

hetim

e, d

octo

rs p

rovi

de a

spec

ific

cour

se o

f ac

tion

aspa

rt o

f th

eir

eval

uatio

n.Ed

ucat

iona

l eva

luat

ions

shou

ld b

e th

e sa

me.

Ther

e’s

noth

ing

mor

e fr

ustr

atin

g th

an k

now

ing

som

ethi

ng is

wro

ng a

ndno

t kn

owin

g w

hat

to d

o ab

out

it.

Pro

vid

e P

urp

ose

ful

Rep

ort

ing

Whe

n do

ctor

s re

port

thei

r fin

ding

s, t

hey

do s

o w

ith s

peci

fic p

urpo

ses

inm

ind.

Gen

eral

ly, t

hey

are

conc

erne

d w

ith t

he p

atie

nt’s

unde

rsta

ndin

g of

wha

t th

eyha

ve t

o sa

y. T

hey

wan

t to

mak

e su

re t

he p

atie

nt h

asth

e in

form

atio

n he

or

she

need

s to

par

ticip

ate

fully

and

effe

ctiv

ely

in t

he c

ours

e of

trea

tmen

t. If

pare

nts

and

stud

ents

had

info

rmat

ion

like

this

, the

y m

ight

not

onl

yfe

el b

ette

r, th

ey m

ight

do

bett

er w

hen

it co

mes

to

reso

lvin

g pr

oble

ms

and

mak

ing

prog

ress

.

Effe

ctive

Lea

rnin

g Se

ries

You’

ll fin

d m

ore

info

rmat

ion

abou

t as

sess

men

t in

The

Sea

ttle

Tim

es N

IE s

ectio

n of

the

Teac

hing

Tha

t M

akes

Sen

seW

eb s

ite. Y

ou c

an e

ven

dow

n-lo

ad fr

ee c

opie

s of

art

icle

s or

send

the

m t

o yo

ur fr

iend

s vi

a e-

mai

l. Ju

st g

o to

ww

w.tt

ms.

org.

For

mor

e in

form

atio

n ab

out

NIE

,vi

sit

seat

tletim

es.c

om/n

ie.

On

the

Web

The

Sea

ttle

Tim

es a

rtic

les

are

full

of e

valu

atio

ns a

nd r

epor

ts.

Do

thes

e fo

llow

the

gui

delin

esfo

r ef

fect

ive

eval

uatio

n an

dre

port

ing?

Doe

s th

e ne

ws

med

iado

a g

ood

job

of g

athe

ring

and

supp

lyin

g al

l the

info

rmat

ion

itsre

ader

s ne

ed t

o un

ders

tand

th

e ev

alua

tions

and

rep

orts

th

ey r

ead?

In t

he N

ewsp

aper

Usi

ng t

he c

riter

ia s

uppl

ied

in t

heex

ampl

e on

goo

d ev

alua

tions

and

good

rep

orts

, tal

k w

ith y

our

stud

ents

abo

ut t

he e

valu

atio

nsan

d re

port

s yo

u gi

ve t

hem

. Hel

pst

uden

ts u

nder

stan

d th

e pu

rpos

eof

you

r ev

alua

tions

and

how

you

choo

se t

o re

port

you

r ev

alua

tions

to t

hem

and

to

thei

r pa

rent

s.

Adv

ance

d A

ctivi

ty

Issu

e 3

6: A

sse

ssm

en

t T

ha

t M

ak

es

Se

nse

,P

art

1(3

of

3)

The

Effe

ctiv

e Le

arni

ng S

erie

s is

par

t of

a 3

5-w

eek

curr

icul

umfo

r im

prov

ing

basi

c th

inki

ng s

kills

.Use

ful f

or t

each

ers,

hom

esc

hool

ers,

par

ents

and

stu

dent

s al

ike,

new

issu

es a

ppea

r in

The

Sea

ttle

Tim

es o

n M

onda

y, W

edne

sday

and

Frid

ay.I

f yo

um

isse

d an

y in

thi

s se

ries,

you

can

ord

er b

ack

issu

es b

y ca

lling

Circ

ulat

ion

back

cop

ies

at 2

06/4

64-2

001.

206/

652-

6290

•

1-88

8/77

5-26

55

Asse

ssm

ent T

hat M

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se,P

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Ste

ve P

eha

is t

he P

resi

dent

of

Teac

hing

Tha

t M

akes

Sen

se, a

n ed

ucat

ion

cons

ultin

g co

mpa

ny in

Sea

ttle

, WA

. Vis

it hi

s W

eb s

ite a

tw

ww

.ttm

s.or

g or

sen

d hi

m a

co

mm

ent

abou

t th

is a

rtic

le a

t st

evep

eha@

ttm

s.or

g.

What

is

Eva

luat

ion?

Eval

uatio

n is

dec

isio

n-m

akin

g ba

sed

upon

the

info

rmat

ion

gath

ered

thro

ugh

asse

ssm

ent.

You

know

you

’re e

valu

atin

g w

hen

you’

re th

inki

ng s

omet

hing

like

this

: "Fr

om th

e as

sess

men

tda

ta I

gath

ered

, I c

an s

ee m

y ki

ds a

re n

ot d

oing

wel

l with

se

nten

ce p

unct

uatio

n."

An

eval

uatio

n is

onl

y as

val

uabl

e as

the

actio

n ta

ken

in r

espo

nse

to it

. You

kno

w y

ou’re

res

pond

ing

wel

l to

an e

valu

atio

n w

hen

you’

re th

inki

ng s

omet

hing

like

this

:

"Bec

ause

I no

ticed

that

man

y ki

ds w

ere

not u

sing

per

iods

and

capi

tals

cor

rect

ly, I'

ll te

ach

som

e se

nten

ce p

unct

uatio

n m

ini-

less

ons

in w

ritin

g an

d su

ppor

t tha

t with

sim

ple

inqu

iry a

ctiv

ities

durin

g re

adin

g tim

e w

here

I’ll

have

the

kids

iden

tify

sent

ence

boun

darie

s by

ear

usi

ng e

xpre

ssiv

e re

adin

g te

chni

ques

."

A g

ood

eval

uatio

n: (1

) inc

lude

s a

spec

ific

plan

of a

ctio

n; (2

) use

sth

e as

sess

men

t dat

a as

its

ratio

nale

; (3)

val

ues

the

wor

k, n

ot

the

wor

ker.

Bef

ore

you

crea

te a

n ev

alua

tion,

ask

you

rsel

f thi

s qu

estio

n: "

How

do I

know

the

plan

I ha

ve o

utlin

ed w

ill ad

dres

s th

e ne

eds

I hav

eid

entif

ied

thro

ugh

asse

ssm

ent?

"

What

is

Rep

ort

ing?

Rep

ortin

g is

the

way

ass

essm

ent a

nd e

valu

atio

n in

form

atio

n ar

eco

mm

unic

ated

to o

ther

s. Y

ou k

now

you

’re r

epor

ting

whe

n yo

ufin

d yo

urse

lf sh

arin

g yo

ur a

sses

smen

t and

eva

luat

ion

info

rmat

ion

with

a p

aren

t, a

stud

ent,

a te

ache

r, or

an

adm

inis

trat

or.

A g

ood

repo

rt: (

1) Is

pre

sent

ed in

a fo

rm th

at is

acc

essi

ble

to it

sin

tend

ed a

udie

nce

and

writ

ten

in la

ngua

ge th

ey u

nder

stan

d; (2

)R

efer

ence

s au

then

tic s

tude

nt w

ork;

and

(3) P

rovi

des

its a

udie

nce

with

info

rmat

ion

that

can

be

used

to c

onst

ruct

spe

cific

sol

utio

nsto

issu

es o

f con

cern

.

Bef

ore

you

prod

uce

a re

port

, ask

you

rsel

f the

se q

uest

ions

:"W

hat i

s m

y pu

rpos

e in

sha

ring

this

info

rmat

ion?

Wha

t do

I wan

tm

y au

dien

ce to

do

with

it?"

Teac

hers

, par

ents

and

stu

dent

s: t

hese

thi

nkin

g sk

ills

stra

tegi

es a

re b

roug

ht t

o yo

u by

our

New

spap

ers

In E

duca

tion

prog

ram

. Th

is s

trat

egy

prov

ides

sen

sibl

e ad

vice

on

a se

nsiti

ve t

opic

tha

t af

fect

s ev

ery

teac

her

and

ever

y st

uden

t.

12/8

Exa

mple

Med

ical

Mod

el o

fA

sses

smen

t, E

valu

atio

nan

d R

eport

ing

A m

an g

oes

for

a ph

ysic

al.

The

doct

or r

eque

sts

cert

ain

test

s. A

wee

k la

ter,

the

doct

or r

ecei

ves

resu

lts

indi

catin

g th

at t

he p

atie

nt h

asa

cert

ain

cond

ition

. The

do

ctor

not

ifies

the

pat

ient

and

reco

mm

ends

a c

ours

e of

tre

atm

ent.

Dur

ing

that

cour

se o

f tr

eatm

ent,

doct

oran

d pa

tient

com

mun

icat

e to

dete

rmin

e its

effe

ctiv

enes

san

d to

mak

e ad

just

men

ts

as n

eede

d.W

hile

tea

chin

g is

n’t

exac

tly li

ke d

octo

ring,

we

coul

d pr

obab

ly a

ll ta

ke a

le

sson

fro

m o

ur G

P w

hen

itco

mes

to

asse

ssin

g,

eval

uatin

g an

d re

port

ing

stud

ent

lear

ning

.

Cond

uct

Mea

nin

gfu

lA

sses

smen

tsD

octo

rs h

ave

stro

ng

ratio

nale

for

the

tes

ts t

hey

cond

uct.

They

kno

w t

hat

both

tea

cher

and

stu

dent

.It

also

hel

ps p

aren

ts g

et

a be

tter

not

ion

of w

hat

thei

r ki

ds a

re d

oing

(or

no

t do

ing)

in c

lass

. But

itdo

esn’

t ne

cess

arily

impr

ove

asse

ssm

ent.

It’s

not

Ass

essm

ent

Unle

ss…

Just

say

ing

that

you

’re

doin

g cr

iteria

-bas

edas

sess

men

t do

esn’

t m

ake

it so

. And

nei

ther

doe

s a

crite

ria li

st. O

ften,

teac

hers

crea

te c

riter

ia s

impl

y fo

rth

e pu

rpos

e of

det

erm

inin

ga

grad

e. U

sing

crit

eria

sole

ly a

s a

mea

ns o

f gr

adin

g do

es li

ttle

for

asse

ssm

ent.

To u

se c

riter

ia f

or t

rue

asse

ssm

ent

purp

oses

,te

ache

rs m

ust

use

thei

rcr

iteria

and

the

ir st

uden

ts’

perf

orm

ance

rel

ativ

e to

thos

e cr

iteria

to

dete

rmin

eap

prop

riate

inst

ruct

ion.

A

ll to

o of

ten,

stu

dent

s ar

e as

sess

ed a

gain

st t

he

crite

ria f

or a

giv

en p

roje

ctan

d th

en, r

egar

dles

s of

how

they

do,

the

tea

cher

mov

eson

to

a ne

w a

rea

of s

tudy

.If

we

use

crite

ria m

erel

yas

ano

ther

for

m o

f gr

adin

g,w

e’re

con

fusi

ng t

he is

sue

and

hurt

ing

our

kids

. The

real

val

ue in

crit

eria

com

esno

t fr

om t

he e

xist

ence

of

high

sta

ndar

ds a

nd c

lear

ta

rget

s, b

ut fr

om th

e ta

ngib

lefr

amew

ork

they

pro

vide

for

expl

icit

inst

ruct

ion.

Effe

ctive

Lea

rnin

g Se

ries

rite

ria-

Bas

edA

sses

smen

tIn

the

199

0s, e

duca

tors

got

a gr

eat

idea

: Why

not

tell

kids

wha

t w

e w

ant

them

to

do b

efor

e th

eyst

art

doin

g it?

And

so

the

age

of c

riter

ia-b

ased

asse

ssm

ent

was

bor

n.N

ow it

see

ms

that

kid

s us

e cr

iteria

to

do ju

st

abou

t ev

eryt

hing

.In

the

goo

d ol

d da

ys,

teac

hers

wou

ld g

ive

assi

gnm

ents

and

stu

dent

sw

ould

do

thei

r be

st t

o hi

tth

e m

ark,

oft

en g

uess

ing

as t

o w

hat

exac

tly t

hete

ache

r w

as lo

okin

g fo

r.Te

ache

rs f

or t

heir

part

wer

e of

ten

frus

trat

ed

abou

t th

e ga

p be

twee

nw

hat

they

wan

ted

and

wha

t st

uden

ts p

rodu

ced.

Prov

idin

g ki

ds w

ith

tang

ible

writ

ten

info

rmat

ion

desc

ribin

g th

e qu

ality

of

wor

k ex

pect

ed o

f th

emgo

es a

long

way

tow

ard

redu

cing

gue

ssw

ork

for

You’

ll fin

d m

ore

info

rmat

ion

abou

t as

sess

men

t in

The

Sea

ttle

Tim

es N

IE s

ectio

n of

the

Teac

hing

Tha

t M

akes

Sen

seW

eb s

ite. Y

ou c

an e

ven

dow

n-lo

ad fr

ee c

opie

s of

art

icle

s or

send

the

m t

o yo

ur fr

iend

s vi

a e-

mai

l. Ju

st g

o to

ww

w.tt

ms.

org.

For

mor

e in

form

atio

n ab

out

NIE

,vi

sit

seat

tletim

es.c

om/n

ie.

On

the

Web

The

Sea

ttle

Tim

es h

as m

any

grea

t m

odel

s of

writ

ing

you

can

wor

k w

ith t

o cr

eate

inte

rest

ing

crite

ria. T

ake

diffe

rent

typ

es o

fst

orie

s an

d w

ork

with

stu

dent

s to

crea

te s

mal

l set

s of

crit

eria

for

each

one

. Enc

oura

ge s

tude

nts

toco

nnec

t th

eir

crite

ria w

ith a

ctua

lte

xt fr

om t

he a

rtic

les.

In t

he N

ewsp

aper

Take

a lo

ok a

t a

set

of c

riter

iayo

u’ve

cre

ated

rec

ently

and

see

how

it c

ompa

res

with

the

adv

ice

give

n in

the

exa

mpl

e. T

hen,

try

anot

her

set

in fr

ont

of t

he k

ids

usin

g an

aut

hent

ic r

eal w

orld

mod

el. S

ee if

thi

s ap

proa

ch

prod

uces

mor

e us

eful

crit

eria

.

Begi

nnin

g A

ctivi

ty

Issu

e 3

7: A

sse

ssm

en

t T

ha

t M

ak

es

Se

nse

,P

art

2(1

of

3)

The

Effe

ctiv

e Le

arni

ng S

erie

s is

par

t of

a 3

5-w

eek

curr

icul

umfo

r im

prov

ing

basi

c th

inki

ng s

kills

.Use

ful f

or t

each

ers,

hom

esc

hool

ers,

par

ents

and

stu

dent

s al

ike,

new

issu

es a

ppea

r in

The

Sea

ttle

Tim

es o

n M

onda

y, W

edne

sday

and

Frid

ay.I

f yo

um

isse

d an

y in

thi

s se

ries,

you

can

ord

er b

ack

issu

es b

y ca

lling

Circ

ulat

ion

back

cop

ies

at 2

06/4

64-2

001.

206/

652-

6290

•

1-88

8/77

5-26

55

Asse

ssm

ent T

hat M

akes

Sen

se,P

art 2

C

‘@ @

33333333333333333333333333333


Ste

ve P

eha

is t

he P

resi

dent

of

Teac

hing

Tha

t M

akes

Sen

se, a

n ed

ucat

ion

cons

ultin

g co

mpa

ny in

Sea

ttle

, WA

. Vis

it hi

s W

eb s

ite a

tw

ww

.ttm

s.or

g or

sen

d hi

m a

co

mm

ent

abou

t th

is a

rtic

le a

t st

evep

eha@

ttm

s.or

g.

Cri

teri

a fo

r C

rite

ria

The

succ

ess

of c

riter

ia d

epen

ds o

n ho

w w

e m

ake

them

and

ho

w w

e us

e th

em. W

hen

crea

ting

crite

ria, k

eep

thes

e th

ree

thin

gs in

min

d:

(1)

Bas

e cr

iter

ia o

n a

uth

entic

model

s.W

hen

we

thin

kab

out d

evel

opin

g cr

iteria

, our

nat

ural

inst

inct

is to

beg

in

crea

ting

a de

scrip

tion

of w

hat w

e’d

like

stud

ents

to d

o. B

ut

this

is b

ackw

ards

. It m

akes

mor

e se

nse

to s

tart

with

a m

odel

an

d th

en c

reat

e a

desc

riptio

n ba

sed

on th

e w

ork

in fr

ont o

f us.

(2)

Dev

elop t

he

languag

e w

ith t

he

studen

ts.M

ost o

fth

e tim

e, te

ache

rs li

ke to

mak

e up

thei

r ow

n cr

iteria

and

pre

sent

them

to s

tude

nts.

But

this

isn’

t the

bes

t way

to g

o. It

’s m

uch

mor

e ef

fect

ive

to g

ive

stud

ents

a h

and

in c

reat

ing

thei

r ow

n cr

iteria

bas

ed o

n au

then

tic m

odel

s.

(3)

Kee

p t

he

criter

ia lis

t as

short

as

poss

ible

.Onc

e a

list o

f crit

eria

item

s ge

ts b

eyon

d 8

or 1

0, it

bec

omes

unw

ield

y.K

ids

can’

t rem

embe

r it

easi

ly a

nd r

eadi

ly a

pply

it to

thei

r w

ork.

Som

e te

ache

rs li

ke to

cre

ate

full

blow

n ru

bric

s w

ith s

epar

ate

desc

riptio

ns fo

r di

ffere

nt le

vels

of p

erfo

rman

ce. I

t’s b

ette

r to

cr

eate

one

set

of c

riter

ia r

epre

sent

ing

the

best

per

form

ance

an

d ha

ve s

tude

nts

conc

entr

ate

on th

at.

Whe

n us

ing

crite

ria, t

hink

abo

ut th

ese

thre

e th

ings

:

(1)

Teac

h c

rite

ria

item

s ex

plic

itly

.For

eac

h ite

m o

n yo

urcr

iteria

list

, offe

r st

uden

ts e

xplic

it in

stru

ctio

n. J

ust u

se y

our

list a

sa

list o

f les

sons

and

mak

e su

re s

tude

nts

unde

rsta

nd w

hat e

ach

item

mea

ns, w

hy e

ach

item

is im

port

ant,

and

how

to p

rodu

ceea

ch it

em in

thei

r ow

n w

ork.

Lac

k of

exp

licit

inst

ruct

ion

is th

enu

mbe

r on

e re

ason

kid

s fa

il cr

iteria

-bas

ed a

sses

smen

ts.

(2)

Teac

h s

tuden

ts t

o s

elf-

asse

ss.T

he c

riter

ia a

re m

ore

valu

able

to th

e st

uden

ts th

an to

the

teac

her.

In s

ome

case

s, th

ecr

iteria

them

selv

es m

ay r

epre

sent

the

lear

ning

we

wan

t kid

s to

achi

eve.

The

onl

y w

ay fo

r cr

iteria

to b

e tr

uly

help

ful t

o st

uden

ts

is if

they

kno

w h

ow to

app

ly th

ose

crite

ria a

ccur

atel

y to

thei

r ow

n w

ork.

(3)

Use

res

ults

to g

uid

e in

stru

ctio

n. O

nce

stud

ents

hav

epr

oduc

ed w

ork

usin

g th

e cr

iteria

, don

’t ju

st r

ecor

d it

in a

gra

debo

ok a

nd m

ove

on. L

ook

at h

ow th

e cl

ass

perfo

rms

as a

who

lean

d us

e th

e re

sults

to d

eter

min

e fu

rthe

r in

stru

ctio

n. H

avin

g a

good

set

of c

riter

ia p

rovi

des

a so

lid in

stru

ctio

nal f

ram

ewor

k. B

utif

you

don’

t use

the

asse

ssm

ent d

ata

to g

uide

new

inst

ruct

ion,

that

fram

ewor

k ha

s lit

tle v

alue

.

Teac

hers

, par

ents

and

stu

dent

s: t

hese

thi

nkin

g sk

ills

stra

tegi

es a

re b

roug

ht t

o yo

u by

our

New

spap

ers

In E

duca

tion

prog

ram

. Th

is s

trat

egy

prov

ides

sen

sibl

e ad

vice

on

a se

nsiti

ve t

opic

tha

t af

fect

s ev

ery

teac

her

and

ever

y st

uden

t.

12/1

1

Exa

mple

both

tea

cher

and

stu

dent

.It

also

hel

ps p

aren

ts g

et

a be

tter

not

ion

of w

hat

thei

r ki

ds a

re d

oing

(or

no

t do

ing)

in c

lass

. But

itdo

esn’

t ne

cess

arily

impr

ove

asse

ssm

ent.

It’s

not

Ass

essm

ent

Unle

ss…

Just

say

ing

that

you

’re

doin

g cr

iteria

-bas

edas

sess

men

t do

esn’

t m

ake

it so

. And

nei

ther

doe

s a

crite

ria li

st. O

ften,

teac

hers

crea

te c

riter

ia s

impl

y fo

rth

e pu

rpos

e of

det

erm

inin

ga

grad

e. U

sing

crit

eria

sole

ly a

s a

mea

ns o

f gr

adin

g do

es li

ttle

for

asse

ssm

ent.

To u

se c

riter

ia f

or t

rue

asse

ssm

ent

purp

oses

,te

ache

rs m

ust

use

thei

rcr

iteria

and

the

ir st

uden

ts’

perf

orm

ance

rel

ativ

e to

thos

e cr

iteria

to

dete

rmin

eap

prop

riate

inst

ruct

ion.

A

ll to

o of

ten,

stu

dent

s ar

e as

sess

ed a

gain

st t

he

crite

ria f

or a

giv

en p

roje

ctan

d th

en, r

egar

dles

s of

how

they

do,

the

tea

cher

mov

eson

to

a ne

w a

rea

of s

tudy

.If

we

use

crite

ria m

erel

yas

ano

ther

for

m o

f gr

adin

g,w

e’re

con

fusi

ng t

he is

sue

and

hurt

ing

our

kids

. The

real

val

ue in

crit

eria

com

esno

t fr

om t

he e

xist

ence

of

high

sta

ndar

ds a

nd c

lear

ta

rget

s, b

ut fr

om th

e ta

ngib

lefr

amew

ork

they

pro

vide

for

expl

icit

inst

ruct

ion.

Effe

ctive

Lea

rnin

g Se

ries

rite

ria-

Bas

edA

sses

smen

tIn

the

199

0s, e

duca

tors

got

a gr

eat

idea

: Why

not

tell

kids

wha

t w

e w

ant

them

to

do b

efor

e th

eyst

art

doin

g it?

And

so

the

age

of c

riter

ia-b

ased

asse

ssm

ent

was

bor

n.N

ow it

see

ms

that

kid

s us

e cr

iteria

to

do ju

st

abou

t ev

eryt

hing

.In

the

goo

d ol

d da

ys,

teac

hers

wou

ld g

ive

assi

gnm

ents

and

stu

dent

sw

ould

do

thei

r be

st t

o hi

tth

e m

ark,

oft

en g

uess

ing

as t

o w

hat

exac

tly t

hete

ache

r w

as lo

okin

g fo

r.Te

ache

rs f

or t

heir

part

wer

e of

ten

frus

trat

ed

abou

t th

e ga

p be

twee

nw

hat

they

wan

ted

and

wha

t st

uden

ts p

rodu

ced.

Prov

idin

g ki

ds w

ith

tang

ible

writ

ten

info

rmat

ion

desc

ribin

g th

e qu

ality

of

wor

k ex

pect

ed o

f th

emgo

es a

long

way

tow

ard

redu

cing

gue

ssw

ork

for

You’

ll fin

d m

ore

info

rmat

ion

abou

t as

sess

men

t in

The

Sea

ttle

Tim

es N

IE s

ectio

n of

the

Teac

hing

Tha

t M

akes

Sen

seW

eb s

ite. Y

ou c

an e

ven

dow

n-lo

ad fr

ee c

opie

s of

art

icle

s or

send

the

m t

o yo

ur fr

iend

s vi

a e-

mai

l. Ju

st g

o to

ww

w.tt

ms.

org.

For

mor

e in

form

atio

n ab

out

NIE

,vi

sit

seat

tletim

es.c

om/n

ie.

On

the

Web

The

Sea

ttle

Tim

es h

as m

any

grea

t m

odel

s of

writ

ing

you

can

wor

k w

ith t

o cr

eate

inte

rest

ing

crite

ria. T

ake

diffe

rent

typ

es o

fst

orie

s an

d w

ork

with

stu

dent

s to

crea

te s

mal

l set

s of

crit

eria

for

each

one

. Enc

oura

ge s

tude

nts

toco

nnec

t th

eir

crite

ria w

ith a

ctua

lte

xt fr

om t

he a

rtic

les.

In t

he N

ewsp

aper

Take

a lo

ok a

t a

set

of c

riter

iayo

u’ve

cre

ated

rec

ently

and

see

how

it c

ompa

res

with

the

adv

ice

give

n in

the

exa

mpl

e. T

hen,

try

anot

her

set

in fr

ont

of t

he k

ids

usin

g an

aut

hent

ic r

eal w

orld

mod

el. S

ee if

thi

s ap

proa

ch

prod

uces

mor

e us

eful

crit

eria

.

Begi

nnin

g A

ctivi

ty

Issu

e 3

7: A

sse

ssm

en

t T

ha

t M

ak

es

Se

nse

,P

art

2(1

of

3)

The

Effe

ctiv

e Le

arni

ng S

erie

s is

par

t of

a 3

5-w

eek

curr

icul

umfo

r im

prov

ing

basi

c th

inki

ng s

kills

.Use

ful f

or t

each

ers,

hom

esc

hool

ers,

par

ents

and

stu

dent

s al

ike,

new

issu

es a

ppea

r in

The

Sea

ttle

Tim

es o

n M

onda

y, W

edne

sday

and

Frid

ay.I

f yo

um

isse

d an

y in

thi

s se

ries,

you

can

ord

er b

ack

issu

es b

y ca

lling

Circ

ulat

ion

back

cop

ies

at 2

06/4

64-2

001.

206/

652-

6290

•

1-88

8/77

5-26

55

Asse

ssm

ent T

hat M

akes

Sen

se,P

art 2

C

‘@ @

33333333333333333333333333333


Ste

ve P

eha

is t

he P

resi

dent

of

Teac

hing

Tha

t M

akes

Sen

se, a

n ed

ucat

ion

cons

ultin

g co

mpa

ny in

Sea

ttle

, WA

. Vis

it hi

s W

eb s

ite a

tw

ww

.ttm

s.or

g or

sen

d hi

m a

co

mm

ent

abou

t th

is a

rtic

le a

t st

evep

eha@

ttm

s.or

g.

Cri

teri

a fo

r C

rite

ria

The

succ

ess

of c

riter

ia d

epen

ds o

n ho

w w

e m

ake

them

and

ho

w w

e us

e th

em. W

hen

crea

ting

crite

ria, k

eep

thes

e th

ree

thin

gs in

min

d:

(1)

Bas

e cr

iter

ia o

n a

uth

entic

model

s.W

hen

we

thin

kab

out d

evel

opin

g cr

iteria

, our

nat

ural

inst

inct

is to

beg

in

crea

ting

a de

scrip

tion

of w

hat w

e’d

like

stud

ents

to d

o. B

ut

this

is b

ackw

ards

. It m

akes

mor

e se

nse

to s

tart

with

a m

odel

an

d th

en c

reat

e a

desc

riptio

n ba

sed

on th

e w

ork

in fr

ont o

f us.

(2)

Dev

elop t

he

languag

e w

ith t

he

studen

ts.M

ost o

fth

e tim

e, te

ache

rs li

ke to

mak

e up

thei

r ow

n cr

iteria

and

pre

sent

them

to s

tude

nts.

But

this

isn’

t the

bes

t way

to g

o. It

’s m

uch

mor

e ef

fect

ive

to g

ive

stud

ents

a h

and

in c

reat

ing

thei

r ow

n cr

iteria

bas

ed o

n au

then

tic m

odel

s.

(3)

Kee

p t

he

criter

ia lis

t as

short

as

poss

ible

.Onc

e a

list o

f crit

eria

item

s ge

ts b

eyon

d 8

or 1

0, it

bec

omes

unw

ield

y.K

ids

can’

t rem

embe

r it

easi

ly a

nd r

eadi

ly a

pply

it to

thei

r w

ork.

Som

e te

ache

rs li

ke to

cre

ate

full

blow

n ru

bric

s w

ith s

epar

ate

desc

riptio

ns fo

r di

ffere

nt le

vels

of p

erfo

rman

ce. I

t’s b

ette

r to

cr

eate

one

set

of c

riter

ia r

epre

sent

ing

the

best

per

form

ance

an

d ha

ve s

tude

nts

conc

entr

ate

on th

at.

Whe

n us

ing

crite

ria, t

hink

abo

ut th

ese

thre

e th

ings

:

(1)

Teac

h c

rite

ria

item

s ex

plic

itly

.For

eac

h ite

m o

n yo

urcr

iteria

list

, offe

r st

uden

ts e

xplic

it in

stru

ctio

n. J

ust u

se y

our

list a

sa

list o

f les

sons

and

mak

e su

re s

tude

nts

unde

rsta

nd w

hat e

ach

item

mea

ns, w

hy e

ach

item

is im

port

ant,

and

how

to p

rodu

ceea

ch it

em in

thei

r ow

n w

ork.

Lac

k of

exp

licit

inst

ruct

ion

is th

enu

mbe

r on

e re

ason

kid

s fa

il cr

iteria

-bas

ed a

sses

smen

ts.

(2)

Teac

h s

tuden

ts t

o s

elf-

asse

ss.T

he c

riter

ia a

re m

ore

valu

able

to th

e st

uden

ts th

an to

the

teac

her.

In s

ome

case

s, th

ecr

iteria

them

selv

es m

ay r

epre

sent

the

lear

ning

we

wan

t kid

s to

achi

eve.

The

onl

y w

ay fo

r cr

iteria

to b

e tr

uly

help

ful t

o st

uden

ts

is if

they

kno

w h

ow to

app

ly th

ose

crite

ria a

ccur

atel

y to

thei

r ow

n w

ork.

(3)

Use

res

ults

to g

uid

e in

stru

ctio

n. O

nce

stud

ents

hav

epr

oduc

ed w

ork

usin

g th

e cr

iteria

, don

’t ju

st r

ecor

d it

in a

gra

debo

ok a

nd m

ove

on. L

ook

at h

ow th

e cl

ass

perfo

rms

as a

who

lean

d us

e th

e re

sults

to d

eter

min

e fu

rthe

r in

stru

ctio

n. H

avin

g a

good

set

of c

riter

ia p

rovi

des

a so

lid in

stru

ctio

nal f

ram

ewor

k. B

utif

you

don’

t use

the

asse

ssm

ent d

ata

to g

uide

new

inst

ruct

ion,

that

fram

ewor

k ha

s lit

tle v

alue

.

Teac

hers

, par

ents

and

stu

dent

s: t

hese

thi

nkin

g sk

ills

stra

tegi

es a

re b

roug

ht t

o yo

u by

our

New

spap

ers

In E

duca

tion

prog

ram

. Th

is s

trat

egy

prov

ides

sen

sibl

e ad

vice

on

a se

nsiti

ve t

opic

tha

t af

fect

s ev

ery

teac

her

and

ever

y st

uden

t.

12/1

1

Exa

mple

(3)

Ave

rages

are

m

isle

adin

g.

Wha

t do

es

it m

ean

to s

ay t

hat

over

ani

ne-w

eek

perio

d, s

ome-

one

has

lear

ned

82%

of

som

ethi

ng?

The

fact

tha

tm

ost

final

gra

des

for

aco

urse

are

arr

ived

at

thro

ugh

aver

agin

g m

eans

that

the

res

ult

of m

ost

grad

e-ba

sed

eval

uatio

nsm

akes

litt

le s

ense

in t

erm

sof

act

ual s

tude

nt le

arni

ng.

(4)

Stu

den

ts c

an’t

use

gra

des

to i

mp

rove

per

form

ance

.H

ow d

oes

one

chan

ge a

"B

" in

to a

n"A

"? W

hat

exac

tly is

ne

eded

in t

erm

s of

kno

w-

ledg

e ga

ined

or

skill

sac

quire

d? G

rade

s do

n’t

give

stu

dent

s th

e in

form

a-tio

n th

ey n

eed

to im

prov

e.

(5)

Teac

her

s ca

n’t

use

gra

des

to d

eter

min

ein

stru

ctio

n.

Wha

tin

stru

ctio

n do

es a

"B

" st

uden

t ne

ed in

ord

er t

oim

prov

e? H

ow d

oes

the

grad

e in

dica

te t

he in

stru

ctio

nhe

or

she

shou

ld r

ecei

ve?

Gra

des

don’

t te

ll te

ache

rsw

hat

stud

ents

hav

e le

arne

dan

d w

hat

they

nee

d to

lear

n ne

xt.

(6)

Gra

des

do l

ittl

e fo

rst

ud

ents

and

eve

n l

ess

for

teac

her

s.Th

ere

is n

osi

gnifi

cant

res

earc

h th

atsu

ppor

ts le

tter

gra

ding

. It

exis

ts a

s a

trad

ition

onl

y,

a tr

aditi

on t

hat

shou

ld b

equ

estio

ned

and

then

di

scar

ded

in f

avor

of

appr

oach

es t

hat

help

te

ache

rs t

each

, hel

p st

uden

ts le

arn,

and

hel

p pa

rent

s m

ake

good

cho

ices

abou

t th

e ed

ucat

ion

of

thei

r ch

ildre

n.

Effe

ctive

Lea

rnin

g Se

ries

ow

Does

Gra

din

gR

elat

e to

Ass

essm

ent?

Gra

ding

is a

for

m o

fev

alua

tion

not

asse

ssm

ent.

It’s

a ju

dgm

ent

of a

sin

gle

perf

orm

ance

or

a gr

oup

ofpe

rfor

man

ces

aver

aged

over

tim

e. G

radi

ng f

ails

as

an

asse

ssm

ent

tool

fo

r se

vera

l rea

sons

:

(1)

Gra

des

are

re

duct

ive.

No

hum

anle

arni

ng c

an b

e re

duce

d to

a s

ingl

e va

lue

with

out

dist

ortin

g it.

Gra

des

rest

ate

the

actu

al le

arni

ngth

at h

asoc

curr

ed in

a w

ay t

hat

ises

sent

ially

mea

ning

less

.

(2)

Gra

des

are

ar

bit

rary

.D

iffer

ent

teac

hers

ass

ign

grad

es

in d

iffer

ent

way

s. E

ven

whe

n cr

iteria

are

use

d, t

hein

terp

reta

tion

of t

he c

riter

iaan

d th

e fin

al t

rans

-latio

nin

to a

lett

er o

r nu

mbe

r is

high

ly s

ubje

ctiv

e.

You’

ll fin

d m

ore

info

rmat

ion

abou

t as

sess

men

t in

The

Sea

ttle

Tim

es N

IE s

ectio

n of

the

Teac

hing

Tha

t M

akes

Sen

seW

eb s

ite. Y

ou c

an e

ven

dow

n-lo

ad fr

ee c

opie

s of

art

icle

s or

send

the

m t

o yo

ur fr

iend

s vi

a e-

mai

l. Ju

st g

o to

ww

w.tt

ms.

org.

For

mor

e in

form

atio

n ab

out

NIE

,vi

sit

seat

tletim

es.c

om/n

ie.

On

the

Web

For

an e

xerc

ise

in t

he r

idic

ulou

s-ne

ss o

f gra

ding

, hav

e ki

ds g

rade

vario

us p

iece

s in

the

The

Sea

ttle

Tim

es. L

ike

ads,

sec

tions

, or

even

who

le e

ditio

ns. H

ave

them

and

the

n tr

y to

just

ify

them

selv

es. I

mag

ine

wha

t it

wou

ld b

e lik

e if

the

new

spap

erus

ed a

gra

ding

sys

tem

. Poi

nt

out

to t

hem

tha

t in

the

rea

l wor

ld,

we

don’

t us

e gr

ades

. We

use

othe

r ra

ting

syst

ems.

In t

he N

ewsp

aper

Intr

oduc

e th

e Th

ree

Ps

mod

el t

oki

ds a

nd a

sk t

hem

wha

t th

ey t

hink

of it

. Ask

the

m t

o te

ll yo

u w

hat

they

thi

nk a

bout

bei

ng g

rade

d on

thin

gs o

ther

tha

n ju

st t

heir

final

perf

orm

ance

. Tal

k to

the

m a

bout

wha

t yo

u va

lue

in s

tude

nts

and

poin

t ou

t th

at t

here

’s m

ore

to li

feth

an d

oing

wel

l on

test

s.

Inte

rmed

iate

Act

ivity

Issu

e 3

8: A

sse

ssm

en

t T

ha

t M

ak

es

Se

nse

,P

art

2(2

of

3)

The

Effe

ctiv

e Le

arni

ng S

erie

s is

par

t of

a 3

5-w

eek

curr

icul

umfo

r im

prov

ing

basi

c th

inki

ng s

kills

.Use

ful f

or t

each

ers,

hom

esc

hool

ers,

par

ents

and

stu

dent

s al

ike,

new

issu

es a

ppea

r in

The

Sea

ttle

Tim

es o

n M

onda

y, W

edne

sday

and

Frid

ay.I

f yo

um

isse

d an

y in

thi

s se

ries,

you

can

ord

er b

ack

issu

es b

y ca

lling

Circ

ulat

ion

back

cop

ies

at 2

06/4

64-2

001.

206/

652-

6290

•

1-88

8/77

5-26

55

Asse

ssm

ent T

hat M

akes

Sen

se,P

art 2

‘@ @

33333333333333333333333333333


Ste

ve P

eha

is t

he P

resi

dent

of

Teac

hing

Tha

t M

akes

Sen

se, a

n ed

ucat

ion

cons

ultin

g co

mpa

ny in

Sea

ttle

, WA

. Vis

it hi

s W

eb s

ite a

tw

ww

.ttm

s.or

g or

sen

d hi

m a

co

mm

ent

abou

t th

is a

rtic

le a

t st

evep

eha@

ttm

s.or

g.

If Y

ou H

ave

to G

rade…

Dub

ious

tra

ditio

n th

at it

is, g

radi

ng h

as b

een

with

us

for

deca

des

and,

like

mos

t of

the

ill-c

onsi

dere

d tr

aditi

ons

of

educ

atio

n, it

will

prob

ably

be

with

us

for

gene

ratio

ns t

o co

me.

But

thi

s do

esn’

t m

ean

that

we

shou

ld c

ontin

ue t

o gr

ade

in

way

s th

at h

urt

and

conf

use

our

stud

ents

. If w

e’re

goi

ng t

ogr

ade,

we

shou

ld d

evel

op (

sim

ple

and

fair)

sys

tem

s, a

nd

that

em

phas

ize

the

lear

ning

we

valu

e m

ost.

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Thre

e P

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e Th

ree

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appr

oach

to

grad

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wor

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adin

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uld.

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tea

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arr

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gres

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his:

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e cr

iteria

are

est

ablis

hed

durin

g th

e fir

st w

eek

of s

choo

l, in

con

sulta

tion

with

stu

dent

s, a

nd a

pply

to

a se

t of

wor

k th

atst

uden

ts w

ould

cre

ate

over

tim

e an

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sem

ble

in s

ome

kind

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por

tfol

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wei

ghtin

g of

the

thr

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reas

ince

ntiv

izes

stu

dent

s to

focu

son

par

ticip

atin

g w

ell i

n cl

ass

and

mak

ing

good

pro

gres

s. In

thi

sse

nse,

eve

n th

e be

st s

tude

nts

still

have

to

wor

k ha

rd a

nd le

arn

new

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dent

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ss t

hem

selv

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ith t

his

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oach

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part

icip

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ents

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nsiti

ve t

opic

tha

t af

fect

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ery

teac

her

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ever

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uden

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12/1

3

Exa

mple

H

(50%

)

(

33%

)

(1

7%)

Par

tici

pat

ion

Pro

gre

ssP

erfo

rman

ce

Atte

nds

clas

s ea

chda

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Follo

ws

dire

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Sha

res

writ

ing

regu

larly

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Offe

rs c

onst

ruct

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feed

back

to o

ther

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Mai

ntai

ns a

writ

er’s

note

book

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Com

plet

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ortfo

liore

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men

ts

Impr

oves

in a

bilit

y to

:

Use

writ

ing

stra

te-

gies

inde

pend

ently

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Kno

w w

hen

own

writ

ing

need

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be

rev

ised

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Edit

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mpl

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ork

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ples

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som

e in

form

alac

coun

ting

of t

he

circ

umst

ance

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whi

chth

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ere

crea

ted.

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Goal

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y lo

okin

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uden

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w t

hey

do it

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can

dete

rmin

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yne

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nex

t. Th

is is

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hear

t of

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ess-

men

t pr

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ach

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edto

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tude

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Inst

ruct

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Onc

e a

teac

her

has

mad

e an

asse

ssm

ent,

he o

r sh

e ha

s th

e ta

sk o

f pl

anni

ngap

prop

riate

inst

ruct

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Spe

cific

inst

ruct

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shou

ldbe

tar

gete

d to

hel

p sp

ecifi

c st

uden

ts r

each

sp

ecifi

c go

als.

(5)

Sup

port

.S

tude

nts

need

hel

p ou

tsid

e of

cla

ssto

rea

ch t

heir

goal

s. P

aren

tsof

ten

wan

t to

hel

p bu

t do

n’t

know

exa

ctly

wha

t to

do. S

uppo

rt in

form

atio

n is

vita

l if

teac

her,

pare

nt, a

nd

stud

ent

are

to w

ork

toge

ther

effe

ctiv

ely.

The

adva

ntag

e of

re

cord

ing

info

rmat

ion

in

this

form

at is

that

ass

essm

ent,

eval

uatio

n an

d re

port

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can

be a

ccom

plis

hed

sim

ulta

neou

sly

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n in

tegr

ated

fas

hion

.

Effe

ctive

Lea

rnin

g Se

ries

utt

ing i

t A

llTo

get

her

The

key

to e

ffect

ive

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ssm

ent,

eval

uatio

n,an

d re

port

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ter-

min

e th

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atio

n w

ene

ed. T

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e ga

ther

ing

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rd-

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rmat

ion

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tve

ry u

sefu

l. Fo

rtun

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y,co

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ense

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met

hing

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atio

n) t

ells

us

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need

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y tr

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type

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rmat

ion:

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Str

ength

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abou

t as

sess

men

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The

Sea

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Tim

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hat

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Web

site

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ww

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atio

n ab

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,vi

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essm

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rep

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writ

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ping

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hers

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ents

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dent

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hese

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nkin

g sk

ills

stra

tegi

es a

re b

roug

ht t

o yo

u by

our

New

spap

ers

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duca

tion

prog

ram

. Th

is s

trat

egy

prov

ides

sen

sibl

e ad

vice

on

a se

nsiti

ve t

opic

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t af

fect

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ery

teac

her

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uden

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12/1

5

Exa

mple

(2)A

ccom

plis

hmen

ts.

To a

sses

s le

arni

ng, w

ene

ed to

kno

w w

hat s

tude

nts

have

don

e. W

e ne

edau

then

tic w

ork

sam

ples

and

som

e in

form

alac

coun

ting

of t

he

circ

umst

ance

s by

whi

chth

ey w

ere

crea

ted.

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Goal

s.B

y lo

okin

g at

wha

t st

uden

ts c

an d

o an

dho

w t

hey

do it

, we

can

dete

rmin

e w

here

the

yne

ed t

o go

nex

t. Th

is is

the

hear

t of

the

ass

ess-

men

t pr

oces

s. T

o te

ach

effe

ctiv

ely,

tea

cher

s ne

edto

hav

e cl

ear

lear

ning

goal

s fo

r al

l stu

dent

s.S

tude

nts

and

pare

nts

also

nee

d to

be

awar

e of

thes

e go

als.

(4)

Inst

ruct

ion.

Onc

e a

teac

her

has

mad

e an

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ssm

ent,

he o

r sh

e ha

s th

e ta

sk o

f pl

anni

ngap

prop

riate

inst

ruct

ion.

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cific

inst

ruct

ion

shou

ldbe

tar

gete

d to

hel

p sp

ecifi

c st

uden

ts r

each

sp

ecifi

c go

als.

(5)

Sup

port

.S

tude

nts

need

hel

p ou

tsid

e of

cla

ssto

rea

ch t

heir

goal

s. P

aren

tsof

ten

wan

t to

hel

p bu

t do

n’t

know

exa

ctly

wha

t to

do. S

uppo

rt in

form

atio

n is

vita

l if

teac

her,

pare

nt, a

nd

stud

ent

are

to w

ork

toge

ther

effe

ctiv

ely.

The

adva

ntag

e of

re

cord

ing

info

rmat

ion

in

this

form

at is

that

ass

essm

ent,

eval

uatio

n an

d re

port

ing

can

be a

ccom

plis

hed

sim

ulta

neou

sly

in a

n in

tegr

ated

fas

hion

.

Effe

ctive

Lea

rnin

g Se

ries

utt

ing i

t A

llTo

get

her

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key

to e

ffect

ive

asse

ssm

ent,

eval

uatio

n,an

d re

port

ing

is t

o de

ter-

min

e th

e in

form

atio

n w

ene

ed. T

oo o

ften

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spen

dtim

e ga

ther

ing

and

reco

rd-

ing

info

rmat

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tve

ry u

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l. Fo

rtun

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12/1

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Exa

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Could this be a report card?

Erin Coomes 3RD GRADE • SUNRISE ELEMENTARY • ROOM 406 • MRS. GOFFE • 1ST QUARTER • 1999-2000

WRITING

STRENGTHS ACCOMPLISHMENTS GOALS INSTRUCTION SUPPORT Chooses good topics. Uses good word choice. Uses strong feelings; lotsof voice.

Reads pieces withexpression; commandsattention of her audience.

Pieces have purpose. Accepts feedback and usesit to improve.

Listens well; offers goodfeedback.

Uses good lead strategies.

Published: Personalnarrative, autobiography,book review, newspaperarticle, and Veteran's Daycontest piece (some afterthe deadline.) Also has asecond book review indrafting and a third bookreview in pre-writing.

Developed a sense ofparagraphing.

Binder is well organized. Has learned the writingprocess.

Meet deadlines moreconsistently.

Visit less with otherstudents, and use worktime more efficiently.

More personal narratives. Become a peer editor andperhaps an editor ourclass newspaper.

Begin typing instruction.

Talk with her aboutdeadlines and set up amonitoring system.

Talk about working duringwork time and will set up aself-monitoring system ifnecessary.

Require her to wrtie 3personal narratives thisterm.

Talk with her about being apeer editor.

Start working with ourclassroom typing program.

Help her at home to keeptrack of importantdeadlines.

Is she aware that talkingduring work time iscausing her to missdeadlines?

Talk with her aboutchildhood memories;encourage her to use thebest ones for pieces inclass.

Continue typing practice athome; make sure she istouch typing using the“home row”.

READING

STRENGTHS ACCOMPLISHMENTS GOALS INSTRUCTION SUPPORT Reads a variety of genres:fiction, poetry, non-fiction,magazines, etc,

Reads expressively. Great tutor: modelsexpressive reading andpositively supports her firstgrade reading buddy.

Understands humor: as in"Amelia Bedlia" books.

Understands author'spurpose.

Shares regularly. Works well with her 1stgrade buddy.

Has read: Stellaluna, Olive,the Other Reindeer, Windsin the Willows--10 pps.,The Tale of Peter Rabbit,Lady and the Tramp, Storyof the Statue of Liberty,One Hundred and OneDalmations,--pp. 2-12,Martha Speaks, Duck Tails,Webby saves the Day,Berenstein Bears.

Developed an interest inseries books.

Understands book reviewformat.

Encourage her to becomea reading tutor for otherkids in class.

Encourage her to developa knowledge of andpreference for a particularauthor.

Encourage her to readmore challenging books—a particularly moresubstantial chapter books.

Assess her own strengthsas a reader particularly asthey relate to herstrengths in writing.

Show her how to helpothers through her abilityto read expressively.

Talk with her aboutreading books by a certainauthor based on otherbooks she has read.

Find her the right books tohelp her reach the nextlevel in a way that shefeels comfortable with.

Talk with her about how itis that she writes at amuch higher level than sheis reading.

Have her read for you outloud at home and praiseher use of expression.

When the next book ordercomes out look for a goodauthor—Beverly Cleary,Roald Dahl, etc. Encourageher to try some of theirchapter books.

Talk to her about booksshe would like to read.

Talk with her about howshe feels about herreading. (She’s very goodat it. We’d just like her totry some harder books.)

MATH

STRENGTHS ACCOMPLISHMENTS GOALS INSTRUCTION SUPPORT Notebook is very wellorgaized; clear and easy toread.

Enjoys our beginningalgebra work.

Writes real life math storieswith well thought outsolutions.

Trades in addition andborrows in subtractionusing traditional andalternative strategies.

Master basic addition andsubtraction facts in mentalmath. (She does better onpaper than she does in herhead.)

Consistenly get 8 or moreout of the 10 daily mentalmath problems correct.

More work with graphpaper and trianglestrategies.

Talk to her about how tovisualize math problems.

Provide graph paper forher at home.

When she does mathhomework encourage herto visualize the numbers inher head as she works outproblems.

A plan book? A grade book? A curriculum guide? Assessment data?

It could be all of these. It could be all of your classroom record keeping.

Interactive Planning, Assessment, and Reporting

very teacher has to plan. But we all know what happens to even the best laid plans. Every teacher

has to assess. That’s just part of the job; teachers do it all the time whether they are conscious of it

or not. And every teacher has to report student progress. But no teacher should have to spend hour

after frustrating hour recording information, processing data, and filling out forms that don’t help them

teach, don’t help their students learn, or don’t help parents and other adults support children effectively

outside of school. And yet, this is exactly what most planning, assessment, and reporting is like today.

“This is so very true! In my experiences over the last 33 years, I have to admit that most (about 31) of those years Iwould sit down with a district textbook, write down objectives, outcomes, etc., all based on the information from thetext. I never really thought about basing my teaching on my kids, I just followed along with the district curriculum. Butnow I’m following my students by teaching to their individual needs, and the difference is amazing. I’m having my bestyear ever, my students are doing better, and I haven’t looked in a single textbook all year.”

Most teachers treat planning, assessment, and reporting as three separate and loosely related activities.

They plan first even though accurate planning is hard to do before you know much about your students.

Then, somewhere in the process of executing their plan—most often at the end—they attempt to assess

student learning. But often those assessments are based on inauthentic activities that tell them little about

what children have really learned, and by assessing at the end of an instructional unit, the data gathered

is of little use to anyone (this traditional “teach first, test later” approach is completely backwards and

that’s why it’s not effective). Finally, at the end of a quarter, trimester, or semester teachers sit down, often

for hours on end, with all the information they’ve gathered, and try to put it into some kind of standar

d

-

ized report.

“I would spend hours correcting papers and recording scores into a grade book, and then at the end of each quarter Iwould somehow try to come up with grades that represented what my students had learned. It was always impossibleto capture each child’s performance in a grade or with those standardized comments, so I would end up spending evenmore time writing lengthy narratives to try to make up for it. I realize now that it was all pretty much a waste of time be-cause none of it—not the planning, or the correcting, or the grading, or even the narratives—had anything to do withwhat my students needed to learn or what I needed to do to help them.”

The typical results are these:

1)

What happens in the classroom on a day-by-day basis rarely matches the

pre-conceived plan, or if it does, it’s only because the teacher ignores the individual needs of the students;

2)

The assessment data that teachers gather is rarely used to guide instruction because it’s typically gat

h

-

ered at the end of a unit right before moving on to the next area of study;

3)

The reports teachers spend

so much time on rarely convey any meaningful information about student lear

n

ing.

E

“I found that the only way I could actually stick to my plans was to be a total fanatic. And that’s what I was. It didn’tmatter what the kids were learning, I just pushed right ahead. I had a principal who held us to our plans and I wasn’tgoing to be caught off guard. Meanwhile, the assessment information I was supposed to collect really ended up beingmore of a report about what I’d taught during the unit. It was more about me than it was about the kids. And when theunit ended, I just moved on to the next one. Some kids made progress while others didn’t, but because I was teachingto a textbook it didn’t really matter. I just followed the Teacher’s Guide. When it came time for progress reports, it wasvery hard for me to offer detailed information about individual students. I remember one year looking back on the re-ports I’d written previously: it was mostly vague “teacher” comments that I wrote just to make myself sound smart—like I really knew the kids, when in reality I didn’t know them very well at all, at least not like I do now.”

The problem is not with planning, assessment, or reporting per se. After all, these are just the necessary

parts of every teacher’s craft. The problem is that we don’t put these three essential elements together in a

sensible way that accounts for how they interact.

“Before I switched to this new approach everything I did seemed unrelated. And when we started using continuums,things didn’t get much better—and I was on the committee that designed them! I realized that all I was doing waschecking things off, and sometimes I didn’t even know what those check-offs meant. I wasn’t following a textbook quiteas much but I was now following a continuum that I didn’t understand, one that didn’t seem to match my kids or myteaching style. No matter how I looked at it, it just didn’t add up. I know now that I wasn’t teaching to the needs of mykids—and believe me, there’s really no other way to do it. As far as real assessment goes, we have never been welltrained in what we are supposed to assess and how to go about it. But I was amazed—and challenged!—to find thatthis new approach actually helped me to improve my assessment skills while I was assessing. I found that the things Iwas supposed to look for were built right in. And each assessment could be different for each child. As a result, I feelmuch more confident now about assessing my students and teaching to their individual needs. I also learned—and thiswas the challenging part—where I need to improve in my ability to teach and to observe my students accurately.”

Planning, assessment, and reporting should be closely related in a teacher’s work because they are insep

a

-

rable in a teacher’s craft. Instructional planning should be determined by assessment information gat

h

-

ered

before

instruction begins. And in the end, reporting should be a simple plain-English analysis of

what a student has learned, along with an inventory of what has been taught and what needs to be

learned next in order for that student to be successful. To achieve all this in an efficient and effective way,

planning, assessment, and reporting must be combined into a single, purposeful task that provides teac

h

-

ers with meaningful insight into their work. This is the idea behind

i

PAR: Interactive Planning, Asses

s

-

ment, and Reporting.

There are three main components to

i

PAR (pronounced “eye-par”):

SAGIS

(pronounced “say-

jiss”) is a method of recording and reporting individual st

u

-

dent progress relative to instruction. It is the heart of the

i

PAR system. The acronym

stands for

S

uccesses,

A

cco

m

plishments,

G

oals,

I

nstruction, and

S

upport.

SCaN

(

S

uccesses,

C

hallenges,

a

nd

N

ew Instruction) is a planning tool teachers can use

to identify the successes they are experiencing, the challenges that need to be addressed,

and the new material they plan to introduce next.

ClipNotes

are simple, two-sided printouts teachers can carry on a clipboard and use to

record student pr

o

gress while monitoring their instructional goals.

“Having just finished my first quarter conferences with this approach, I know that parents are overwhelmingly pleased.These were the easiest conferences I’ve ever had; I felt so prepared, and many parents commented on how well theyfelt I knew their kids. And what’s even better is that I have already planned for the next quarter because the assess-ment part and the planning part fit together so easily. I put my assessment information into SAGIS, used SCaN for myoverall planning, and then created my ClipNotes for each subject. Now each day I just take out a copy of my ClipNotesand start teaching. As I observe and conference individually with students, I make brief notes about their progress. Ican keep track of everything I’m doing while I teach, and I’m actually gathering assessment data, following my plan, andfilling out my progress reports more or less at the same time.”

Finally, because planning, assessment, and reporting are such important aspects of teaching, the methods

we use to perform these activities should make us more effective teachers. In order to be effective, teac

h

-

ers need to know three things:

They need to know their subject:

i

PAR helps teachers to know their subject better by

encouraging them to make instructional decisions based on authentic activities and ta

n

-

g

i

ble results.

They need to know their students:

i

PAR helps teachers know their students better by

encouraging them to make more frequent and more accurate observations of student

behavior and attitudes.

And they need to know themselves:

i

PAR helps teachers to know themselves better by

showing them where they are strong in each subject area and where they may need

some assistance. It also helps them to identify the specific questions they need to ask in

order to acquire the information they need to i

m

prove.

In short,

i

PAR helps to produce not only better teaching but better teachers as well. By using

i

PAR, teac

h

-

ers can actually improve in their craft simply by using the tools on a regular basis as part of their normal

planning, assessment, and reporting work.

“I can’t believe how much I’ve changed this year! And a lot of it is because I’m teaching in this new way. For the firsttime in my long career teaching really makes sense. I am focused on my students. I know what I’m doing every day, andfor once I know why I’m doing what I’m doing because it’s always based on whatever has happened the day before. I’vestill got a lot to learn, but at least now I’m asking the right questions and I know where to go to find the right answers.”

Assessment is...

The gathering of information for the purpose of guiding instruction.

As in...

“When I looked at their last published pieces, I noticed that many

kids were having trouble with run-on sentences.”

A good assessment...

Uses specific and appropriate language to describe the data gathered and the

patterns that are observed.

Is based on authentic data gathered in an authentic manner from within an

authentic context.

Before you perform any assessment, ask yourself: "How do I plan to use the data I am gathering to guide

my instruction?" If you don't know what you're going to do with the data, don't waste time gat

h

ering it.

Evaluation is…

A decision made based upon the information gathered through assessment.

As in...

"Because I noticed that many kids were not using periods and capitals

correctly, I'll teach some sentence punctuation mini-lessons in writing

and support that with simple inquiry activities during reading time

where I’ll have the kids identify sentence boundaries by ear using e

x

-

pressive reading techniques."

A good evaluation...

Includes a specific plan of action.

Uses the assessment data as its rationale.

Before you create an evaluation, ask yourself this question: “How do I know that the plan I have outlined

will address the needs I have identified through assessment?”

Reporting is…

The way assessment and evaluation information is communicated to others.

As in...

(See “SAGIS” example elsewhere in this document...)

A good report...

Is presented in a form that is accessible to the audience, and written in la

n

-

guage they understand.

Is constructive in nature: it provides its audience with information that can be

used to construct specific solutions to issues of concern.

Before you produce a report, ask yourself this question: “What is my purpose in sharing this inform

a

tion?”

What is an authentic activity?

Something real that real people in the real world really do, done the way real

people really do it, for real reasons that really matter.

Something real…

Is the activity performed in the real world?

Can I show the kids a real world model?

Can we develop real world criteria to describe the model?

…that real people in the real world really do,…

Who does this?

Can we learn about real people who do this real activity?

Under what circumstances do they do it? Why do they do it? How do they do it?

…done the way real people really do it,…

How do real people do this?

What is their "work process"?

What strategies do they use to solve the problems they encounter?

…for real reasons that really matter.

Why do people do this?

Who is the audience?

How can we provide a “real world” social context for this activity in the artificial world of

school?

There’s nothing wrong with doing inauthentic activities. We do them all the time in our own lives.

In the classroom we do them to build community, ease tension, or just to have fun. Not everything

we do in school need be authentic, nor is there any such thing as a completely authentic school

activity. (School is artificial after all.) But authentic activities should account for

most

of what our

children do in school because the more authentic an activity is the more likely it is that children will

develop authentic skills from doing it.

There is one area in our work where we should always stress authenticity and that is in assessment.

Assessment information is only useful to the extent that it accurately reflects a student’s authentic

abilities and guides our authentic instruction.

We cannot accurately assess our students’ abilities,

or guide authentic instruction, when we base our analyses on the results of inauthentic tasks.

What is authentic assessment?

A real way of gathering performance information that a real person

would really use in the real world.

A real way of gathering real performance information…

How is information gathered about this activity in the real world?

What information is worth gathering?

Why do people in the real world do this?

…that a real person…

What role does this person play in the real world?

In the real world, what is this assessor’s relationship to the person being assessed?

How does the assessor communicate assessment information to the person being assessed?

…would really use…

What information can be gathered without affecting the results?

What information can be used to guide our instruction?

How is specific instruction connected to specific outcomes?

…in the real world.

How is this assessment information used in the real world?

What are the assessor’s ultimate real-world goals?

What is the value of the assessment process?

Whenever we collect assessment data we need to ask ourselves how we know we can trust the data

we collect. One way to increase the reliability of assessment data is to make sure that we gather it by

authentic means. This doesn’t mean we have to throw out all data gathered by traditional academic

techniques. It simply means that whenever possible we should base our instructional decisions on

data that has been gathered in an authentic way, and that we should always strive to reduce the

amount of time, effort, and energy we put into inauthentic methods of gathering assessment data

such as tests, worksheets, textbook exercises, and so on.

The best way to insure that our data is reliable is to offer students as many choices as we possibly

can. Whenever there is choice, there is at least some measure of authenticity because the learner is

directly responsible for guiding some parts of the activity. Learners also perform better in situations

where they feel they have some control over how they are to complete a task.

The iPAR Process

[1]

Establish a safe learning environment.

[2]

Put students in authentic problem-solving situations.

[3]

Assess students through informal observation to determine

their strengths.

[4]

Provide many opportunities for students to produce

authentic work and note their accomplishments.

[5]

Assess authentic work and set developmentally appropriate

goals for each student.

[6]

Survey individual goals for patterns that can be addressed

through whole class instruction.

[7]

Plan for the next assessment period: build on current

successes, address current challenges, introduce new

material.

[8]

Align the instructional plan with state and district

standards.

[9]

Execute the plan through carefully chosen whole class

mini-lessons and small group work, but primarily through

focused individual conferences.

[10]

Adjust the plan as needed; set new goals for individual

students; follow the students by basing each day’s teaching

on what has occurred previously.

November 17, 1999

Dear Parents,

This year in Room 406 we are piloting a new kind of progress report called SAGIS: Strengths, Acco

m

-

plishments, Goals, Instruction, and Support. We have chosen this report because we feel it is the best way

we can answer the five most important questions you have about your child’s education:

What are my child’s

STRENGTHS

in reading, writing, and math?

What has my child

ACCOMPLISHED

this term that shows those strengths?

Based on my child’s accomplishments, what

GOALS

do you have for my

child next term?

What

INSTRUCTION

will my child receive in order to meet these goals?

Based on the instruction you will be offering in class, how can I

SUPPORT

my child at home?

Some parents seek an answer to a sixth question: How does my child compare to other children in the

same grade? If you would like a detailed assessment of how your child compares to other 3rd graders

across the country, we would be happy to provide this assessment to you in writing. It is our belief, ho

w

-

ever, that your child’s ranking relative to other children in the same grade is not relevant to their success,

your support, or our instruction.

In addition to the SAGIS report, you also have two other sources of information about your child: 1) The

Gates-

MacGinitie test; and 2) The

Enumclaw School District report card.

The Gates-

MacGinitie test provides information about a child’s reading vocabulary but is not a good ind

i

-

cator of literacy development. To properly assess your child’s reading performance, and to plan appropr

i

-

ate instruction, we use much more accurate and thorough techniques. If you would like information

about the assessment techniques we use in reading, we would be happy to provide that for you.

The

Enumclaw School District report card was designed to indicate your child’s growth over time. Ho

w

-

ever, we have found in previous years that Mrs.

Goffe’s students often exhibit abilities that are not repr

e

-

sented here. We have also found that we cannot use this tool to guide our teaching. The SAGIS report, by

contrast, helps us follow your child closely, by listing all significant indicators that we observe. It then

helps us to design accurate and effective instruction that meets your child’s individual needs.

In the SAGIS report we have noted the best information we have at this time on your child’s growth in

each of the three major subject areas. The report describes how your child is doing, how we expect your

child to develop next term, and what you can do to support your child at home.

We’re very excited about the SAGIS report and we hope you like it, too. However, if you don’t like it, we

need to hear from you right away so that we can provide you with whatever other information you would

like. If you have any questions for us, or any suggestions about how we can communicate with you more

effectively, please let us know as soon as possible.

We’re having a great year and we hope that you are, too. Thank you for taking the time, effort, and e

n

-

ergy to help us create the best education possible for your child.

Sincerely,

Esther

Goffe, Judy

Bruggeman, and Steve Peha

SAGIS Report, 1st Quarter, 1999 – 2000 Mrs. Goffe, 3rd Grade, Rm. 406 Sunrise Elementary School, Enumclaw School District

The SAGIS report form was created by Steve Peha and is 1999 by Teaching That Makes Sense, Inc. All rights reserved.SAGIS is part of . For more information, contact Steve Peha at [email protected].

Mitch StewartWRITING

STRENGTHS ACCOMPLISHMENTS GOALS INSTRUCTION SUPPORT

Chooses good topics.

Listens attentively duringsharing and asks good ques-tions.

Uses audience feedback toimprove his pieces.

Extremely conscientious.

Reads his own writing ex-pressively.

Has published: personal nar-rative, autobiography, a bookreview, movie review fornewspaper, and Veteran'sDay contest piece. Has asecond book review in draft-ing.

Fairly accurate self-assessment.

Has begun touch typingpractice.

Share more often earlier inthe writing process to avoidre-starts and getting too farahead of himself.

Improve use of capitals andperiods.

Use more editing strategiesto avoid complete re-copying/re-writing.

Meet deadlines more regu-larly: his perfectionism is get-ting in the way of his ability tocomplete tasks.

Conference with him early inthe writing process to moreclosely monitor his progresson individual pieces.

Help him see that he is oftenusing commas in place of pe-riods.

Conference with him duringediting to review editingmarks and their uses.

Encourage him to use editingmarks instead of re-copying.

Watch closely for perfectionisttendencies. Make sure hedoesn't try so hard on thingsthat he misses out on learn-ing opportunities.

Monitor how often he wantsto redo things from scratch athome.

Monitor your interactions withhim around school and non-school activities to assesswhere he might be develop-ing his concerns about per-fectionism.

READINGSTRENGTHS ACCOMPLISHMENTS GOALS INSTRUCTION SUPPORT

Chooses books at appropri-ate levels.

Reads a wide variety of texts:fairy tale, fiction, non-fiction,newspapers, magazines, etc.

Summarizes well: uses onlyrelevant details.

Has a good vocabulary: canoften explain to others whatwords mean.

Excellent expressive reader.

Works well with 1st gradereading buddy.

Can determine author's pur-pose and main idea..

Has read: Pokemon, Mrs.Piggle Wiggle, 1,000 Factsabout the Earth, Alaska Crit-ters, Loveable Lyle, McGwireand Sosa, Hurricane Floyd,Use Your Brain, Patrick Har-rington Bollmer Speaks,Cecily Small and Rainy DayAdventures, Mrs. Peter Rab-bit, Curious George.

Has written two book reviews.

Has learned basic book re-view format and has startedto experiment with his ownapproaches.

Read more challengingbooks.

Write more complex book re-views that include more detailand an expansion of our ba-sic book review form.

Develop a knowledge of andpreference for a particularauthor.; encourage him tobegin an author study.

Provide him with more com-plex texts: he recently askedfor a Harry Potter book. (Hejust started it.)

Show him some other ways ofstructuring a book review.

Talk with him about readingbooks by certain authorsbased on other books he hasread. I'd like him to identify afavorite author by the end ofnext term. (Maybe the authorof the Harry Potter series?)

Take him to a good kidsbookstore (“All for Kids” or“University Bookstore” in Se-attle), or to the library, andhave him pick out a fewbooks for upper elementaryage readers: Roald Dahl, GaryPaulson, Avi, more HarryPotter books, etc...

Talk with him about the bookshe is reading using “The 5Facts of Fiction” and “The 5Big Questions.”

MATHSTRENGTHS ACCOMPLISHMENTS GOALS INSTRUCTION SUPPORT

His writing in math is well or-ganized: it's clear and easyto read.

Shares frequently.

Writes out math problemsvery thoroughly: explains histhinking well.

Has mastered basic additionand subtraction facts.

Works well with multi-digitaddition and subtraction us-ing both alternative and tra-ditional strategies.

Consistently scores 9 or bet-ter out of 10 on mental math.

Develop mastery of basicmultiplication and divisionfacts.

Write more challenging mathproblems.

Encourage him to become amath tutor for other kids.

Continue with graph paperand triangle strategies; writereal life problems using mul-tiplication and division.

Show him examples of morecomplex problems. Encour-age him to pick problemsfrom his everyday life.

Show him how to help othersthrough his ability to thinkclearly and explain math pro-cedures.

Make him aware of when heuses math in his life: withmoney, time, dates, sports,games, etc...

Ask him to talk you throughsome of the math he does athome.

Help him to become aware ofwhen he might encountermultiplication and division inhis life.



Jaqueline GrantWRITING


Includes lots of detail.

Strong sense of purpose.

Shows strong feelings.


Meets deadlines.

Shows a good understandingof basic writing conventions.

Keeps binder well organized.

Published a personal narra-tive, autobiography, two bookreviews, newspaper article,and a Veteran's Day contestpiece. Has a second book re-view and a third narrative indrafting with a third book re-view in pre-write.

Fairly accurate self-assessment of best piece.

Has begun touch typingpractice.

Do more pre-writing. Specifi-cally, more use of the Idea-Details and What-Why-Howstrategies.

Read own pieces more ex-pressively.

Assert her own preferencesmore when receiving feed-back from the audience.

Help her to improve hersense of paragraphing.

Re-visit pre-writing strategiesand conference with her dur-ing pre-writing.

Encourage her to projectmore when she reads in frontof the class.

Validate what she's doing welland encourage her to onlymake the changes that shetruly wants to make.

Help her to analyze para-graphs in published booksand begin to articulate therules of paragraphing.

Encourage Jaqueline to as-sert her preferences andopinions about things.

Talk with Jacqueline about thepieces she is writing. Ask herquestions that will bring outthings that she feels stronglyabout.


Can summarize what she hasread.

Can say why she has chosena particular book.

Chooses books at appropri-ate level.

Fluent oral reader.

Loves to share.

Very good tutor for her 1stgrade buddy reader.

Has read a variety of books:chapter books, series books,non-fiction, newspaper, etc.(She did not turn in herreading list because she wasabsent. We’ll update and in-clude this information on hernext report.)

Has published two book re-views and is working on athird.

Oral reading has slowed to anappropriate pace.

Read more non-fiction.

Improve her ability to summa-rize by analyzing main ideaand author's purpose.

Encourage her to choosemore challenging books.

Improve expression in oralreading: project more; moreemphasis on important wordsand phrases.

Introduce her to non-fictionbooks in areas of personalinterest.

Use "Five Big Questions"—especially #3 and #4.

Offer her a selection ofharder books and talk withher about how to know if theyare appropriate.

Encourage her to projectmore and to identify signifi-cant parts of text for empha-sis.

Model expressive reading forher and talk with her aboutwhat you do to make the textcome alive.

Encourage her to read non-fiction books in her interestareas.

Share your own reading ofnon-fiction texts.


Her writing in math is well or-ganized; it's clear and easyto read.

Shares frequently.

Very consistent in her workproduction.

Successfully solves multi-digitaddition problems using tra-ditional and alternativestrategies.

Has command of basic addi-tion and subtraction facts.

Consistently scores 9 or bet-ter out of 10 on mental math.

Has begun to write out hersolutions more thoroughly.

Improve work with borrowingin subtraction.

Seek new challenges inde-pendently.

Improve understanding ofplace value.

Spend more time exploringsubtraction. Re-visit subtrac-tion strategies. Make sureshe can use the traditionalstrategy as well as the alter-native strategies.

Encourage her to do morepeer tutoring.

Conference with her abouther understanding of placevalue and formulate a specificplan.

Talk with her about her mathhomework: ask her to explainto you what she's doing andwhy she's doing it.

Can she help her youngerbrother with math?

Talk with Jacqueline aboutmath in your life. Let her helpout around the house when-ever possible.



Jared FarmerWRITING


Meets deadlines.

Has a good command of ba-sic writing conventions.

Listens well during sharingtime and asks good ques-tions.

Asks for feedback to improvehis writing.

Has a large vocabulary; vol-unteers to give definitions ofwords for the class.

Published a personal narra-tive, autobiography, book re-view, movie review, and Vet-eran’s Day contest piece. Hasa personal narrative and asecond book review in draft-ing, with a third book reviewin pre-writing.

Began touch typing practice.

Learned to use the WritingProcess.

Listen more carefully to di-rections, follow through thefirst time they are given; usework time more effectively.

Do more pre-writing: moreuse of the Idea-Details andWhat-Why-How strategies.

Ask questions in a respectfultone of voice.

Speak to him about listeningand, if necessary, set up aself-monitoring system tohelp him be more aware ofhow he is using work time.

Re-visit pre-writing strategiesand conference with himduring pre-writing.

Discuss and set up goodquestioning techniques.

Talk with Jared at home abouthis writing so he can developmore pride in his work.

Share and discuss the detailsabout pieces you have readin books or newspapers.

Include Jared in family discus-sions which involve ques-tioning others on their opin-ions or thoughts in a re-spectful way.


Large vocabulary; often vol-unteers to give definitions ofwords for the class.

Enjoys reading; chooses toread during free time afterwork is completed.

Chooses both fiction andnon-fiction to read.

Loves to share; easily andeagerly shares thoughts andopinions while discussing lit-erature.

Has read: Schmernoff Discov-eries, Holes, Escape from theBlack Forest, The Iron Scep-ter, Harry Potter and theScorcer's Stone, PenguinGroup, The Tower of Ga-berhea.

Has written two book reviews.

Write more complex book re-views that include more rele-vant details.

Experiment with our basicbook review form.

Slow down and read with ex-pression; take extra care topronounce words moreclearly.

Improve his interactions withhis 1st grade buddy: heneeds to be more patient andmore supportive.

Show him some other ways ofstructuring a review.

Re-visit expressive reading;remind him to project moreand to speak more clearly.

Assign him to a differentbuddy; talk to him about howhe can be kinder and moreresponsive to this new child.

Talk about books that youhave read. Discuss the rele-vant details and lessonslearned from your reading.

Have Jared read for you. If hereads quickly, remind himthat fast reading is not goodreading; good reading isslow, expressive, and clearlyspoken.

Talk with Jared about how heinteracts with his 1st gradebuddy. Find out why he is soimpatient and why he some-times ignores his buddy orrefuses to help.


Loves mental math problems.

Has a good understanding ofplace value.

Has a good understanding ofalgebraic equations.

Good command of basic ad-dition and subtraction facts;consistently gets 9 or 10 ondaily mental math.

Works successfully in multi-digit addition and subtractionwith both traditional and al-ternative strategies.

Uses measurement strategieswell.

Improve organization ofnotebook: go page-by-page,organize material moreneatly, etc..

Solutions to real life storyproblems need to be writtenspecifically in the format wehave designed.

Write more challenging mathproblems.

Encourage him to become amath tutor for other kids, andto support other learnersmore effectively.

Improve mastery of multipli-cation and division facts.

Speak to him about how touse the fronts and back ofpages and how to keep theproblems easy to read.

Conference with him aboutwriting out the solutions toreal life math problems.

Show him examples of morecomplex problems from reallife.

Show him how to help othersthrough his ability to thinkclearly and explain math pro-cedures.

Encourage him to continueusing his graph paper andtriangle strategies.

Encourage him to use hismath knowledge to help yousolve problems around thehouse.

Talk with him and make himaware of complex mathproblems in your daily life.Discuss the steps you use tosolve your own math prob-lems.



Erin CoomesWRITING



Uses good word choice.

Uses strong feelings; herspirit comes out in herpieces.

Reads own pieces with ex-pression; presents well;commands the attention ofher audience.

Pieces have purpose.

Accepts feedback and uses itto make her pieces better.

She is an attentive listenerwho offers good feedback toothers.

Uses good leads strategies.

Published: Personal narra-tive, autobiography, book re-view, newspaper article, andVeteran's Day contest piece(some of these after thedeadline.) Also has a secondbook review in drafting and athird book review in pre-writing.

Developed a sense of para-graphing.

Binder is very well organized.

Has learned the writing proc-ess.

Meet deadlines more consis-tently.

Visit less with other students,and use work time more effi-ciently.

More personal narratives.

Become a peer editor andperhaps an editor our classnewspaper.

Begin typing instruction.

Talk with her about deadlinesand set up a monitoring sys-tem.

I will speak to her aboutworking during work time andwill set up a self-monitoringsystem if necessary.

Require her to produce 3personal narratives this term.

Talk with her about being apeer editor, see if she is in-terested, and pair with ap-propriate students.

Start working with our class-room typing program.

Help her at home to keeptrack of important deadlines.

See if she is aware that hertalking during work time iscausing her to miss dead-lines.

Talk with her about childhoodmemories and encourage herto use the best ones forpieces in class.

Continue with typing practiceat home but please makesure she is touch typing us-ing the correct “home rowkey and finger relationships.


Reads a variety of genres;fiction, poetry, non-fiction,newspapers, magazines, etc,

Reads expressively.

Great tutor: models expres-sive reading and positivelysupports her first gradereading buddy.

Understands humor: as in"Amelia Bedlia" books.

Understands author's pur-pose.

Shares regularly.

Works well with her 1st gradebuddy.

Has read: Stellaluna, Olive,the Other Reindeer, Winds inthe Willows--10 pps., TheTale of Peter Rabbit, Ladyand the Tramp, Story of theStatue of Liberty, One Hun-dred and One Dalmations,--pp. 2-12, Martha Speaks,Duck Tails, Webby saves theDay, Berenstein Bears.

Developed an interest in se-ries books.

Understands book reviewformat.

Encourage her to become areading tutor for other kids inclass.

Encourage her to develop aknowledge of and preferencefor a particular author.

Encourage her to read morechallenging books—a par-ticularly more substantialchapter books.

Assess her own strengths asa reader particularly as theyrelate to her strengths inwriting.

Show her how to help otherreaders through her ability toread expressively.

Talk with her about readingbooks by a certain authorbased on other books shehas read.

Find her the right books tohelp her reach the next levelin a way that she feels com-fortable with.

Talk with her about how it isthat she writes at a muchhigher level than she isreading. (Perhaps she's justnever challenged herself inreading or has some per-sonal concerns about it.)

Have her read for you outloud at home and praise heruse of expression.

When the next Scholasticbook order comes out lookfor a good author--BeverlyCleary, Roald Dahl, etc.. En-courage her to try readingsome of their chapter books.

Talk to her about new booksshe would like to read.

Talk with her about how shefeels about her reading.(She’s very good at it. We’djust like her to try someharder books.)


Notebook is very well orga-ized; clear and easy to read.

Enjoys our beginning algebrawork.

Writes real life math storieswith well thought out solu-tions.

Trades in addition and bor-rows in subtraction using tra-ditional and alternativestrategies.

Master basic addition andsubtraction facts in mentalmath. (She seems to be ableto do better on paper thanshe does in her head.)

Consistenly get 8 or more outof the 10 daily mental mathproblems correct.

More work with graph paperand triangle strategies.

Talk to her about how tovisualize math problems.

Provide graph paper for herat home.

When she does math home-work encourage her to visu-alize the numbers in her headas she works out problems.

It’s Easier Than it LooksIn a message dated 10/25/99 6:39:39 AM Pacific Daylight Time, [email protected]:

> Hi Steve,>> I am working to assess my students using SAGIS. I have stumbled upon a> mental block. I am having trouble identifying concise ways to list> their strengths and I am having trouble with the Support column.>> Shannon

Dear Shannon,

Yeah, it takes a bit of a “rethink” to start doing this. Each of us who has tried it has bumped into this little

road block. Just shows you how far we've strayed over the years from simple “plain English” ways of

talking about kids.

Here's what I do when I get stuck:

[1]

I realize that I don't need a different set of descriptors for every kid. In fact,

when I assess the kids I teach, I find they all get the same basic set of items.

Why? Well, those are the things I teach them and look for in their work to

guide my teaching. So most kids should come out with very similar

information although there’s plenty of opportunity to individualize it as

needed.

[2]

I realize that I don't need very many descriptors to tell the story I want to tell.

Three or four in each column does the trick. This is very different from

contemporary report cards where there are sometimes dozens of things to

check off. The difference here is that we’re checking off only the ones that

really matter for each kid.

[3]

I think about what really makes the difference between successful learners and

unsuccessful learners. Again, there are only a few basic things for me. Attitude

and effort are very big for me. I’m sure you have a few key things that you look

for. Stick with these.

Finally, I have some guidelines I keep in mind for coming up with items in each column:

The STRENGTHS Column

A strength is something a student brings to all of his or her learning. It’s an attitude or belief. It’s also a

habit. For example, here are some strengths that I think make a difference:

Shares regularly; Asks good questions; Takes risks; Uses audience feedback;

Tries hard even when things aren't going well; Finds unusual solutions to

common problems; Finds multiple solutions to the same problem; Works hard

consistently; Always willing to help others, Etc...

Strengths are things kids bring to their work; they are not the work itself.

The ACCOMPLISHMENTS Column

Accomplishments represent tangible evidence that learning is occurring. Obviously, any student work

counts here. But so do things that don't manifest themselves in paper records. For example, in one 3rd

grade class the kids are learning how to do expressive readings. There's no paper record of these so I will

be noting how many some kids have done and the quality of their work. For kids who are very reluctant,

sometimes just sharing for the first time is an accomplishment.

An accomplishment is something a student has done that shows evidence of growth.

The GOALS Column

This is the easiest column for me. It's just what I want the kid to do next. I try to include a mix of items

that I know I'll be covering with the entire class as well as a couple that are unique to each kid. Whole

class items will be covered in mini-lessons; individual items will be covered in conferences.

A goal is simply something I want the child to be able to do in the next reporting period. It can be the

development of a strength or a specific accomplishment.

The INSTRUCTION Column

This is another easy column for me. All I do is list the instructional techniques I'm going to use to help

the student achieve the goals. This can be mini-lesson content, specific activities or assignments, or just a

series of conversations I plan to have with a student in conference.

Instruction is what I'm going to do to help students reach their goals.

The SUPPORT Column

This can be tricky but only because we're not used to thinking about it. Many teachers start from the

assumption that parents won't help their kids at home, or that they don't know how and won't want to

learn. Even though this may be true, it's not a good place to start.

What I do before I write this column is look at the kid and make a vision of what I believe to be the ideal

home support system. Then, I write that up in a few short bullet points. I try to treat each parent as

though they're all Moms and Dads of the Year. Eventually, most of them start to act that way.

What I know is that in order to grow kids need the following things:

Time:

I ask parents to make sure their kids have time to read, write, talk, do

homework, etc... And that the time they are putting in is quality time.

Choice:

I encourage parents to give their children a range of choices with

regard to how they study and do their school work at home.

Audience:

I ask parents to be good audiences for their children. I tell them to

be curious not corrective when working with their kids, and I stress the role

that their approval has in their child's development.

Purpose:

I want parents to help their children understand the reasons why we

do the things we do. Often, this simply means sharing their own reasons for

doing things. Frankly, it just comes down to being honest and open with

children in a way that they can respect and feel comfortable with.

Models:

I ask parents to model their own literacy and problem-solving skills,

and to include their children in many of the basic adult learning experiences

they encounter.

Advice:

I caution parents about giving advice to their children with regard to

school work. I tell them that they must hold themselves to giving out advice

that is TRUE, USEFUL, and UNDERSTANDABLE. And if they're not SURE that

what they have to offer their children meets all three of these criteria, then they

should simply leave the advice giving to me. One technique I try to teach to

every parent is the technique of turning a criticism or a concern into a

question. That’s a wonderful way to support a learner.

I can offer ideas to parents for support in each of these six categories but I never do all six. I try to limit

my advice to three or four crucial things at the most. In the end, I just want parents to spend time with

their kids doing simple things like reading or helping them with math. And I always want them to have

fun and to make their kids feel loved and very safe.

Writing PlanSUCCESSES – Things that are going well. Procedures Strategies Qualities

Students averaged 5-6 published pieces each in Q1. Continue to set tight deadlines. Have kids put deadlines on TO DO lists;ask them to review deadlines weekly.

Good variety of forms. Present more diverse models.

Students love to write. Stick to 1-hr-a-day schedule; don’t missa day.

Students love to share. Begin small group sharing; do moresharing with other classes.

Introduce different ways of sharing. Create criteria for good sharing.

Everyone published in first class newspaper. Put out 1 issue per month. Review professional and student papers.

Everyone knows and uses the Writing Process. Take status by writing process stage. Have kids teach WP to 1st graders.; talkabout “circular” nature of WP.

Everyone is using their binder. Continue with monthly binder clean-out. Create criteria for a good binder.

Students are choosing good topics. What’s a Good Idea?; CPA Create criteria for good topics.

Many have begun paragraphing. Require editing pass for paragraphs. Formalize paragraphing rules.

Many are beginning to add more detail. Require 1 detail strategy during writingprocess.

Review detail strategies.

CommentsI am extremely pleased with how things have gone this first quarter. We’ve made more progress in nine weeks than we usually make in the whole first semester. I have pushed these kids harder and theyhave responded. When I consider that they haven’t had much experience with workshop-style teaching, the Writing Process, or choosing topics, I’m even more impressed with how far they’ve come.Shelby’s comment last month was very telling: “At first I didn’t like this writing because it was too hard. But I’m glad I did it because I can really write now.”

CHALLENGES – Things that need to be improved. Procedures Strategies Qualities

A little too noisy during work time. Short periods of silent writing. Use “Are you talking?” self-monitoring;change some seating assignments.

Create criteria for work time.

Carelessness with spelling. Require spelling edit pass. More use of Have-A-Go sheets; moreemphasis on Word Wall.

Talk more about what good spellers do tocheck their spelling; create checklist. In-troduce spell check on the computer.

Carelessness with periods and caps. Require separate edit pass. Expressive reading; reverse conventionsreading; review rules for sentence punc-tuation.

Show models from last year’s class.

Inaccurate self-assessment. Introduce Assessment stage of WP. Teach Six Traits assessment using sam-ple assessment sets.

ML: What’s a good assessment?

Some overly critical commenting during sharing. Questions only during sharing. Ask “WHY” and “HOW” questions. ML: What’s a good comment?

Class is getting a bit competitive. More peer review and editing. Talk about working together.

Author Pockets are looking shabby. Require kids to clean up own pockets. ML: What should your pocket look like?;What kind of work should you put in yourpocket?

CommentsThis group continues to be somewhat of a management challenge. I think I need to be a bit tougher with them. I need to provide a bit more structure for how we behave during work times. I want themto take more pride in their work and in the way they treat each other. They’re a rough bunch and at time they are rough on each other. I need to do more to increase the sense of community in theroom and to make the kids who are hanging back feel more safe about taking risks.

NEW STUFF – Things we’re going to start on. Procedures Strategies Qualities

Fiction writing. Require pre-write with 5 Facts of Fiction. 5 Facts of Fiction. Analyze books w/5 Facts of Fiction.

More advanced book reviews. Book review checklist. T-A-D for plot summary. Analyze models from last year’s class.

Commas for separating clauses. Phrase-by-phrase reading. Analyze models; Conventions reading.

Apostrophe for possession. Apostrophe rules. Analyze models; Conventions reading.

Homonyms. Require editing pass for homonyms Use Homonym Word Wall. Set up Homonym Word Wall

Classroom newspaper editorial staff. Set up deadlines and editing procedures. ML: Who works at a newspaper?

Keyboarding. Set up schedule for typing practice. Use keyboarding program. ML: Good typing is slow and accurate.

Punctuating dialog. Require editing pass for dialog. Rules for dialog punctuation. Analyze models; Conventions reading.

CommentsI’m very excited about introducing fiction writing using the Five Facts of Fiction. The kids have been clamoring to write stories and now I think they’re ready. We’ll also be using Five Facts of Fiction inreading and with our book reviews so they should have plenty of chances to get good at it. We’re really going to get the newspaper going formally this term. I need to set up the staff and the editorialprocedures. I also need to get these kids typing so I don’t have to do it for them. Finally, I want them to buckle down and really work hard on their conventions.

SCaN: Successes, Challenges, and New Stuff • Writing Mrs. Goffe • Room 406 2nd Quarter • 1999-2000

Writing Plan Aligned with Standards for Washington StatePROCEDURES – Guidelines for the community. STRATEGIES – Tools for problem solving. QUALITIES – Standards for good work.

Continue to set tight deadlines.WR 3.5 Publishes.

Stick to 1-hr-a-day schedule; don’t miss a day.[None]

Begin small group sharing; sharing with other classes.WR 4.2 Seeks and offers feedback.CO 3.1 Uses language to interact effectively with others.CO 3.2 Works cooperatively as a member of a group.

Put out one issue per month of class newspaper.WR 2.1 Writes for different audiences.WR 2.2 Writes for different purposes.WR 2.3 Writes in a variety of forms.WR 3.5 Publishes.

Take status by writing process stage.WR 3.1 - WR 3.5. Drafts…Publishes.

Require editing pass for paragraphs.WR 1.3 Applies writing conventions.WR 3.4 Edits.

Require one detail strategy during writing process.RE 2.1 Comprehends important ideas and details.WR 3.1 Prewrites.

Short periods of silent writing.WR 3.2 Drafts.

Require spelling edit pass.WR 1.3 Applies writing conventions.WR 3.4 Edits.

Require separate edit pass for periods and caps.WR 1.3 Applies writing conventions.WR 3.4 Edits.

Introduce Assessment stage of the writing process.WR 4.1 Assesses own strengths and needs for improvement.WR 4.2 Seeks and offers feedback.

Questions only during sharing.CO 1.2 Listens and observes to gain and interpret information.CO 4.2 Seeks and offers feedback.

More peer review and editing.WR 3.3 Revises.WR 3.4 Edits.CO 4.2 Seeks and offers feedback.

Require kids to clean up own author pockets.WR 3.5 Publishes.

Require pre-write with “5 Facts of Fiction.”RE 1.4 Understands elements of literature: fiction.RE 2.3 Thinks critically and analyze authors' use of lan-

guage, style, purpose, and perspective.RE 3.3 Reads for literary experience.WR 3.1 Prewrites.

Expand book review checklist.RE 2.3 Thinks critically and analyze authors' use of lan-

guage, style, purpose, and perspective.RE 4.3 Develops interests and shares reading experiences.WR 2.3 Writes in a variety of forms.

Require editing pass for homonyms.WR 1.3 Applies writing conventions.WR 3.4 Edits.

Set up deadlines for newspaper and determine pro-duction procedures.

CO 4.3 Analyzes mass communication.CO 4.4 Analyzes how communication is used in career settings.

Set up schedule for typing practice.WR 3.5 Publishes.

Require editing pass for dialog.WR 1.3 Applies writing conventions.WR 3.4 Edits.

Use keyboarding program.WR 2.4 Writes for career applications.

Use “Are you talking?” self-monitoring.CO 1.1 Focuses attention.CO 1.2 Listens and observes to gain and interpret information.

More use of Have-A-Go sheets and Word Wall.WR 1.3 Applies writing conventions.

Expressive reading; reverse conventions reading; re-view rules for sentence punctuation.

RE 1.3 Reads fluently, adjusting for purpose and material.RE 2.1 Comprehends important ideas and details.RE 3.3 Reads for literary experience.WR 1.3 Applies writing conventions.CO 2.5 Uses action, sound, and/or images effectively to

support presentations.Teach 6-Traits assessment with sample assessment sets.

RE 2.3 Thinks critically and analyze authors' use of lan-guage, style, purpose, and perspective.

WR 4.1 Assesses own strengths and needs for improvement.WR 4.2 Seeks and offers feedback.

Ask “WHY” and “HOW” questions.CO 1.1 Focuses attention.CO 1.2 Listens and observes to gain and interpret information.CO 1.3 Checks for understanding by asking questions.

Have kids put deadlines on TO DO lists; ask them toreview deadlines weekly.

WR 3.5 Publishes.Introduce different ways of sharing.

CO 1.1 Focuses attention.CO 1.2 Listens and observes to gain and interpret information.CO 2.1 Communicates clearly to a range of audiences.

Continue with monthly binder clean-out.[None]

What’s a Good Idea?WR 1.1 Develops concept and design.

Formalize paragraphing rules.WR 1.3 Applies writing conventions.

Review detail strategies.WR 1.1 Develops concept and design.

5 Facts of Fiction.RE 1.4 Understands elements of literature – fiction.RE 2.1 Comprehends important ideas and details.RE 2.2 Expands comprehension by analyzing, interpreting,

and synthesizing information and ideas.RE 2.3 Thinks critically and analyze authors' use of lan-

guage, style, purpose, and perspective.RE 3.3 Reads for literary experience.

Content-Purpose-Audience,RE 2.1 Comprehends important ideas and details.RE 2.2 Expands comprehension by analyzing, interpreting,

and synthesizing information and ideas.RE 2.3 Thinks critically and analyze authors' use of lan-

guage, style, purpose, and perspective.RE 3.1 Reads to learn new information.

Transition-Action-Details for summary in book reviews.RE 1.4 Understands elements of literature – fiction.RE 4.3 Develops interests and shares reading experiences.WR 1.1 Develops concept and design.WR 2.3 Writes in a variety of forms.

Phrase-by-phrase reading.RE 1.3 Reads fluently, adjusting for purpose and material.RE 2.2 Expands comprehension by analyzing, interpreting,

and synthesizing information and ideas.Apostrophe rules.

WR 1.3 Applies writing conventions.Use Homonym Word Wall.

WR 1.3 Applies writing conventions.Rules for dialog punctuation.

WR 1.3 Applies writing conventions.

Create criteria for good sharing.CO 3.2 Works cooperatively as a member of a group.CO 4.1 Assesses strengths and need for improvement.

Review writing samples; present diverse models.RE 2.3 Thinks critically and analyze author’s use of lan-

guage, style, purpose, and perspective.WR 2.1 Writes for different audiences.WR 2.2 Writes for different purposes.WR 2.3 Writes in a variety of forms.

Have kids teach WP to 1st graders.WR 3.1 – WR 3.5 Drafts…Publishes.CO 2.1 Communicates clearly to a range of audiences.CO 2.4 Uses effective language and style.

Create criteria for a good WP binder.WR 3.1 – WR 3.5 Drafts…Publishes.

Create criteria for good topics.WR 1.1 Develops concept and design.WR 4.1 Assesses own strengths and needs for improvement.WR 4.2 Seeks and offers feedback.

Talk about what good spellers do to check their spelling;create checklist. Introduce spell check on computer.

WR 1.3 Applies writing conventions.Show models from last year’s class.

RE 2.3 Thinks critically and analyze author’s use of lan-guage, style, purpose, and perspective.

WR 2.1 Writes for different audiences.WR 2.2 Writes for different purposes.WR 2.3 Writes in a variety of forms.

ML: What’s a good assessment?WR 4.1 Assesses own strengths and needs for improvement.

ML: What’s a good comment?CO 3.1 Uses language to interact effectively with others.CO 3.3 Seeks agreement and solutions through discussion.CO 4.2 Seeks and offers feedback.

Talk about working together.CO 4.1 Assesses strengths and need for improvement.CO 4.2 Seeks and offers feedback.

ML: What should your pocket look like? What kind ofwork should you put in your pocket?

WR 3.5 Publishes.Analyze books w/5 Facts of Fiction.

RE 1.4 Understands elements of literature – fiction.RE 2.1 Comprehends important ideas and details.RE 2.2 Expands comprehension by analyzing, interpreting,

and synthesizing information and ideas.Transition-Action-Details strategy for plot summary.

RE 2.1 Comprehends important ideas and details.RE 2.3 Thinks critically and analyze author’s use of lan-

guage, style, purpose, and perspective.Analyze models; Conventions reading; apostrophes.

WR 1.3 Applies writing conventions.WR 3.4 Edits.

Analyze models; Conventions reading; dialog.WR 1.3 Applies writing conventions.WR 3.4 Edits.

Set up Homonym Word WallWR 1.3 Applies writing conventions.WR 3.4 Edits.

ML: Who works at a newspaper?CO 4.3 Analyzes mass communication.

ML: Good typing is slow and accurate.WR 3.5 Publishes.

Analyze models; Conventions reading; caps and periods.WR 1.3 Applies writing conventions.WR 3.4 Edits.

Create criteria for work time.CO 3.2 Works cooperatively as a member of a group.

Writing Plan • Alignment Mrs. Goffe • Room 406 2nd Quarter • 1999-2000

Writing InstructionJACQUELINE GRANT CHRIS STEVENS ASHLY WRIGHT MITCH STEWART NICK EDWARDS

Pre-writing strategies. Project more when reading. Make only the changes shewants to make.

Analyze paragraphs.Notes:

Idea-Details. Main Idea strategies. Transition-Action-Details. Observe sentence lengths andstructures in expressive reading.

Notes:

Analyze paragraphs. What-Why-How. Idea-Details and Tell-Show. Talk about her writing process.

Notes:

Conference during pre-writing. Watch commas for periods. Conference during editing. Use editing marks; no re-copy.

Notes:

Monitor around deadlines. Publish every 2-3 weeks. Monitor during work time. Re-organize binder. Follow directions.

Notes:

DERICK SWAN STEPHANIE KAYDUS JARED FARMER ADAM WEISS KARA RADEBAH

Idea-Details; What-Why-How. Paragraphing with more detail. Conference during pre-writingand drafting.

Keep him on task.Notes:

Conference more. Set up self monitoring system. Organize binder. Share for her; encourage her toshare on her own.

Notes:

Monitor his listening and worktime behavior.

Pre-writing strategies. Questioning techniques.

Notes:

Organize binder. Analyze paragraphs in books. Monitor his listening and worktime behavior.

Pre-writing strategies.Notes:

Binder organization. Prioritize; improve use of time. Basic pre-writing strategies. S-A-F, and Idea-Details. Conference during revision.

Notes:

SHELBY PYLE TRICIA WILSON KEVIN OLSEN JACOB LEE BRANDON TVEDT

I-D, T-S, W-W-H, S-A-F. Word choice; vocabulary Attitude when sharing. 3 narratives this term. Topics that explore life lessons.

Notes:

Handwriting practice. Pre-writing strategies. Binder organization. I-D and T-A-D. 3 narratives this term.

Notes:

Binder organization. Pre-writing help. What-Why-How and Idea-Details. Expressive reading of ownpieces.

Notes:

S-A-F and Idea-Details Meeting deadlines. More conferences especiallynear deadlines.

3 narratives this term.Notes:

What-Why-How and Idea-Details. Analyze paragraphs. Editing for spelling.

Notes:

JOREY JOHNSON ERIN COOMES NICK FORSBERG GENERAL NOTES

Monitor around deadlines. Use work time efficiently. Binder organization. Paragraphing.

Notes:

Monitor around deadlines. Use work time efficiently. 3 narratives this term. Peer editor. Begin keyboarding.

Notes:

Wrist support. Special writing paper.

Notes:

PROCEDURES STRATEGIES QUALITIES

Set tight deadlines. 1 hr. a day for writing. Small group sharing. Cross-class sharing. 1 newspaper a month. Status by WP stage. Edit pass for paragraphs. 1 detail strategy in WP Silent writing. Spelling edit pass. Edit pass: periods + caps Edit pass: dialog.

Assessment stage of WP. Questions during sharing. Peer share and edit. Clean up author pockets. Pre-write with 5 F of F. Book review checklist. Edit pass: homonyms. Newspaper procedures. Typing practice.

Deadlines on TO DO lists Review deadlines weekly. Different ways of sharing. Monthly binder clean-out. What’s a Good Idea? CPA Paragraphing rules. Detail strategies. Use “Are you talking?” Change seating. Have-A-Go sheets. Keyboarding program.

Word Wall. Expressive reading. Reverse conv. reading. Sentence punctuation. 6T assessment. “Why” and “How” quests. 5 Facts of Fiction. T-A-D for plot summary. Read phrase-by-phrase. Apostrophe rules. Use Homonym Word Wall. Dialog punctuation.

More diverse models. Criteria for good sharing. Review newspapers. Teach WP to 1st graders. “Circular” nature of WP. Criteria for a good binder. Criteria for good topics. Analyze w/5 F of F. Conv reading: dialog. Conv reading: commas. Conv reading: apostro. Jobs at a newspaper.

Criteria for work time. What good spellers do. Spell check on computer. Models from last year. Good assessments. Good comments. Working together. Good author pockets. Good typing.

ClipNotes • Writing Instruction Mrs. Goffe • Room 406 2nd Quarter • 1999-2000

Writing GoalsJACQUELINE GRANT CHRIS STEVENS ASHLY WRIGHT MITCH STEWART NICK EDWARDS

Use I-D and W-W-H strategies. Read pieces expressively. Assert preferences. Improve paragraphing.

Notes:

Use more detail. Stay focused on topic. Narravitve sequencing. Periods and capitals.

Notes:

Paragraph more consistently. More pre-writing. Write with more detail/depth. Become a classroom leader.

Notes:

Share earlier in the writingprocess to avoid re-starts.

Capitals and periods. Use editing strategies to avoidcomplete re-copying/re-writing.

Meet deadlines more regularly.Notes:

Meet deadlines more regularly. Publish more pieces. Make better use of his time. Keep binder more organized. Follow directions.

Notes:

DERICK SWAN STEPHANIE KAYDUS JARED FARMER ADAM WEISS KARA RADEBAH

Do more prewriting Use more details. Meet deadlines more regularly. Use work time more effectively.

Notes:

Meet deadlines. Draft and publish more pieces. Use work time more effectively. Organize binder. Follow directions. Share writing voluntarily. Ask good questions in sharing.

Notes:

Follow dirctions. Use work time more effectively. More pre-writing: I-D and W-W-H. Ask questions in a respectfultone of voice.

Notes:

Keep binder more organized. Paragraphing. Follow directions. More pre-writing: I-D and W-W-H.

Notes:

Keep binder more organized. Follow directions. Ask for help when she is notsure about what to do.

More pre-writing. Re-read to eliminate repetition. Re-organize revision.

Notes:

SHELBY PYLE TRICIA WILSON KEVIN OLSEN JACOB LEE BRANDON TVEDT

More depth and detail. More advanced Word Choice. More enthusiasm when sharing. More personal narrative writing. Attempt more mature topics.

Notes:

Slow down while writing andimprove legibility of handwriting.

More pre-writing: I-D and W-W-H. Keep binder more organized. Keep like details together. More personal narrative writing.

Notes:

Better organizing of binder. Meet deadlines. Use more pre-writing strategies. Share with more confidence;read pieces with expression.

Notes:

Use more pre-writing strategiesto get more detail.

Meet deadlines consistently. Improve conventions: particularlyperiods and caps, spelling.

More personal narratives.Notes:

Use more pre-writing strategiesfor details and organization.

Begin paragraphing. Improve spelling. Improve grouping of details.

Notes:

JOREY JOHNSON ERIN COOMES NICK FORSBERG GENERAL NOTES

Consistently meet deadlines. Use work time more efficiently;get more pieces published.

Organize binder. Begin paragraphing.

Notes:

Meet deadlines consistently. Visit less with other students;use work time more efficiently.

More personal narratives. Become a peer editor. Begin typing instruction.

Notes:

Make handwriting easier forother people to read.

Read pieces more slowly whensharing.

Project more when sharing. Answer questions from audienceafter sharing.

Notes:

SUCCESSES CHALLENGES NEW STUFF

Students averaged 5-6 published pieces each in Q1. Good variety of forms. Students love to write. Students love to share. Everyone published in first class newspaper. Everyone knows and uses the Writing Process. Everyone is using their binder. Students are choosing good topics. Many have begun paragraphing. Many are beginning to add more detail.

A little too noisy during work time. Carelessness with spelling. Carelessness with periods and caps. Inaccurate self-assessment. Some overly critical commenting during sharing. Class is getting a bit competitive. Author Pockets are looking shabby.

Fiction writing. More advanced book reviews. Commas for separating clauses. Apostrophe for possession. Homonyms. Classroom newspaper editorial staff. Keyboarding. Punctuating dialog.

ClipNotes • Writing Goals Mrs. Goffe • Room 406 2nd Quarter • 1999-2000

© 1995-2002 by Steve Peha. For more information, or for additional teaching materials, please contact: Teaching That Makes Sense, Inc. • E-mail [email protected] • Web www.ttms.org

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