K-6 Assessment by Kyndall Clevenger

Week 3

kyndallclevenger — 2023-09-09 01:47:43 UTC

3. a) I learned that padlet is a really good resource for teachers and it is great for organizing information.
b) I learned that summative assessments are your big tests like midterms and finals.
c) I learned that formative assessments are often times student graded so they can be used for student and teacher improvement.
2. a) I made the connection that the midterm in my physics class that I have to take soon is a form of summative assessments to help our teacher.
b) I also realized that in the past teachers have used formative assessments on us so that we could self improve.
1. I hope that I can use tests in the formative way the most throughout my teaching.

Week 2

kyndallclevenger — 2023-10-13 19:52:32 UTC

3) a. Assessments and "testing" aren't the same thing.
b. Assessment done correctly can build confidence in students as well as increase motivation.
c. "I can..." statements can help students focus on what they are trying to figure out.
2) a. My CT uses I can statements in her classroom and up on her walls as motivation for her students.
b. Assessments are a lot easier on kids than testing is and it can help improve scores that might not have been as good because of test anxiety.
1) Is it a good idea to have the class come up with an "I can" statement on their own?

Week 4

kyndallclevenger — 2023-10-13 19:59:38 UTC

3) a. Formative assessments are used to monitor student learning and give feedback.
b. Summative assessments are used to evaluate and test students understanding at the end of a lesson or unit.
c. Standardized tests are graded by percentiles and grade equivalents.
2)a. Assessments are used in activities that students think are fun and like games.
b. Summative assessments are needed but can cause test anxiety in students and usually formative assessments are better for students.
1) I plan on using formative assessments for everything that I possibly can and only using summative assessments when I need it for specific standards.

Week 5

kyndallclevenger — 2023-10-13 20:14:21 UTC

3) a. Analytic rubrics provide specific feedback along several dimensions, and it breaks scoring down into its component parts and evaluates each part separately.
b. Holistic rubrics provide a single score based on an overall impression of a student's performance on a task and these consider all aspects at once.
c. Holistic rubrics include quick scoring and gets to student achievement quickly.
2)a. Holistic rubrics are more convenient in a classroom with young kids so you can get through things faster.
b. When you need detailed scores for standards or for school meetings, analytical rubrics provide the most information about the child's successes and struggles.
1) Do scoring guides give close to the same amount of information as the holistic rubric?

Week 6

kyndallclevenger — 2023-10-13 20:22:25 UTC

3) a. Self-assessments can be done in a lot of different situations and can be used short term or long term for students.
b. Younger students require a more structured approach and more support when developing self-assessment skills, but it is important to develop.
c. When you use peer review the students need to be taught how to give good feedback, but this is a great way to improve both students' skills at the same time.
2)a. Peer review isn't typically used with young kids because they don't know how to use proper feedback skills and don't know how to write good enough yet.
b. Learning logs are a great tool to use in the classroom but in my current classroom, this would be too complicated of a topic because the kids are too young and don't understand.
1) Could you do a learning log with young kids but have them write just a couple words that describe what they are learning so they can still reflect just in a different way than what a normal learning log would be?

Week 3 - Tabatha Rosproy

kyndallclevenger — 2023-10-16 23:59:29 UTC

She has been teaching for 12 years. She is the 2020 national teacher of the year.
She thinks assessment is something that gives her a good guide on where her students are academically and emotionally with self-regulation. She uses a lot of outside resources to help her so she doesn't have to come up with everything on her own. They use many different assessment tools such as dial 4, apes, and others to help. She tries to think linear so that she didn't get overwhelmed and also allowed her to keep different parts of the day separate so that the students, paras, and her have different expectations throughout the day so they can be successful. I really liked her advice about how to lean on all the support you can and reach out, so you don't have to do anything alone. As a first-year teacher make sure you take all the help you can get because it will take a huge amount of stress off of you in your first few years.

Week 4 - Spencer Brown

kyndallclevenger — 2023-10-17 00:10:14 UTC

He has been teaching for 10 years and is currently the math coordinator for his district. To him assessment means simply making inferences on things based on what you see. So the teacher will make inferences based on the students' actions.
His favorite assessments are the whiteboards, to allow the students to respond more, he also likes to allow for conversation currently when he is teaching teachers and advising them.
He tries to design his assessments strategically so that he can get his answers he needs easily without having to work super hard after creating those for his students. He also has a specific purpose for each assessment he creates so he knows exactly what he is testing for.
He likes reading and suggests reading the books "The Teacher Clarity Playbook", "John Peg Books about Assessments" and "Dylan William books and videos" "How Learning Happens"

Week 5 - Natasha Roseberry

kyndallclevenger — 2023-10-17 00:19:16 UTC

She has been teaching 3rd grade for 6 years.
To her assessment is getting to know what the kids know and how she will use that information to help them get better.
Her go to assessments are exit tickets, which are short and easy but show what the kids took away from the day so she knows what things she needs to go over again.
She gets the kids to do a lot of things on their own and it allows her to have less things on her plate. She has the kids peer assess so that they can get others answers as well as communicate their own. She likes to do a quick check to see if the students are getting what she is wanting them to get.
She said that she learns more about her students when she does exit tickets so that she understands the students better and she also could bond with them which made them want to do good for her and for themselves. She is big on building relationships in the classroom too which I really agree with and am really big on as well.
Her greatest advice is the build relationships with her students. She gives nicknames to her students so that she can make them feel like there is a connection and makes them feel special. She also tries to make connections with the families because they are great support systems. She also doesn't really sit at her desk and sits with the kids and then also goes to outside activities and things that are important to the kids so they understand that you care. I really like this concept and I am going to implement this into my classroom.

Week 6 - Christina Williams

kyndallclevenger — 2023-10-17 00:29:14 UTC

She has been teaching for 21 years. She went to K-State and her parents also went here too.
Her definition of assessment is observations because in elementary its easier to assess by observations and it is a constant thing. She also has a big thing with tracking each kids progress and make sure that each student grows throughout the year.
Her go to assessments are small groups so that she can see them one on one to check and see their knowledge and then move them based on that. All students are moving at a different pace so they are constantly getting moved around to help benifit them the best.
She collaborates with her team so that they all can work less hard and can just bounce ideas off each other and it makes things so much easier. Teamwork makes the dreamwork.
She likes the small groups because the stronger kids get to learn new things so they can grow even if they already know what you are learning in class they can learn more advanced topics which is great. It is also great for the low kids because they can ask different questions than what they could or feel comfortable doing in a group settings.
Her best advice is to use your team and lean on them for support when you have to call a parent about a difficult situation or send an email and they read it over before you send it and just clarify for you that you are doing things right and giving you advice.

Week 7

kyndallclevenger — 2023-10-17 00:37:58 UTC

3) a. Inside-Outside circles are a great tool to help students collaborate with a lot of different partners.
b. Inside-outside circles are also a great way to check for understanding with the students because each partner will only speak one at a time so you can see who is answering questions and who is struggling to answer.
a. Talking chips is also a great resource to use because it shows what kids are having trouble grasping what they are trying to share and it also shows what kids are eager to share and know exactly what they are wanting to say.
2) a. The Talking Chips is an idea that I want to incorporate into my future classroom because it will be really easy to see who knows what they want to say and is comprehending the materials and who is struggling and might need a little bit of extra help.
b. I also liked how the teachers were including themselves within these class activities because it helped them see the kids working one on one but also helps build relationships because they are involved in their classrooms.
1) What is a resource I could use to find more ideas like the Talking Chips so that I don't have to use the same ones over and over again and can have a lot of new varieties to use in my classroom.

Week 7 - Brandi England

kyndallclevenger — 2023-10-17 17:11:11 UTC

She has been teaching for 14 years and she is K-12 certified. She also works in special ed.
Her idea of assessment is very different than other people because she's in sped. She uses formal and informal assessments. She tests academic progress but also behavior and emotional progress. Younger kids need a more detailed assessment so it can be looked back on so that they can see the progress the student has or hasn't made.
Her go to assessments are FMP's for reading and it helps them understand what skills they are lacking so they can work on those skills so they can improve.
She is the only teacher of her kind in the K-5 school so she is constantly working all over the place but she's gotten really used to the workload. She also mentioned to use your resources as much as you can because it makes things easier for you.
She said it's important to get to know your students before you give them assessments because they will do better and a lot of kids are smarter than you think they just need a connection so they are comfortable to ask for help and do their best without worrying about messing up.
Her greatest advice is surround yourself with positive people and positive social media because those things can all make you think that teaching isn't for you but if you are here for the right reason you will love it.

Week 8

kyndallclevenger — 2023-10-17 17:59:16 UTC

3)a. Concept Maps are a good way to show a visual representation of connections that students are making to the content.
b. Concept maps provide a variety of benefits for your students such as helping them show their understanding, catering to different learning styles, and helping them organize their knowledge.
c. Concept Maps are also great for highlighting similarities and differences in concepts and putting that on display for the students to use and understand.
2)a. When I was in high school we used a lot of concept maps in reading and literature classes to compare and contrast with different things.
b. Concept Maps are something you can use with younger kids as well because they are simple and easy to understand so the students can make these on their own.
1) How can you incorporate conocept maps into all subjects?

Week 8 - Kelly Tines

kyndallclevenger — 2023-10-17 18:11:45 UTC

She has been teaching for 7 years and then an instructional coach since then. She supports the teachers and provides a lot of professional development for those teachers too.
Her definition of assessment ai when you have a goal and you have to assess whether or not you have met that goal or need to do more work.
Her go to assessments are rubrics which are detailed and shows different levels of achievement and it keeps you tied to your standards and it's very clear on if you have master that skill or not. They create their own rubrics that they can self reflect on their own.
She thinks a rubric helps you work smarter not harder because there is not guessing and the expectations are right there and easy to judge things from. It also helps you not have to do lots of outside homework as a teacher because it gives them feedback right away without having to evaluate later.

Week 9

kyndallclevenger — 2023-10-26 19:20:39 UTC

3)a. Review: Stiggins and Chappuis four keys to quality assessment are clear purposes, clear targets, sound design, and effective communication.

b. Students need set targets and not ones that are moving.

c. Multiple choice questions need to pose a direct question.

2)a. When creating rubrics you need to have set goals for the students so they can meet them.

b. Students in younger grades need more multiple choice questions with direct questions so they can do it on their own.

1) Can letting students choose if they want to take a test or write a summary a good option for them to show their knowledge?

Week 9 - Marsha Reeves

kyndallclevenger — 2023-10-26 19:26:58 UTC

^{Shes been teaching kindergarten for 27 years and she loves it. She didn't like 4th grade when she taught it.}

^{Her definition of assessment is that it is necessary but its a tool to find out what her kids know and what they are ready to learn. It's not a test or how smart you are its just for her as a teacher.}

^{In kindergarten her go to assessments are hands on to keep the kids engaged and uses a lot of block and stacking cubes. She also has toolboxes for each of her kids desks so that they don't have to get up for everything.}

^{Her favorite assessment is to have the kids get out their cubes and show her 5 or however many and she just walks around and checks and then she has them add some or take away some and show how many they have. She said it's a simple way to keep them engaged as well as being able to see what they know and if they are ready to move on.}

Week 10

kyndallclevenger — 2023-10-26 19:32:33 UTC

3)a. Extended written assessments have 3 steps: Make a plan, develop the items, and develop a scoring guide.

b. Use standards so there is a learning target and the students know what they are expected to do.

c. Students can hit the targets if they are seen and not moving.

2)a. Students in my practicum have set targets on a board so they know what they are learning and expected to be learning throughout the week.

b. The students do well when they know exactly what they are supposed to be doing and have a target so they can stay on task as well as understand what they are learning.

1) For first graders, is it okay to show it by pictures instead of words all the time since words are still hard for them sometimes?

Week 10 - TJ Ulmer

kyndallclevenger — 2023-10-26 19:41:24 UTC

He has been teacher for 23 years. He has taught a lot of different grade levels from elementary to low high school science. He recommends AVID. He has also been an assistant principal. He helped a lot of students and teachers be able to do online school during COVID times.

He is a science teacher and a coach.

His definition of assessment is how students can apply the knowledge. Can they show him what they know and he doesn't really care how they show it he just needs to know they understand.

He really speaks a lot about relationships. He said as a parent he knows how important it is for you to know your students so your parents trust you. He eats lunch with his students sometimes too so they feel connected to him. He tried to make every kids days better because everyone is different. You have to understand your students in order to teach them to the best of your ability.

Week 11

kyndallclevenger — 2023-12-06 02:13:32 UTC

3)a. Performance based learning is when students participate in performing tasks or activities that are meaningful and engaging.

b. Designing performance assessments has two steps; define the criteria and develop the tasks.

c. Performance assessments are great for reasoning, performance, and creation learning targets.

2)a. Kids learn better when using hands on things like performance based learning.

b. My CT uses this a lot and it helps the kids stay engaged.

1) Is there a way to track these and use them for actual written out progress reports for parents and administration?

Week 11 - Dena Steen

kyndallclevenger — 2023-12-06 02:23:12 UTC

She went to Kstate.

She is a 3rd grade teacher in Olathe.

Her definition of assessment is within observations throughout the day so she can see where her students are.

Her go to assessments are in small groups because you can spend time with each student individually so they get those connections. Her boys were good students and didn't get as much attention because they are good students.

She can help the lower students and higher students a lot more within small groups because they individual.

Her groups like looking at different books and have a wide range of vocab words so they can learn new words based on their levels.

Students tend to take more risks and make more mistakes in their small groups without being ashamed of it.

She works smarter not harder by being a team with your grade level teachers. Everyone has different strengths so you can divide and conquer different tasks quickly. You also need to make sure they know that they are good at something so they are more confident in that role moving forward just like with your students.