Principals Diary

Impress your management with the task list in principals diary. An Exclusive Diary especially designed for Principals / Directors / Head of Schools / Coordinators / HOD's
June 2014
M T W T F S S
 1
2345678
9101112131415
16171819202122
23242526272829
30  
  1. 40 Alternative Assessments for Learning

    by
    By: Charity Preston

     

    Learning AssessmentsWhen people think of assessment, pencils and bubble sheets may be the first things that come to mind. Assessment does not always have to involve paper and pencil, but can instead be a project, an observation, or a task that shows a student has learned the material.

    In the end, all we really want to know is that the skill was mastered, right?  Why not make it fun and engaging for students as well?

    Many teachers shy away from alternative assessments because they take extra time and effort to create and to grade. On the other hand, once the assessment guidelines and grading rubric are created, it can be filed away and used year after year.

    The project card and rubric can be run on card stock (one on each side of the page), laminated, and hole punched with other alternative assessment ideas.  Keep them all together in a binder or with an o-ring.  Assessment just became a snap!

    Here are 40 alternative assessment ideas to get you started!

    Alternative Reading Assessments

    1. Bookmark

    Create a bookmark to match the theme of the last book read.

    2. Time Capsule

    Put together a group of 5 things from the story of the week.

    3. Stuffed Animal

    Students can make a stuffed animal that matches the theme of the story read.

    4. Business Card

    Summarize the story by designing a business card (this will be harder than it sounds).

    5. Radio Show

    Create a radio program that is set in the same time as the book.

    6. Recipe

    Make a recipe (or just the instructions) for something that a character in the story might make.

    7. Paper Doll

    More geared towards the younger set, this activity involves creating paper dolls and costume changes for the characters in the story.

    8. Wanted Poster

    Make a wanted poster for the antagonist in the book.

    Alternative Writing Assessments

    9. Eulogy

    Write a eulogy for a word that is overused in the student’s own writing samples.

    10. Infomercial

    Students will tape a segment that uses persuasion.

    11. Bumper Sticker

    Design a bumper sticker with a catchy slogan for each of the writing genres.

    12. PowerPoint

    Pairs can create a slideshow about their writing process from start to finish.

    13. Newscast

    Students can form teams to create a news program about writing conventions (run-on sentences, spacing, punctuation, etc.)

    14. Comic Strip

    Draw a comic strip that shows examples of figurative language.

    15. Brochure

    Create a brochure that explains the steps involved when writing for different audiences.

    16. Survey

    Create a survey of students’ favorite writing styles or writing pet peeves.  Make a graph that explains the results.

    Alternative Math Assessments

    17. Acrostic Poem

    Using one math term, such as geometry or algebra, make an acrostic poem.

    18. Internet Resource List

    Students will find a list of websites that explain the current math concepts correctly.

    19. Readers’ Theater

    Perform a readers’ theater that is all about the current topic.

    20. Crossword Puzzle

    Use the vocabulary from the assessed chapter to create a crossword puzzle, including the design and matching clues.

    21. Scrapbook Page

    Each student makes a page that describes a certain vocabulary word. Combine them to provide a future review tool for students.

    22. Paint By Number

    More artistically-inclined students may want to create a paint by number portrait that includes math terms and examples. They can also write and solve problems that match the paint-by-number answers.

    23. Pattern

    Find a pattern in the current math unit that can be explained.

    24. Collage

    Using magazines, students can cut up and paste math strand examples.

    Alternative Science Assessments

    25. Help Wanted Ad

    Write an ad to find a “professor” who can help to explain the subject at hand.

    26. Singing Telegram

    More musically-inclined students may love to create a song about the latest chapter.

    27. Calendar

    Mark on a calendar (paper or electronic copy) the time frame for how long it takes to see changes in a scientific event (such as erosion or plants growing).

    28. Diary

    Pen a diary entry from a famous scientist.

    29. Advice Column

    Students write advice to an “anonymous friend” who has a scientific problem that needs solved.

    30. Trivia Game

    Students create the questions (and answers) that will be used in a review game.

    31. T-shirt

    Design a t-shirt that matches the current science concepts.

    32. Experiment

    No explanation needed for this one.

    Alternative Social Studies Assessments

    33. Cheer

    Compose a cheer for someone in history who has struggled through something in your latest unit.

    34. Fashion Sketch

    Draw an example of what a person would wear from the era being studied.

    35. Toy

    Create a drawing (or a prototype) of a toy that might have been used from the children of that specific time period.

    36. Documentary

    Recreate an important historical event.

    37. Family Tree

    Research the family tree of a famous historical person.

    38. Time Line

    Students create a class timeline as they study different eras.  Post the master time line up in the classroom and add as new eras are learned.

    39. Speech

    Memorize and recite an important historical speech.

    40. Museum Exhibit

    Students each create a museum “artifact” and set them up in the classroom as a museum, where they will stand next to their artifact to explain and answer questions from visitors.  Invite other classes or parents to come do a walkthrough of your museum.

    Comment

  2. 12 Ways to Improve and Enhance Your Paraprofessional- Teacher Experience

    by
    1.  Communicate with each other. One of the most important aspects of an effective working relationship between the paraprofessional, special educator, teacher, or specialist is clear and consistent communication and organization. It is critical to communicate frequently and use organizing tools that can help define roles, define expectations, and set... Comment
  3. The Art of Asking Questions

    by
    At one time or another, most of us have been disappointed by the caliber of the questions students ask in class, online, or in the office. Many of them are such mundane questions: “Will material from the book be on the exam?” “How long should the paper be?” “Can we... Comment

About Us

School of Educators have empowered 5 lac educators  with 1.5 million downloads ( power point presentations, speeches, books, research papers, articles etc. ) of resources with more than 21 million article views in last 3 years for FREE.

Team behind SOE?

Vishal Jain, Deepshikha Singh, Archna Sharma, Rohini Saini, Piyush Kaushik
Follow us: Twitter | LinkedIn | Facebook
Copyright © 2011 School of Educators. All rights reserved.