Kindergarten Entry Assessment January 2016

Educating the Whole Child: 5 Domains of Learning and Development The K-3 Formative Assessment Process focuses on the whole child. This means that it addresses five domains of learning and development. Research clearly indicates the importance of attending to and supporting children’s growth and development in all of these areas especially since children’s development in one area impacts their development in other areas. Many of our NC Standards fall within these domains. For example, Math, Science, Social Studies and the Arts fall within the Cognitive Development Domain.

K-3 Formative Assessment Process Domain Constructs Approaches to Learning Engagement in Self-Selected Activities Cognitive Development Object Counting Emotional-Social Development Emotional Literacy Health & Physical Development Fine Motor Development Crossing Midline Language Development & Communication Book Orientation & Print Awareness Following Directions Letter Naming While there are many aspects of each of the 5 domains that are important to student success, the NC Think Tank and the NC Assessment Design Team carefully selected these constructs, or concepts, within each domain to focus on within this formative process. The team based these decisions on various aspects including what research identified to be most critical for long term student success, what K-3 teachers found to be important, and alignment to the NCSCOS. NOTE: This list identifies current constructs. Based on feedback from the field and other factors such as NC SCOS revisions, these constructs and the assessment tools to support this process will be revisited and enhanced over time.

2015-2016 Required Constructs Domain Constructs Approaches to Learning Engagement in Self-Selected Activities Cognitive Development Object Counting Emotional-Social Development Emotional Literacy Health & Physical Development Fine Motor Development Crossing Midline Language Development & Communication Book Orientation & Print Awareness Following Directions Letter Naming NCDPI listened carefully to the validity pilot participants and used their feedback to make decisions. During pilot, teachers found it overwhelming to learn the new assessment content (construct progressions including student performance descriptors, sample assessment situations and assessment tasks) in addition to learning the assessment process and the use of the new web-based platform and digital tools. To address this challenge, the Office of early Learning worked with the General Assembly to narrow the number of constructs to be assessed during initial statewide implementation. By focusing on these 2 highlighted constructs that are familiar to teachers and administrators and for which current assessment methods currently exist, a greater amount of attention can be placed on strengthening formative assessment practices and learning the technical aspects of the web-based system used to capture and collect evidences of learning. Therefore, in 2015-2016, Kindergarten teachers will be required to focus on Object Counting and Book Orientation & Print Awareness.

2015-2016 Additional Constructs Domain Constructs Approaches to Learning Engagement in Self-Selected Activities Cognitive Development Object Counting Emotional-Social Development Emotional Literacy Health & Physical Development Fine Motor Development Crossing Midline Language Development & Communication Book Orientation & Print Awareness Following Directions Letter Naming NCDPI recognizes the importance of focusing on the whole child. Therefore, during the 2015-2016 school year, materials for other areas of development will also be available for use as determined by the district, school, and classroom teacher (Emotional Literacy, Engagement in Self-Selected Activities, Fine Motor, Following Directions, Letter Naming, & Mid-Line Motor Development). Districts, schools, and teachers are encouraged to explore and become familiar with the other constructs during the 2015-16 school year so they will be well-prepared for 2016-17, when Kindergarten teachers will be required to address all highlighted constructs.

Following Directions Domain: Language Development and Communication Claim: Students can use and continue to develop effective listening and communication skills (e.g. verbal and non-verbal) for a range of purposes, audiences, and settings/contexts in increasingly complex ways.

Game

Rationale Why is it important for students to understand how to respond to directions in a variety of settings? Read the “Rationale” on p. 41 in the NC Construct Progressions and Situations booklet.

Construct Progression Place the steps of the “Following Directions” construct in the correct order.

Following Directions Progression

Following Directions Progression

Following Directions Performance Descriptors Read the “Performance Descriptors” for each skill. Identify times during the day that teachers could assess students’ abilities to follow directions.

Analyzing Situations Read the situation. Identify helpful probes (those that should be used) and unhelpful probes (probes that should be avoided). Read the observation and identify each child’s learning status on the construct progression. Describe possible ways to help the student grow and improve in the area of following directions.

2015-2016 Additional Constructs Domain Constructs Approaches to Learning Engagement in Self-Selected Activities Cognitive Development Object Counting Emotional-Social Development Emotional Literacy Health & Physical Development Fine Motor Development Crossing Midline Language Development & Communication Book Orientation & Print Awareness Following Directions Letter Naming NCDPI recognizes the importance of focusing on the whole child. Therefore, during the 2015-2016 school year, materials for other areas of development will also be available for use as determined by the district, school, and classroom teacher (Emotional Literacy, Engagement in Self-Selected Activities, Fine Motor, Following Directions, Letter Naming, & Mid-Line Motor Development). Districts, schools, and teachers are encouraged to explore and become familiar with the other constructs during the 2015-16 school year so they will be well-prepared for 2016-17, when Kindergarten teachers will be required to address all highlighted constructs.

Letter Naming Domain: Language Development and Communication Claim: Students can acquire the foundational skills for reading and integrate these skills for comprehending increasingly complex texts in home, school, and community.

Rational Name letters and hear sounds Correlated to future reading and spelling success Estimate only about 5% of children would experience reading difficulty if all students are exposed to systematic opportunities to develop foundational skills

Construct Progression Place the steps of the “Letter Naming” construct in the correct order.

Collections of Letters Terms to Understand Print Material Poems Stories Word wall Informational text Media text Collections of Letters Magnetic letters Foam letters Cards or paper with letters written on them Letters on a digital learning device Pointers Finger Pointer Framing tool Highlighter tape Dot marker

Performance Descriptors Activity Read the Performance Descriptors for the Letter Naming Skills With the team at your table – match the Performance Descriptors with the appropriate Skill Discuss why it fits with that particular skill

KEA Gallery Regional FA Wiki: KEA Gallery http://r5k3formativeassessmentsupport.ncdpi.wikispaces.net/ KEA Gallery Offers ideas, examples, and resources for teachers Shared by educators implementing KEA

Websites District FA Page on Randolph K-5 Instruction Wiki: http://randolphk-5instruction.wikispaces.com/ Regional FA Wiki: http://r5k3formativeassessmentsupport.ncdpi.wikispaces.net/Kindergarten+Entry State FA Wiki: http://rtt-elc-k3assessment.ncdpi.wikispaces.net/home 5 Domains Livebinder: http://www.livebinders.com/play/play?id=1350784