1. UMI Summer Institute
July 14, 2015

2. "Informative assessment isn't an end in itself, but the beginning of better instruction." —Carol Ann Tomlinson

3. Formative Assessment
A formative assessment is a tool teachers use to give feedback to students and/or guide their instruction.
They serve as practice for students, just like a meaningful homework assignment.
They check for understanding along the way and guide teacher decision making about future instruction.

4. Formative Assessment
Formative Assessments also provide feedback to students so they can improve their performance.
By varying the type of assessment you use, you can get a more accurate picture of what students know and understand, obtaining a "multiple- measure assessment ‘window' into student understanding."

5. Formative Assessment Examples
Math Journals
Using Math Journals with students is a great way for teachers to get a glimpse into students’ thinking as they work through the mathematical processes.

6. Formative Assessment Examples
Some topics that may be used in the Math Journal include:
Providing examples to show understanding of a concept
Writing word problems
Making predictions before a concept is taught
Recording definitions of key vocabulary
Writing descriptions or explanations of how a problem is solved
Justifying a solution to a problem
Writing a summary of the day’s lesson
Reflecting on the student’s own understanding and the questions that may still exist.

7. Formative Assessment Examples
Exit/Admit Slips
Exit Slips are written responses to questions the teacher poses at the end of a lesson or a class to assess student understanding of key concepts.  They should take no more than 5 minutes to complete and are taken up as students leave the classroom.  The teacher can quickly determine which students have it, which ones need a little help, and which ones are going to require much more instruction on the concept.  By assessing the responses on the Exit Slips the teacher can better adjust the instruction in order to accommodate students' needs for the next class.

8. Formative Assessment Examples
Admit slips are exactly like Exit Slips, but they are done prior to or at the beginning of the class.  Students may be asked to reflect on their understanding of their previous night's homework, or they may reflect on the previous day's lesson if the question required a longer response time. Exit and Admit Slips can be used in all classes to integrate written communication into the content area.

9. Formative Assessment Examples
Think – Pair – Share
Read the Formative Assessment Example placed at your table.
Think about how it could be used in your classroom.
Share/Compare your thoughts with those at your table.

10. Formative Assessment Photos to Assess Learning Traffic Lights
Red/Green Card
3x Summation
Two Roses and a Thorn
Clickers
Flubaroo
Graphic Organizers
Extension Projects
Rotate Groups
Google Forms

11. References
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assessments-and-why-should-we-use-them
THANK YOU!