Assessments: Capturing a Moment in Time

20 Feb 2020

It can be tempting to overgeneralize what we learn from an assessment. See how that second grader drew tally marks to solve 54 + 28? He's a direct modeler. He…

Choosing a Story to Tell: Examining a Lesson Close in 1st Grade

28 Aug 201928 Aug 2019

I had planned to spend my first time in Room 12 observing the classroom teacher and getting to know her students. Instead, the teacher texted me the day before to…

What does it mean to be “struggling” in math class? (Eduardo’s Story)

5 Feb 20195 Feb 2019

It was a sea of dots. Eduardo's work for 47 + 27 Over and over again, for both computational and story problems, third grade student Eduardo drew dots. Eduardo's work,…

Presuming Competence: Using Clinical Interviews to Support Classroom Instruction

13 Nov 201827 Nov 2018

"She's not on an IEP, but she's struggling in class. What should I do?" I don't know the student -- Alejandra, or Ali, for short -- very well, so I arranged…

Beginning of Year Assessments: What Do We Want To Know?

19 Sep 201721 Sep 2017

My district is in transition regarding beginning of the year assessments. In fact, because of the prevalence of our old acronym in our effort to retire the old acronym BOYA…

The Intersection of Fraction Talks & Clothesline Math: Formative Assessment and the Five Practices

8 Feb 201711 Oct 2017

My sixth graders are weary of pre-assessments. No matter how many times we discuss the goal of a pre-assessment – for me to learn more about their current strategies and…