Test and Essay Items

In a previous blog post I outlined the Learning Outcomes Second graders tend to want to "read more into" their stories, and love variety in their reading. So a different "ditto" book regularly keeps their interests peaked, and allows their imagination to wonder within the bounds of the
assignments each week.

The three tests that would support the learning outcomes would include:

1. A grade based on reading the blue book out loud (to the teacher) each week.

The reason this would be an amazing testing tool is that it is two fold for these children. On one hand it gives them a personal strength by reading out loud, and possibly helping them to become stronger public speakers. Second, they read and reread the same story several times each week
therefore increasing their vocabulary, their pronunciation, and memorization.

2. Take the favorite part of the story and draw a picture and adapt it to their own story.

This testing option allows the children to tap into their imagination, and stretch it, all the while having them start out at the same place. It allows the children to step out of the busy work test taking, and see other sides of the same story through the eyes of their friends. And the best part is, this pushes them to think on their own, and they can't really be wrong.

3. While they take words ending in -y or -ly from the book, ask them to also think of words on their own that aren't in the book itself.

Assignments such as this are once again two fold, it forces the child to read the book again and look for "different" words, and two it has them thinking on their own to come up with "original" words.

As we saw in the Linda Darling-Hammond on Competing Internationally children need to utilize a "higher thinking" a type of research and these type of tests encourage thinking on their own, while adhering to the parameters of the assignment. Kids want to learn, and as teachers we are called upon to teach them, and they are all sponges and will continue to soak up all the knowledge that we can throw at them. However that being said, we need to remember to PUSH them to THINK OUTSIDE THE BOX.

Reference:
Darling-Hammond, L. (2010). Big Thinkers; Linda Darling-Hammond on becoming internationally competitive. Retrieved from: http://www.edutopia.org/international-teaching-learning-assessment-video