Thing Link Assessment
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This past week, I asked my students to contribute to a class ThingLink. Right now in class, students have been assigned to research and create a Powerpoint on an explorer we have learned in class. They have been focusing on the explorer's goals and accomplishments. For this assessment, I pulled back each group of students and asked them to type in the explorer information and put the place marker near the area the explorer sailed or traveled.
I ran into some problems with time. I was planning on each set of students taking 5-10 minutes typing in the information on my laptop. Multiply this 10 minutes by 15 groups, and you're looking at a LOT of time. This is why only a handful of explorers made it onto my map. In the future, I would have a parent type in the information while I would be free to roam the room and help other groups with their Powerpoints.
I liked this assessment because I know it will be a valuable teaching tool for my future social studies classes. It also helped solidify the key points I was trying to have students accomplish in their presentations. I mostly disliked the assessment because of the time it took. In the future, I think I might use it again, however it might be more beneficial to use ThingLink as a teaching tool rather than an assessment tool.
I ran into some problems with time. I was planning on each set of students taking 5-10 minutes typing in the information on my laptop. Multiply this 10 minutes by 15 groups, and you're looking at a LOT of time. This is why only a handful of explorers made it onto my map. In the future, I would have a parent type in the information while I would be free to roam the room and help other groups with their Powerpoints.
I liked this assessment because I know it will be a valuable teaching tool for my future social studies classes. It also helped solidify the key points I was trying to have students accomplish in their presentations. I mostly disliked the assessment because of the time it took. In the future, I think I might use it again, however it might be more beneficial to use ThingLink as a teaching tool rather than an assessment tool.
Digital Tool Presentation
The following is my class presentation on the assessment tool called Educreations.
Edmodo Assessment
In a small group, I pulled my fast finishing students to my back table for an assessment. I had them register on Edmodo and take a 10 question quiz on the 4 types of sentences. Students had an easy time signing up for the website and navigating to my assessment. They had no issues submitting the quiz and reviewing their answers. When I asked for opinions, all students said the site was easy to navigate, and they would be happy to use it again in the future.
However, from a teaching standpoint, I am not sure if I will continue using this site for assessment purposes. I enjoy the polls and updates. I also think it is quite easy to create an assessment on the site. My biggest complaint is that I wasn't able to find a page that quickly told me the results of my class. I couldn't find a class average or a ranking of where my students scores. I was, however, able to see my top scores and a pie chart breakdown of each question. The pie chart was helpful, but I'd still like better data. Below is an example of the pie chart:
However, from a teaching standpoint, I am not sure if I will continue using this site for assessment purposes. I enjoy the polls and updates. I also think it is quite easy to create an assessment on the site. My biggest complaint is that I wasn't able to find a page that quickly told me the results of my class. I couldn't find a class average or a ranking of where my students scores. I was, however, able to see my top scores and a pie chart breakdown of each question. The pie chart was helpful, but I'd still like better data. Below is an example of the pie chart:
This is what my assessment looked like from a student view point.
PowerPoint Game
This past week, I wanted to try the PowerPoint game called "Sunken Treasure". I've had experience playing PowerPoint games such as Are You Smarter Than a Fifth Grader and Jeopardy, so I was eager to try something new. In math, my fifth graders were struggling with the concept of rounding. I decided to have them each take a whiteboard and expo marker and play along with my questions. All the questions used were based on rounding numbers to the nearest ten, whole number, tenths, and hundredths place. However, I still focused on a particular person, and I allowed them to play the game and earn treasure for their teams. This made the game exciting!
My kids absolutely LOVED it. This assessment tool was engaging, and it also helped me know which of my students understood the concept. One tricky component were the variety of answers I received due to the nature of my questions. I thought the game was beneficial as a review, but I would not use it to teach the concept. I think my "higher" kids got more from the activity than my struggling learners. In the future, I would want to make sure I have a right and wrong answer. Maybe I would make my questions multiple choice and not free response.
My kids absolutely LOVED it. This assessment tool was engaging, and it also helped me know which of my students understood the concept. One tricky component were the variety of answers I received due to the nature of my questions. I thought the game was beneficial as a review, but I would not use it to teach the concept. I think my "higher" kids got more from the activity than my struggling learners. In the future, I would want to make sure I have a right and wrong answer. Maybe I would make my questions multiple choice and not free response.
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rounding_game.docx | |
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File Type: | docx |