Monday, December 30, 2013

Think Dots As a Formative Assessment

Color Think Dots - used as a formative assessment for third grade

My third grade students were finishing a project at different stages. Since I have only 6 iPads for my students to use, we often work on multiple projects when it involves using them. Third grade students were typing in their Color Letters (Post to come later on this creative project!) as they finished up on the drawing part of the project. I assigned this Think Dots sheet for students to work on as they waited for their turn on one of the iPads or when they finished. This both gave them something to do that reviewed their color knowledge and showed me where we still needed to focus our learning. Since it involved painting and rolling dice - they were into it. 

Each table was given a laminated Think Dots sheet (laminating will save it for use over and over again) and a die. They were showed how to fold a 12x18 paper into 6 sections. They were to roll the die and do what was asked of them on the Think Dots sheet. They could re-roll but eventually all tasks should be completed. Generally in a Think Dots activities, there are varying levels of difficulty or thinking. The task contained lots of choices that let the students show their creativity. 
For example - "Paint a design in a section using Primary colors." This gives students the opportunity to paint anything they wish. 

When students are finished with these, I will be able to look them over and gather data on how many students completed each task correctly. That data will guide my teaching on the next lesson we do. If all students have mastered most tasks then we can move on to a new concept. I may find that many students still need some extra time learning a certain concept. 

You can find my Color Think Dots here if you wish to borrow. 


2 comments:

  1. I've never heard of an assessment like this. The activity sounds like it'd be fun for students to complete. Thanks for sharing the idea!

    ReplyDelete
  2. This is great! I have pinned this for sure. I will be able to highlight it in my assessment class this summer. Great idea!

    ReplyDelete