Kirsten Gregg

Dr D.

Educ 209

Formative Assessment

Strategies

1. Students will all work through the same set 9 times table problems written on the board by the
teacher. When each student has finish they will give me the a sign of their confidence in their
answers, thumbs up-good and willing to share, neutral/side thumb- unsure, and thumbs down- for
needs help. They can do this right in front of their person, no need to share with the whole class.
Once the whole class has finished, I will ask them to use the finger trick for multiples of 9 to
show the correct answer, taking note of correct and incorrect responses.

2. Using playdough at their tables with their group, the third grade students will create the
answers to the multiplication questions that are asked verbally. They will create the proper
number of sets of 9 that is asked, and find the answer to the problem that way. After students are
done with each problem they will be asked to say the answer out loud as a class. Repeating the
first two parts until all the 9 times tables have been covered. Once the students finish all the
questions, I will take a picture of their playdough answers to add to their portfolio and reflect on
later.

Reflection

As for the first strategy, this will allow the students to work in the most typical way, with
a pencil and paper to copy and solve the problem. Then the students can let me know in a semi
private way how they are feeling about their answers. The thumbs can be placed right in front of
their chest to minimize anyone else seeing their confidence level. This will allow them to tell me
how they feel about it which will also help me to know if I need to slow down and reteach
something, keeping going at the same pace, or speed up, based on their reactions as well as their
answers. If the students are all able to solve the problem correctly and feel confident in their
answers we will move on. If students are feeling unsure or needing help or struggling with
solving the problems I will begin the lesson again and find another way to teach it, by changing
up the strategy such as working in groups or explaining the lesson gain. Using this strategy will
allow students to tell me how they fell about this topic which will help me to understand and
better pace the lesson. As discussed on pages 174-175 of the textbook, allowing the students to
individually tell me about their understanding of the lesson will give me better feedback which
allows me to adjust my teaching as need which ultimately benefits their learning ability. Page
177 of the text book gives positive reviews to all-response type of answers, because it promotes
better learning for student. This will also allow them to gain practice at the 9 times tables and
maybe help something click for them when showing their answers using the finger trick.

As for the second strategy, this will be a more engaging assessment because it will allow
them to be hands on and may help things click for students who need that tactile learning to be
able to make connections. This will also allow students to work together which will help students
to gain a deeper understanding of the topic. I will be able to see their understanding of the
multiplication using the playdough as well as hearing the class say the answer. By taking a
picture of all of their answers and adding it to their individual portfolio, it will allow me to later
compare with their progress of the 9 times tables. If all the students are doing well and able to
make the correct answers with the play dough and saying the correction answer, we can move on
to the next topic/lesson after completing this activity. If the students are struggling to solve the
problem and get the correct answer I will reteach the lesson using the play dough. As a whole
group we can create balls in groups of 9 to help students see how many sets of 9 they have which
will help them to see where the answer is coming from. This will foster learning in the classroom
because it gives students the chance to work with their hands which is beneficial for students
who learn best through tactile experiences. As I stated above, all-response seems to be a good
way to enhance learning for students (page 177). Allowing them to use a not so typical
manipulative for their age will allow them a fun experience in math and possibly help brighten
their attitudes towards math. According the page 174 of the text, allowing students to use
manipulatives can enhance the learning experience and create long lasting images of the main
ideas from the lesson. This also uses group work which can help students verbally talk through
how to make their 9 (8, 7, 6, etc.) sets of 9 (or any number) which will help them to understand
where the answer is actually coming from and learn new ideas and problem solving skills from
their peers (page 204).