Chapter 7 Krystal's blog post #7

Chapter 7Make Assessment Instruction’s Working Partner

With implementing a better independent reading program for the rising school year (see previous blog post), I will design more effective ways to assess students’ independent readings.  Currently, I hold independent reading conferences with each child.  The disadvantage of this is time.  Time plays the major part of why plans tend to fail.  I would like to be able to maximize my time with students, so that conferencing with be both beneficial to the student and myself.  In this chapter asks teachers to reflect on questions that will begin this process like: Is this a valid and useful assessment for students at a certain time, Does it work with our curriculum and standards?, How am I using this assessment for subsequent instruction or to celebrate the student’s strengths?, What goals and I setting for the students and myself?, Who else do I need to inform?, etc.  Careful and thoughtfully using these assessments can tremendously effect who I structure my ELA block during the school day.  So instead of using independent reading as a separate entity, incorporating it with the lessons being taught might seem to be beneficial and correlate with reading workshop.  I will definitely create the opportunities for students to independently conference with me as well as small group conference, while being able to assess them more effectively and provide the necessary feedback.