Assessment Plan Overview:
South Carolina
Social Studies
Standard
Learning Goals
Learning
Objectives
Pre-Assessment
Post-Assessment
Formative
Assessments
Lesson One: The In the preIn the postThe students will be
student will be
assessment, the
assessment, the
divided into groups and
able to correctly students will use a students will again each group will have a
name geographic bubble map (one use a bubble map piece of chart paper
The primary goal features,
map for each
(one for each) and with two columns:
Standard 2-1.2:
Recognize
of this unit is to specifically bodies concept) and list
name the different bodies of water and
characteristics of recognize and of water and
the different types types of landforms landforms. Through
the local region,
illustrate
landforms.
of landforms and and bodies of
group discussion, the
including its
characteristics of (Knowledge)
bodies of water.
water.
students must write the
geographic features the local region,
items in the correct
and natural
focusing on
category.
resources
geographic
Lesson Two: The In the preIn the postThe students will work
features.
student will be
assessment, the
assessment, similar at their tables (each
able to illustrate at students will have a to the prechild has a paper) and
the proficient level sheet with squares assessment, the
draw representations of
the characteristics designated for each students will
landforms and bodies
of bodies of water landform or body individually
of water by using an
and landforms.
of water. The
illustrate each
illustration of a
(Application)
students must draw landform and body dinosaur as their
a picture of each in of water in
model. (See example
the appropriate
individual squares. attached).
square.
Adaptations
After looking at the contextual factors of my second grade classroom, there are a few adaptations that will need to be made in
order to meet the needs of the students. While all of children in the classroom are capable of reading at the second grade reading level,
it is essential to make sure the assignments used for assessment are focusing on the content knowledge and not the students reading
skills. Therefore, for both lesson one and two pre and post-assessments I will read aloud the instructions to the students and briefly
model an example so the students are clear as to what the assignment in tells. Doing so is developmentally appropriate, as Vygotsky
states that children need “scaffolding” to help foster the learning process. By scaffolding the children with detailed instructions and
examples, the students are learning how the idea of assessment works. By gradually weening off of models, examples and detailed
directions, the students will be able to perform independently.
While all of the children speak English as their primary language, one students home culture and primary language is Greek.
With that being said, he tends to need extended periods of time to work on assignments and additionally one-on-one assistance. Thus,
when doing pre, post and formative assessments I will need to additionally explain the instructions to this student. Additionally while
the students are working and I am walking around and observing, I should pay special attention to make sure he is understanding and
doing the assignment correctly.
Pre-Assessment and Post Assessment
Standard 2-1.2 has been broken down into two lessons and thus two objectives. As there are two objectives, there are two pre
as well as post assessments that will be administered in order to assure that the students are meeting both objectives.
Assessment Plan Overview:
Lesson One:
For the first lesson, the objective states that the student will be able to correctly name geographic features, specifically bodies
of water and landforms. In order to check the students prior knowledge on this material, a pre-assessment will be given. For lesson
one’s pre-assessment, the students will be completing a worksheet; one for landforms and one for the bodies of water. In order to save
the children confusion, I created two separate worksheets (one for landforms and one for bodies of water) (see attachments #1 and #2).
Both worksheets have the same instructions and setup to keep the assessment consistent. With that being said, the worksheets instruct
the students to read the vocabulary words listed and circle the words that represent either landforms or bodies of water, depending on
which sheet is being used. However, based on the adaptations above, as well as the fact that the students have no prior knowledge on
this subject, they will need scaffolding in understanding this assignment. Once a brief example has been demonstrated for the students,
each student will receive their worksheet. The worksheet will have the landforms vocabulary on the front, with the bodies of water
vocabulary on the back. Doing so helps alleviate distractions and confusion for the students. The students will start on the landforms
sides. Again, based on the adaptations for my class, I will read the vocabulary words to the children one at a time. I will instruct the
students to circle the vocabulary words that they believe describe landforms. Making sure to emphasis to the children that this is to
help me as a teacher, and its okay if they do not know because we will be learning all about this topic in the next week. After the
children have had approximately 5 minutes I will advise the children to flip their sheets and focus on the bodies of water vocabulary.
Again, I will read each term to the students and they will have approximately 5 minutes to complete the assessment. It is important to
note that timing will be adjusted depending on how the students respond to the assessment.
In order to determine the students performance, I will use a checklist (see attachment #3). The checklist will have a spot for
each student. Beside each students name I will indicate how many vocabulary words they circled correctly on each side of the
worksheet. For instance, since there are 5 landforms that we are focusing on in this lesson; thus I will indicate how many the student
circled correctly out of 5. For the bodies of water, there are only 3 of central focus. Thus, I will record how many were circled
correctly out of 3.
After lesson one has been taught, the post-assessment will need to be administered to the students. In order to collect accurate
information on the students learning and growth from the lessons start to finish, the same format will be used from the pre-assessment.
Thus, each student will again receive a worksheet that has the landforms and bodies of water listed amongst other vocabulary. While
the vocabulary that was focused on during the lesson will be the same from the pre-assessment, the other vocabulary will be different
(see attachments #4 and #5). As before, the students will be instructed to circle the landforms and bodies of water that we as a class
learned in our lesson. However, for the post-assessment the students will be using a green crayon to circle the landforms and a blue
crayon to circle the bodies of water. By having the children use two different colors to circle the information, I will be able to tell from
their assessment that not only can the children recognize what landforms and bodies of water are but they are able to distinguish
between the two. To determine if the students have met the lessons objective, I will again use a checklist (see attachment #3). The
checklist will have a spot for each student. Beside each students name I will indicate how many vocabulary words they circled
Assessment Plan Overview:
correctly. Additionally, for my reference I will mark whether or not the students were able to circle the terms using the correct color.
The students will not be graded on using the correct color, but this will be a formative assessment leading into lesson two, to
determine how much the children are understanding.
Lesson Two:
For the second lesson, the objective states that the students will be able to illustrate at the proficient level the characteristics of
bodies of water and landforms. As a pre-assessment the students will have a sheet of paper that is divided into 8 squares, with one
square designated for each landform and body of water. The vocabulary words will be listed below each individual square (ex: hill,
mountain, lake) (see attachment #6).The directions state to draw a picture in each square that shows what they vocabulary word
means. The students will use color pencils and crayons to draw a picture that best depicts the vocabulary word in the given square.
Before the students start the assignment, I will explain and provide an example. Yet, the example will be of a term that is not seen on
the sheet. Additionally, I will read each vocabulary word to the students to make sure they understand what they are expected to draw.
To ensure that the students complete the pre-assessment in a given amount of time, the children will be given approximately 2 minutes
per square. As with lesson one’s pre-assessment, I will explain to the children to do the best they can but that we are going to be
learning all about these landforms and bodies of water in our lesson.
In order to score the pre-assessment I will be using a pre-made rubric (see attachment #7). The levels are as follows:
outstanding, proficient, developing and needs improvement. For the pre-assessment, I am checking the students content knowledge on
landforms and bodies of water, as well as the accuracy of their illustrations. The rubric also addresses the illustrations and clarity of
the characteristics displayed in the drawings. Lastly, the rubric takes into consideration how well the students used their class time to
complete the assignment. Starting from needs improvement, up to the outstanding level the expectations set continuously get higher. It
is also important to note that throughout this lesson only a few landforms and bodies of water are being discussed. In all of the
assessments the students are focusing solely on the items we are covering in class.
After lesson two has been covered, the students will be given a post-assessment to see if they have meet the stated learning
objective. As was stated for lesson two pre-assessment, the students will be illustrating the characteristics of bodies of water and
landforms. The students will be given the same sheet as given in the pre-assessment to depict their illustrations. The sheet is divided
into 8 squares with a square designated for each landform and body of water learned about during the lesson. Again, the vocabulary
will be listed below each individual square (see attachment #6). The children will be instructed to draw a picture in each square that
best shows what each vocabulary word means. The students will additionally be told to pay attention to the characteristics that we
talked about in class and how they can draw those in their pictures. Now that the students have specifics they are inserting into their
pictures, the children will be given approximately 4-5 minutes per square.
As with the pre-assessment, a rubric will be used to determine if the children’s performance meets the learning objective. The
same rubric used for the pre-assessment will be used for the post assessment (see attachment #7). I will be looking at the students
understanding of the content and how accurate it is depicted in their illustrations. Additionally, I will note how focused the
illustrations are and how easily characteristics are viewed. Lastly, I will note how the students effectively used their time. As is stated
in the objective, the students are aiming to reach the proficient level of understanding.
Assessment Plan Overview:
Formative Assessment
While summative assessment is essential in determining if students meet the learning objectives; informal assessments
throughout the lesson are also vital to see how your children are progressing and what about the teaching needs to be changed to better
meet the students needs.
In this unit I have two explicit formative assessments that will be used, one during lesson one with the other used in lesson
two. As the objective for lesson one states that the students will be able to correctly name the bodies of water and landforms, I need to
determine how well the children are progressing towards this goal. Therefore, during lesson one the students will be divided into
groups and each group will receive a piece of chart paper. The students will be instructed to create two columns. After creating two
columns the children will label one landforms and one bodies of water. The groups will discuss the information about the geographic
features that we discussed during whole class discussion. While conversing, the group will compile a list of landforms as well as
bodies of water. As the students are discussing and working on their charts I will walk around the class, observing and noting how the
children are interacting, and what types of information they have gathered. While it is important each child contribute to the list, each
student will have a different colored crayon, in order to see the students contribution, but also their individual understanding. By
looking at these charts, I as a teacher will be able to check the pulse of my classroom and determine if information needs to be
retaught or if the children can move forward.
Another formative assessment will be used throughout lesson two. While the students are working on illustrating the
characteristics of the landforms and bodies of water, I am going to have the students model the features in a fun and creative way. The
students will draw representations of the features by using an illustration of an animal as their model (see attachment #8). This
formative assessment lets me know how well the children are understanding the differences and characteristics of the geographic
features. This assignment also places the content in a different context, forcing the children to think creatively. By doing this
assignment, the children will have another visual to help them remember the information they are learning. While the children will be
individually working on these assignments at their tables, they will be permitted to talk and discuss with their groups to help foster and
create more ideas and connections. By observing and discussing with the children, I am helping to create more meaningful
understanding.