Framework Forum
November, 2016
Quick Writes as Formative Assessments
it’s great to have a class discussion where many students have their hands raised and we can call on students who have lots of ideas. It often gives us a feeling that "My students really understand this!"
But do all the students understand the concept or only those verbal, engaged learners? It seems like everyone is listening and nodding intently, but do they all really understand the concept?
How can teachers find out which students need more support? Quick writes to the rescue!
Quick writes are a type of formative assessment that are not graded. The purpose for using quick writes throughout a lesson is to inform the teacher of students' understanding (or lack of understanding) of a concept or topic. The quick write can be used to find out specifically which students are ready to move on to deeper content while noting those students needing additional support. By looking at student understanding at strategic points in a lesson, teachers can clarify misconceptions immediately. Students are more willing to engage in quick writes since they are not being evaluated on spelling and sentence structure, but on their understanding of a concept or topic.
3 Ways to Use Quick Writes in a Lesson to Assess Students' Understanding
S-O-S Quick Write Strategy
O - Students write their opinion about the statement (agrees/disagrees)
S - Students support their opinion with evidence from the text.
Tell Me Everything You Know!
Sentence Frames
Sentence Frames give students a scaffold for writing about their thinking on a topic or concept being taught. Teachers can determine the frame that will best assess students’ knowledge of a given concept.
Using formative assessments throughout a lesson requires a teacher to strategically “chunk” the lesson into short sections in order to stop and see where kids are with their understanding. If kids need clarification, this is the best time to do it before moving on. Unlike exit tickets, where changes are made for the next days’ lesson, formative assessments throughout the lesson allow for teachers to discern where misunderstandings are occurring and make quick clarifications when necessary.