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The Formative 5
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The Formative 5
Everyday Assessment Techniques for Every Math Classroom

Foreword by Matt Larson



January 2017 | 200 pages | Corwin



“This highly practical and readable book gets right down into the detail of what good formative assessment looks like in math classrooms, and shows how teachers can make this a part of their regular planning and instruction.”

—Dylan Wiliam, Emeritus Professor of Educational Assessment, University College

Imagine how it would feel to not worry about how to plan, teach, and check for student mathematical understandings and related proficiencies. Imagine if this important process felt like a natural, every day, part of your lesson preparation instead of an extra thing to do. This must-have resource shows the way. 

NCTM Past President, Francis “Skip” Fennell, and nationally-recognized mathematics educators Beth McCord Kobett and Jonathan (Jon) Wray, offer five of the most impactful, proven assessment techniques—Observations, Interviews, “Show Me,” Hinge Questions, and Exit Tasks— you can implement, every day. Tried and tested by teachers just like you, you’ll find that this palette of classroom-based techniques will truly assess learning and inform teaching.

Research and classroom practice indicates that formative assessment is poorly understood. This book gives you a concise, research-based, classroom-dedicated plan with lots of tools, activities, classroom vignettes, and student work to guide your daily use of these techniques – The Formative 5.

Both within and between lessons, K-8 teachers of mathematics will learn to

  • Think and go beyond assessment of learning, focusing on assessment for learning
  • Directly connect assessment to planning and teaching
  • Engineer effective classroom questioning, discussions, and learning tasks
  • Provide success criteria and feedback that moves students forward
  • Integrate the Standards for Mathematical Practice
  • Activate student self-assessors who take ownership of their learning 

Includes a book study guide, tools and templates, and a companion website with downloadables and multi-media examples of student discussion in the classroom. The Formative 5 will help you build your mathematics-related formative assessment capacity through daily use of these five key techniques, leading to regularly monitored and improved learning opportunities for your students.

Now Available: The On-Your-Feet Guide to The Formative 5


 
Foreword
 
About the Authors
 
Preface
 
Acknowledgments
 
PART I Getting Started
 
WHY FORMATIVE ASSESSMENT? ISSUES AND OPPORTUNITIES
Assessment Literacy: What Is It? Why Is This Important?

 
Formative/Summative: It’s All Testing, Right?

 
Formative Assessment: Assessing to Inform

 
Classroom-Based Formative Assessment: Why Is This Important? You Do Have the Time to Do This!

 
Formative Assessment in YOUR Classroom: The Classroom Is Your Canvas!

 
Summing Up

 
Professional Learning Discussion Questions

 
 
PART II The Formative 5
 
CHAPTER 1 OBSERVATIONS
Observations: Background and Basics

 
Planning for Observations

 
Tools for Using Observations in the Classroom

 
Technology Tips and Tools for Recording Observations

 
Using Observations in YOUR Classroom

 
Summing Up

 
Professional Learning Discussion Questions

 
 
CHAPTER 2 INTERVIEWS
Interviews: Background and Basics

 
Planning for the Interview

 
Tools for Using Interviews in the Classroom

 
Technology Tips and Tools for Recording Interviews

 
Using Interviews in YOUR Classroom

 
Summing Up

 
Professional Learning Discussion Questions

 
 
CHAPTER 3 SHOW ME
Show Me: Background and Basics

 
Planning for Show Me

 
Tools for Using Show Me in the Classroom

 
Technology Tips and Tools for Recording Show Me Responses

 
Using Show Me in YOUR Classroom

 
Summing Up

 
Professional Learning Discussion Questions

 
 
CHAPTER 4 HINGE QUESTIONS
Hinge Questions: Background and Basics

 
Planning for Using Hinge Questions

 
Tools for Using Hinge Questions in the Classroom

 
Technology Tips and Tools for Recording Hinge Questions

 
Using Hinge Questions in YOUR Classroom

 
Summing Up

 
Professional Learning Discussion Questions

 
 
CHAPTER 5 EXIT TASKS
Exit Tasks: Background and Basics

 
Planning for Using Exit Tasks

 
Tools for Using Exit Tasks in the Classroom

 
Technology Tools and Tips for Exit Tasks

 
Using Exit Tasks in YOUR Classroom

 
Summing Up

 
Professional Learning Discussion Questions

 
 
PART III Next Steps
 
CHAPTER 6 IT’S YOUR TURN!
Why Formative Assessment? Issues and Opportunities

 
Chapter 1: Observations

 
Chapter 2: Interviews

 
Chapter 3: Show Me

 
Chapter 4: Hinge Questions

 
Chapter 5: Exit Tasks

 
What’s Next?

 
 
Appendix: Book Study Guide
 
References
 
Index

“We know that regular use of formative assessment is an essential part of effective instruction, but we know far less about how to help teachers make this a reality in their classrooms. In this highly practical and readable book, Fennell, Kobett, and Wray get right down into the detail of what good formative assessment looks like in math classrooms, and show how teachers can make this a part of their regular planning and instruction. They also include the voices of real teachers, the challenges they faced in taking these ideas on board, and the way that they have taken the basic ideas of formative assessment and made them a living reality in their classrooms. This is a “must-read” book for anyone who teaches math.”

Dylan Wiliam, Emeritus Professor of Educational Assessment
University College London

“This book is a gem. Fennell, Kobett, and Wray don’t just provide advice on what to do; they provide you the tools you need to implement specific formative assessment techniques in your classroom.”

Matt Larson, President
National Council of Teachers of Mathematics

“The Formative 5 could be added to the list of ‘Fab 5s’—each of the chapters provides fabulous examples, tools, and discussion for implementing a comprehensive formative plan in your classroom. A valuable resource for individual use, collaborative learning communities, book study, and lesson study—beneficial to preservice teachers through master teachers.”

Jennifer M. Bay-Williams, Mathematics Teacher Educator
University of Louisville

“Formative assessment is an invaluable way to learn about students’ mathematical understandings and to guide instruction that focuses on student needs rather than on content.  In The Formative 5, Fennell, Kobett, and Wray share five powerful protocols that help teachers embed formative assessment in daily instruction and how—when used individually or together—they guide next instructional moves. A great resource for every math teacher!

Linda Gojak, Past President
National Council of Teachers of Mathematics and author of The Common Core Mathematics Companions, grades K-2 and 3-5

“This book is so valuable because it gives the techniques that can help build formative assessments for any mathematical content, at any grade, for any learner. There are actual vignettes of classroom instruction and the stories from the field bring the material alive and provide testimony to the book’s ultimate effectiveness.”

Karen Karp, Visiting Professor
School of Education, Johns Hopkins University

“The authors take the mystery out of formative assessment by providing a set of concrete strategies, rich grade-level examples that bring the strategies to life, and a set of tools to help teachers plan for and implement the strategies in the classroom. The Formative 5 provides a powerful way of seamlessly linking assessment and instruction.  A must have for K-8 mathematics teachers!”

Margaret S. Smith, Co-Author
University of Pittsburgh & Co-Author of 5 Practices for Orchestrating Productive Mathematics Discussions

"The Formative 5: Everyday Assessment Techniques for Every Math Classroom is a much needed practical resource that will help teachers understand and be able to use formative assessment on a daily basis. The book suggests powerful techniques and tools for monitoring and impacting student learning. The well-crafted examples and student work samples are incredibly useful."

Ruth Harbin Miles, Author
Former K–12 Supervisor of Mathematics, Olathe District Schools & Author of The Common Core Mathematics Companions, Grades K–2, 3–5, and 6–8

“Formative assessment is one of the most effective, but poorly understood, instructional approaches. This useful book clarifies formative assessment and provides the tools teachers need to put it into practice. As we describe the ‘formative years’ as having a deep and lasting effect on children’s development, formative assessment seen as a core teaching strategy can have a profound and permanent effect on teachers’ practice and their students’ learning. The Formative 5 will help educators do just that.”

Douglas H. Clements, Executive Director
Marsico Institute for Early Learning and Literacy

“This book meets teachers where they are by providing immediately implementable, practical advice for formatively assessing students.  These are not theoretical ideas as they come from the experiences of three authors who have been using and refining these techniques for years.”

Robert Kaplinsky, Math Teacher Specialist
Downey Unified School District, Downey, CA

The Formative Five outlines the best way to seamlessly intertwine formative assessment, lesson planning, and instruction for all grade levels. Using five practical formative assessment strategies, this resource supports teachers as they build a comprehensive picture of every student’s mathematical understandings and misconceptions. Definitely, a must-have resource for all mathematics classrooms!”

Sherry Parrish, Author
Author of Number Talks: Whole Number Computation and Number Talks: Fractions, Decimals, and Percentages
Key features

Includes:

  • Companion website with 15+ downloadable tools, templates, and checklists in PDF and Word format
  • Video and audio examples of student discussion in real classrooms
  • Student work, teacher reflections and quotes, teachers’ FAQs
  • Online book study guide 

Sample Materials & Chapters

Chapter 1 - Observations

Chapter 3 - Show Me


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