Formative assessments are informal assessments that provide feedback to students and guide instructional decisions, rather than being used for grading. They allow teachers to understand how individual students learn best. The document provides many examples of formative assessments teachers can use, such as exit tickets, checklists, and observations. It also suggests ways to track assessment data, such as using clipboards, student folders, or class lists. Teachers should analyze formative assessment data to determine which students need extra help, learn best visually or through hands-on activities, and are not being challenged enough. The data also helps teachers differentiate lessons to meet individual student needs.

1. Why Formative Assessment?
By: Nikki Stewart
According to edutopia.com, “A formative assessment or assignment is a tool teachers use to give
feedback to students and/or guide their instruction. It is not included in a student grade, nor should it be
used to judge a teacher's performance.” Formative assessments are meant to serve as a guide to
individualized student learning. Long gone are the days of pre-written lesson plans. In this blog you will
get concrete formative assessments you can use with your classes, learn how to keep track of your data
and understand what to do with the data once you have collected it.
Assessments galore…
A Formative Assessment Specialist for New Visions for Public Schools by the name of David Wees
published the following Google Doc with 56 Examples of Formative Assessments. He wanted to share
his passion for formative assessment with teachers to show how easy it can be to informally assess
student learning. Some of his ideas include:
Depending on the type of formative assessment you choose (individual, group, project-based, reports,
exit tickets, etc.), the assessments can take anywhere from one minute to several class periods to
complete. Some more useful formative assessment resource sites are:
 22 easy formative assessments
 Examples of formative assessment
 Differentiated strategies
 10 fun-filled formative assessments.
How do you keep track of the data?
When you use formative assessments, you have to find a system to keep track of the student data you
collect. You may have to try a few different systems at first to find the one that fits your classroom style.
Here are some suggestions from Scholastic.com:
11 Clipboard & sticky notes: “The easiest way to observe and assess student growth is to walk
around your room with a clipboard and sticky notes.” Circulate and take note of any challenges
and/or triumphs you personally witness from your students.

2. 22 Student folders: “Consider keeping a folder for each child in which you insert any notes that you
make on a daily basis.” Student folders give you a space to store notes regarding formative
assessments, along with any other relevant notes or student data.
22 Class lists: “On this sheet, you can note specific skills and record how each student is doing. You
can use a system of check-minus, check, and check-plus or the numbers 4, 3, 2, 1 to indicate
student proficiency with the skill.” Any student list you generate that allows space for daily notes,
or check marks will do. If you have 17 names with checks after them, but only four check-plus
marks, it's time to review or re-teach.
You want to be able to readily access this data while lesson planning and meeting with your department
or Professional Learning Team. Remember, if one system is too cumbersome, try another. The most
important part of this process is the time you dedicate to getting to know how each of your students learn
best.
What now?
Now that you know what formative assessment is, have concrete examples of formative assessments,
and have some ways to organize the data you collect, how are you going to use it to drive instruction in
your classroom?
Based on your observations and notes, you will be able to ask yourself the following questions:
 Which students need my attention?
 Which students are visual learners (hands-on, one-on-one, auditory, etc.)?
 Which students are not being challenged?
While lesson planning you will:
 Learn how to differentiate your lesson plans based on the needs of your students
 See the various strengths and weaknesses as far as learning styles are concerned
 Modify your lessons to meet the needs of all students
Do not be afraid of the word reteach, it is not a bad word. The most important objective of every lesson is
that the students are learning and retaining the information. The bottom line is, you will become more
comfortable with the students you teach and see growth on a daily basis. Check out what the Teaching
Channel has to offer as far as formative assessments are concerned. The site has videos of teacher-
developed and delivered lesson plans around formative assessments.
Visit these sites for more information on how to use formative assessment data in your classroom:
 Classroom assessment: theory into practice
 Formative assessment is the cornerstone of differentiated instruction
 Fact sheet: formative assessment
 Using assessment to drive instruction