Education Portfolio
I believe that learning is holistic, so when I assess my students, I give a higher priority to knowledge and critical thinking, and less to information and comprehension. I use the State Standards and Benchmarks to help me form my assessment instruments.While I seek to ensure that students know their facts (content), I focus on knowledge in context, higher cognitive functions (taking advantage of brain-based learning) and deep unifying principles (wholeness), rather than on fragmented bits of information (parts).
In this section I give samples of assessment I developed for my Biome lesson within my Prairie Unit. This includes a picture of a poster and my comments on the grading sheet. I give a student self-assessment rubric. I also provide a link to the assessment for my Native American Unit.
BIOMES - WHAT TO DO
1. Arctic/Antarctic/Tundra
2. Desert
3. Coniferous Forest (Taiga)
4. Temperate Deciduous Forest
5. Grassland/Prairie/Savanna
6. Tropical Rain Forests
7. Swamp/Pond
8. Ocean/Intertidal Zone/Coral Reef
PROCEDURES: You will be assigned a partner and a biome to research and make a five minute presentation on in the format of your choice. Following the guidelines for cooperative groups, you will decide together:
- how to conduct your initial research. (Will you consult your science bok, encyclpedia, the Internet, a library book?)
- what format you will use (such as traditional talk in front of class, poster, skit or play, drawing or collage, dance, song or poem, advertisement, or interview
INFORMATION TO INCLUDE:
- At least three interesting facts about your biome
- At least five different plants and five different animals that live in your biome
- Examples of adaptability in your biome.
- For a bonus point, give an example of cooperation in your biome.
For a bonus point, include a map showing where your biome can be found in the world and where similar biomes can be be found.
Name
Date
Grading Scale (60 possible points, 70 with extra credit)
5 Excellent
4 Good
3 Satisfactory
2 NI (Needs Improvement)
Oral Presentation
____Lively and interesting
____Visual Aids (Pictures, Props)
____Involved the audienc
____Speech clear and distinct
____Waited for audience's attention
Content:
____At least three interesting facts about your biome
____At least five different plants
____At least five different animals that live in your biome
____Examples of adaptability
____*gave example of cooperation in your biome
____*included a map showing where your biome and similar biomes are located in the world.
____Creativity
____Neatness/Orderliness
____Spelling/Punctuation/Capitalization
*Extra Credit
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