“Not everything that counts can be counted, and not everything that can be counted counts.” -William Bruce Cameron When checking boxes on an assessment, this is a good quote to remember. While we may be getting the results we need for mandates, it’s equally important to count the uncountable, to …
Authentic Assessment
4 Simple Steps For Identifying Strengths And Prioritizing Needs
Like many of us, you've likely struggled with the balance between focusing on a child's strengths, while at the same time, better understanding their needs. …
Want Children to Learn? Then Maybe We Should Stop Writing Outcomes!
Here's the long and the short of it...I'm struggling to see any reason to continue identifying and writing learning outcomes for young children. Oh, and by the way, if you think I mean just learning objectives found in general education lesson plans (or in other ways "made visible" due to one …
Embracing the Tensions within Early Childhood Assessment Practices
Those of you who know me, know I'm passionate about authentic assessment. Which, I and others, define as gathering and using information obtained by familiar people, in familiar settings, with familiar objects. …
5 Testing Mistakes That Put Children At Risk
In early childhood, we don't often use the words test or testing...we tend to use the word assessment, and/or progress monitoring. In this age of accountability, however, make no mistake, children are being tested. …
Getting to What Children Know
As brain architects (aka loving adults who are building children's brains), we often find ourselves wanting to better understand what children are thinking, to know "what children know," and to document what children can do. And, whether a parent, teacher, therapist, and/or …