Day 4

I am still saying that I won't blog very often, yet I find myself with an extra hour this Friday afternoon, so why not sum up the week? Well, maybe just today.

Today in Algebra we went over last night's homework on evaluating expressions and solving linear equations then we reviewed solving equations containing fractions. It was a short lesson followed by practice. They learned these skills last year in pre-algebra but are in need of a wee bit of practice.

Then they took their first Learning Target Quiz on which they sought to demonstrate...

• I can follow the order of operations.
• I can manage arithmetic of positive and negative whole numbers.
• I can attend to precision by being careful in my work and reading (no transfer errors, no dropped signs, legible handwriting, follows directions).

 I just got done checking them and converting their "scores" into my rubric...

0	Undetermined	I left the problem blank or wrote something completely unrelated to the goal of the task.
1	Beginning	I have weak conceptual understanding. With help, I have a partial understanding of some of the simpler details and processes and some of the more complex ideas and processes. My work is consistently imprecise and/or difficult to follow.
2	Developing	I have demonstrated some conceptual understanding on simple tasks, but I am a bit confused and I regularly hesitate and need a hint on how to get started. I need to improve to meet expectations:I have some errors or incomplete understanding; My work is often imprecise or lacks correct notation; I did not completely answer the question. I make major errors or omissions on complex tasks.
3	Proficient	I have a firm grasp of the skill and have demonstrated simple tasks and some complex tasks. Occasionally I need a hint on how to get started. I show most steps of reasoning with correct notation. My work is often precise. I make no major errors or omissions.
3.5	Secure	I can do this . I know the concept and can demonstrate the skill on complex tasks but make small errors along the way. I have partial success with in depth inferences. My work is mostly precise but could stand to be polished.
4	Mastered	I can totally do this. I fully understand the concept. I can demonstrate this skill  in complex, multi-step tasks, showing my reasoning along with with correct notation. I make in depth inferences that go beyond what was taught.I can explain this skill to others. My work is precise, polished and worthy of the fridge.

...and entering into ActiveGrade. BTW, does anyone know how to sort student names in ActiveGrade by last name? Then I emailed the students a report with their scores.

So I am one week into Standards Based Grading and so far so good.... I can imagine that reassessing and regrading might make my life a little busy and I am worried about how long it will take to grade longer assessments.

Lastly, my classes have been so far devoid of PrBL or anything fun. Well... they did set up their digital portfolios on Blogger and write a Math Autobiography... that is something different. I am hopeful that next week when we start the unit on word problems that I can find some (quick) activities that will make them think.

Here is the prompt for the Math Autobiography post:

Your first post to your digital portfolio will be a math autobiography. 

1. Login to blogger. Click the orange pencil to add a new post or select your blog and then click the orange button that says new post.

2. Give it a meaningful title (ie: NOT My Math Autobiography).

3. Write a rich paragraph, 5 - 10 sentences, about your feelings about math and your prior experiences taking math classes. This should take about 10 minutes. Share the good times, the bad times or exciting experiences.   You can focus on one event or many. What did you like learning the most? What did you struggle with? What are you looking forward to this year? What are you worried about?

4. Add an image that goes along with your paragraph. It can be found online (copyright friendly), taken by you or created by you. 

5. When you turn it in, click view blog, then click the blog post link. Copy and paste that specific post link here on the hub.