Maybe this actually worked....

WHAT AM I DOING TO HELP KIDS ACHIEVE?

HOW DO I KNOW WHEN THEY ARE THERE?

WHAT IS THE EVIDENCE?

     O.K....how do we get evidence that kids are actually learning?  This week we were doing the Periodic Table.  First I used an activity that Margaret developed.  Students were provided properties of elements.  They had to state a claim about a pattern or trend, provide evidence and then their reasoning.  We then did a flipped assignment and a review sheet in class on the periodic table.  I then did a 10 question "clicker" quiz.  They would get a question, electronically submit their answer, we could see all of the answers and discuss the correct answer.  It allowed me to see the topics they struggled with and spend a bit more time clarifying the issue.  It was a nice version of a type of formative and summative assessment.

    We are doing our "mini posters" for the stoichiometry lab in academic.  I will post these next week.  Kids were asking GREAT questions about what to put in the data table and what makes a good hypothesis.  They were trying to determine the amount of sodium bicarb in alka seltzer by looking at the carbon dioxide that left the system.  Some students forgot to get the mass of the tablet by itself and realized this at the end.  They discovered how important it is to think through the procedure and how that translates into a data table.  I think this method will really help prepare students and I hope to incorporate more of these if we go to lab practicals for exit exams.  I will make sure to post one or two for my next blog.