Benchmarking and Curriculum

We are off to a great start here at KES assessing student progress and implementing differentiated instruction to meet each student's needs.

How do we go about doing this? It begins with gathering student specific data. We are completing AIMSWeb and Fountas Pinnell benchmarking this week. MAP testing will be completed next week.

What do all those letters mean?
We use AIMSWeb to assess all students two times per year for universal screening (early identification). Think of AIMSWeb benchmarking as a thermometer. For most students, their temperature is in the healthy range. If a student is having difficulty with reading, this will serve as an early indicator so that appropriate interventions can be put in place. Once identified, those students are progress monitored more frequently.

Fountas and Pinnell benchmarking is done one on one with your student and their teacher. The benchmark provides levels from A to Z that will allow your student to be appropriately challenged to maximize academic growth during Guided Reading.

MAP testing is used to assess all students twice a year. MAP scores provide achievement breakdowns in all areas of Reading and Math. Your child's teacher will have the data to pinpoint areas where your child excels and areas to address for ongoing improvement.


Too Much?
While all this sounds like a lot of time spent on testing, rest assured that students are away from class work very little. AIMSWeb is a three minute screening assessment. Fountas and Pinnell is approximately 15 minutes of one on one time with your child's teacher. MAP testing is approximately two hours of testing. Over the course of two weeks, each student will spend less than 2.5 hours working on these assessments.

The outcome is well worth the time investment. Within the first three weeks of school, teachers have three data points for your child. As they analyze this data, our staff can specifically target reading materials and student work to individual instructional level.

These assessments are an example of using data to tailor and individualize instruction. Add all this information to our caring, supportive, and child-centered staff and it is easy to see why Kingston Elementary School is such a great place for kids and families.

Please feel free to stop by the office or respond to this blog with any questions or comments.