Informal Classroom-Based Assessment
Administering informal assessments on a regular basis throughout the school year provides useful information that can help teachers to identify the individual strengths and weakness of each student.
Specific spelling errors can signal a child's slow progress and the need for extra help. Dr. Louisa Moats shows one Washington, D.C. teacher how to identify the errors and remediate them.
This informal assessment information can help you decide:
- How to plan future instruction so that student needs are met
- How students should be grouped for instruction so that each student receives instruction at the right level of difficulty
- If instruction is being delivered at the right pace
- Which students need individual support
There are different informal assessment tools for assessing various components of reading. It is important to note that no single assessment will provide insight into all reading related components that teachers need to know about. It is important to ask yourself: "What do I want to know about my students? What do I want to assess?" See the following articles and resources for worksheets and information to help you get started.
Related articles
This section contains 4 articles.
Display: | Summaries | Titles only |
What's 'Normal,' What's Not: Acquiring English as a Second Language
How can you tell when a student has a language-learning disability and when he or she is merely in the normal process of acquiring a second language?
Informal Reading Assessments: Examples
The following are sample charts you can use when assessing students informally in the classroom. Most of the assessments here should be given one-on-one.
Informal Classroom-Based Assessment: Watch & Learn
These six short video clips give you the chance to watch and learn effective classroom-based assessment strategies. The video clips are from Reading Rockets' PBS television series Launching Young Readers. 
Early identification is crucial when it comes to helping children who are having trouble learning to read. This seminal article by Joseph Torgesen explains the assessment process and reviews the more commonly used assessment tools.
See also
- Topics A-Z: Assessment and Evaluation
- Topics A-Z: Developmental Milestones
- Topics A-Z: Curriculum and Instruction
- Reading Assessment Database for Grades K-2, Southwest Educational Development Laboratory (SEDL)
- Podcasts & Videos: In the Classroom
§ To play this clip, you'll need a copy of the free RealOne Player. Most computers already have it installed, or you can download it now.