Employ Teacher-Submitted Implementation Strategies
Instructional Mini Tests provide assessment opportunities, data, and insights that support educators and advance student outcomes. By presenting actionable information, teachers can track student performance over time and identify where additional support is needed.
Review the following scenarios to learn how other Kansas educators have implemented Mini Tests into their classroom instruction and use our Using Mini Tests Throughout the School Year instructional planning resource for further guidance on implementing Instructional Mini Tests.
Baseline
Mr. Russ wants to get a baseline idea of his new class’s vocabulary skills. Using context clues to find word meaning is an important grade 4 ELA skill that will receive focus throughout the year and is a part of most reading lessons.
Miss Benning wants to assess students’ proficiency level for Number and Operations in Base Ten at the beginning of the school year, as she knows they need to have a strong foundation in these skills.
Pre-Instruction
Mr. Miller teaches Science to each elementary class weekly. He is interested in having enrichment instructional groups for higher-achieving students, which will focus on research skills. He reviews ELA, Math, and Science reports that have been shared with him by the classroom teachers to identify which students could benefit from being in these enrichment groups.
Mrs. Ford is preparing to plan instruction for one of her guided reading groups. The standard she will focus on with their next text involves character development and character traits. She wants to see to what extent the students in this group have these specific skills.
Mid-Instruction
Mr. York wants to assess his students’ knowledge of fact and opinion skills they have been working on in ELA class.
Ms. White’s class is in the middle of a fraction unit in Math. She wants to use the instructional Mini Tests approach for additional exposure to the skills, including exposure to the testing environment.
Post-Instruction
Teachers at Sunset Elementary School consistently use Instructional Mini Test data to set goals for themselves and with students during grade level PLCs and on staff development days.
Three days a week, Mrs. Benson uses Instructional Mini Tests as “bell work activities.” This is a way to review skills and help transition students into learning mode.