Writing Data & Assessment Tracking Notebook, Grade 3, CCSS Aligned

Assessing student writing is challenging. Unlike other content areas, like math for example, scoring writing is not cut and dried, and it's difficult to isolate just one skill or technique. Furthermore, determining student success in writing cannot be determined using points or percentages. Learning to write is a process, and writers must grow and progress along a continuum of developing skills. As teachers we must be able to determine our writers' strengths, their growth and progress during writing workshop, how this carries into their daily writing, and target our instruction to meet them at their point of need.

I created this Writing Data & Assessment Tracking Notebook as an alternative place to gather data on my students' writing. All data, conference notes, and any anecdotes for each writer can now be recorded in one place, on just one page. Data is recorded in a table by standard, which eliminates needing to flip between pages in your grade book when assessing multiple standards. The table only includes labels for standards (i.e.: w.3.1, etc.) to allow for flexible recording based on whatever grading/assessment practice you choose. Below this table is space to record notes from writing conferences with students as well as any other writing related notes. I've found having all this information housed in one place makes my life SO much easier, whether I'm examining a piece of student writing for multiple standards, preparing progress reports or data for parent-teacher conferences, or planning my instruction.

The student pages can be copied back-to-back and bound in a notebook, added to a data binder, or filed by student. I have mine bound with the included copy of the Writing CCSS in front for quick and easy reference.