Tell To Teach

STEP 4. Assessment

We do constant informal assessment of the students’ comprehension

throughout the lesson by asking questions and by choosing (without telling

them) specific middle-level students or students who struggle but are eager to

learn, to continuously confirm with them that the lesson is comprehensible.

However, we can also assess their comprehension, as a class and individually,

in many different ways:

• Frequent comprehension checks (finger checks)

• Write the story as a class

• Write the story individually

• Give unannounced vocabulary quizzes. Read a short list of structures

(maybe 5 to 10) and have the students write the meaning in English.

• Answer questions about the story

• Illustrate the story and then retell it

• Show them illustrations of the story and have them retell that part of it

• Give them a phrase and have them point at the right illustration

• Write or tell a new story using five vocabulary structures.