Part One: PHILOSOPHY OF ASSESSMENT:

If I could run my classroom without outside influences, I would only give qualitative feedback and never give any grades. In general, grades have become a superficial infrastructure that value conformity over ingenuity and assent over vision: Worst of all, grades are often used as mere binder for straw that ought to be blown away, supporting poor educational practice by threatening to fail those who do not acquiesce or perform, (Tchudi & Mitchell, 373). In my opinion, the crux of this problem persists in grades that evaluate student behavior and not student growth: Grades induce a false competitiveness in many children, producing students skilled at playing the grading game and unskilled at meeting the more substantial goals of education, (Tchudi & Mitchell, 373). From my own personal experiences in the classroom I have seen grades used as an extrinsic form of motivation, where students, parents, and teachers are looking at the end number or letter grade, rather than the value of the students endeavors. However, education does not take place in a vacuum, and with the current dominating foundation of grade point averages, honors level vs. standard level classes, college admission pressures, and (dare I say it) tracking that takes place in American education, grades are a very real and robust system in American schools. How can an educator who is opposed to the construct of grading subvert the system in the current educational climate based around Standards of Learning that are tethered to high stakes tests? Assessment is only as valuable as the measurements that are used to evaluate them. In my opinion, qualitative rubrics are truly the foundation of quality assessment. In line with this thinking, rubrics should avoid language that is quantitative and should be written in accessible language for students, and to the extent applicable, by students. In line with this logic, students should have multiple facets and should target multiple areas of learning and growth simultaneously. Assessments should not put all the eggs in one basket so to speak, so students may perform on several levels simultaneously. Rubrics for my unit will allow for a holistic assessment of the array of attributes students work may feature. For this unit of study, product assessments will receive letter grades, utilizing qualitative rubrics. Process assessments will receive qualitative feedback. Rubrics should be familiar to the students. In order to achieve this, teachers should collaborate with students in creating qualitative rubrics. I feel if a class has established qualitative, holistic rubrics- these rubrics can be manipulated throughout the school year to fit any assignment. From my previous professional experiences in an International Baccalaureate Diploma school, I have obtained an aversion to rubrics that are quantitative because they tend to tally errors and/or features, but in my opinion do not holistically evaluate the assessment itself. I have made an effort for my rubrics to demonstrate this belief. In my opinion, if there are wellwritten, qualitative rubrics for analytical writing, creative writing, oral presentations, and visual displays these rubrics can be adapted to cater to any assessment need that may arise throughout the school year and be revised according to assessments and objectives. The strength in having well-written qualitative rubrics, whose facets are selected and/or interchanged dependent upon the specific assessment, is that students will become familiar with their language and thus academic expectations within the classroom. These rubrics can be revised as the school year progresses to ensure progress of student achievement. Another strength that cannot be underestimated is that the more a teacher uses a rubric the more accurate

and easy grading will become with that rubric. Another strength of a qualitative rubric is that clearly describing the desired features will allow me to see when a student overall may be achieving on the lower end of the assessment scale but achieving specific facets of higher achievement. In these cases, students will always be afforded the benefit of the doubt, and any demonstration of a feature that is higher on the assessment scale will move the students score up according to the rubric. Assessment should truly evaluate students growth and learning holistically. To a certain extent I am opposed to evaluating behavior. For example, marking off point for late work, is a grading method that punishes student behavior, does not serve as an intervention for the misbehavior, and furthermore removes the validity of the assessment itself. However, behavior that is necessary for meeting objectives- such as listening skills during a group discussion or appropriate tone of voice to obtain civil discourse are behaviors which should be assessed. These behaviors deserve assessment because they serve the holistic development of the student and will benefit them towards meeting class objectives. Furthermore, student self-evaluations will help internalize the objectives that are behavior based. The beginning of 6th grade is a year of great transition for students, moving from elementary to middle school. I see the beginning of the 6th grade year as the perfect opportunity to reteach students the meaning of grades, at least in the confines of my Language Arts classroom. For the beginning of these 3 weeks, students will receive qualitative feedback on both product and process assessments that are evaluated on an A+, A, B, and C basis. Process assessments will be weighted more so than product assessments, in order to benefit students who are participative in the classroom and support accountability. The product assessments that will receive a letter grade will demand interpretation, which is the 2nd facet of understanding according Understanding by Design by Wiggins and McTighe (1998). This will ease students not only into middle school, but also in learning how to self and peer evaluate using co-created qualitative rubrics. Students will need to learn that they will not be evaluated on whether they are right or wrong, but on how they completed their work well in relation to the standard put forth (hopefully which is embedded in the rubric itself). Part Two: Critical Learning Objectives to be Assessed: Students Will Be Able To (SWBAT) COGNITIVE (to know/comprehend/interpret/apply/analyze/synthesize/evaluate) 1. Students will evaluate their individuality. 2. Students will evaluate how individuals contribute to a community. 3. Students will understand cooperation and community building. AFFECTIVE (to feel/value) 4. Students will feel self-aware and mindful.

5. Students will feel mindful of their classroom learning community. 6. Students will feel connected to nature and one another through cultivating an indoor garden. PERFORMATIVE (to do) 7. Students will write about their individuality and their classroom community. 8. Students will create and maintain an indoor garden. 9. Students will demonstrate comprehension and connections with vignettes from Paul Fleischmanns Seedfolks and a variety of student-selected texts. 10. Students will write a vignette about their gardening experiences inspired by their readings of Paul Fleischmanns Seedfolks. Virginia SOLs 6.1 6.5 The student will analyze oral participation in small-group activities. b) Evaluate own contributions to discussions. The student will read and demonstrate comprehension of a variety of informational selections. a) Identify questions to be answered. b) Make, confirm, or revise predictions The student will write narratives, descriptions, and explanations. b) Establish central idea, organization, elaboration, and unity.

6.6

Part Three: An Index of the Specific Learning Objective for Each Critical Objective Students Will Be Able To (SWBAT) COGNITIVE (to know/comprehend/interpret/apply/analyze/synthesize/evaluate) 1. Students will evaluate their individuality. Students will understand the concept of individuality. Students will understand the concept of mindfulness. Students will interpret the concept of individuality in reading Nikki Giovannis Egotripping Students will evaluate the effects of a mindfulness meditation by completing a Mindfulness Self-Evaluation Rubric. Student will imagine a positive classroom community.

2. Students will evaluate how individuals contribute to a community. Students will understand and use gardening vocabulary Students will understand the basic science of plants: parts, uses, and care instructions Students will analyze their thoughts through journal writing. Students will evaluate their conception of an individuals role in a community through completing Individual and Community Anticipation Guide Students will evaluate how the character Kim of Seedfolks can have an impact on her community Students will evaluate their peers participation in a group discussion Students will evaluate how an individual can have an impact on a community after reading the vignette Kim from Seedfolks Students will compare their post-reading answers to their evaluations prior to reading the Kim vignette Students will evaluate one anothers Double Entry Journal Responses Students will understand how the individuals in the vignettes of Seedfolks contribute to their respective communities. Students will know how to contribute meaningfully to classroom discussion about community and Seedfolks Students will analyze how they have contributed to the classroom community. Students will understand simile and metaphor as literary devices. 3. Students will understand cooperation and community building. Students will understand and use gardening vocabulary Students will understand the basic science of plants: parts, uses, and care instructions Students will plant seeds, manipulate gardening tools, and provide care for the plants Students will [] provide care for the plants. Students will evaluate the uses of a variety of gardening tools. Students will interpret verbs that can be applied to a variety of gardening tools. Students will understand cooperation in order to work together in a class gardening experience Students will understand cooperation via annotating a previously read passage together

Students will understand how to pause and reconnect using mindfulness breathing techniques. Students will evaluate their awareness and sense of touch.

AFFECTIVE (to feel/value) 4. Students will feel self-aware and mindful. Students will feel the effects of a breathing exercise activity that promotes mindfulness. Students will reflect upon their individuality and uniqueness in a Conversation Calendar (Lesson 3) Students will feel using their senses during a raisin meditation activity Students will feel their breathing during a short meditative pause Students will engage their listening skills through an active listening activity. 5. Students will feel mindful of their classroom learning community. Students will contribute to their classroom community as a teacher and learner. Students will write about their mindfulness practice in a Conversation Calendar Students will reflect upon how much a person can have an impact on a community. Students will evaluate their peers participation in a group discussion Students will reflect on how much of an impact they can have on their classroom community. Students will evaluate their contribution to class discussion. Students will contribute to their classroom community by sharing their gardening vignettes with one another. Students will value the variety of perspectives that can be taken of a shared experience. 6. Students will feel connected to nature and one another. Students will plant an indoor garden Students will value shared responsibility while working cooperatively in gardening groups. Students will feel connected to each other through reading each others account of a shared experience. PERFORMATIVE (to do) 7. Students will write about their individuality and their classroom community. Students will write a journal entry about their individuality. Students will write an I Am Jam poem inspired by Looking Like Me by Walter Dean Myers and Egotripping by Nikki Giovanni.

Students will write a journal entry about their group gardening experience. Students will write a journal entry response to the prompt: To what extent can a person have an impact on a community? Students will write a journal entry connecting the experiences of the characters of Seedfolks to their own lives. Students will write about their experiences during the lesson via a Conversation Calendar Students will dissect a mentor text phrase from Paul Fleischmanns Seedfolks. Students will imitate the writing in the selected mentor text in writing about their own gardening experiences. Students will write about their indoor gardening experience using similes and metaphors.

8. Students will create and maintain an indoor garden. Students will demonstrate teamwork, communication, and cooperation in small groups Students will select plants based on personal preferences and care instructions. Students will care for plants according to their student-created care instructions. Students will record their gardening experiences in their initial Gardening Log of their indoor gardening activity Students will demonstrate teamwork, communication, and cooperation in small groups Students will research plants using the Class Wiki Site. Students will select plants based on personal preferences and care instructions. Students will keep a Gardening Log 9. Students will demonstrate comprehension and connections with vignettes from Paul Fleischmanns Seedfolks and a variety of student-selected texts. Students will perform a Think-Pair-Share about the key points of Kim from Paul Fleischmanns Seedfolks Students will discuss the Kim vignette through a guided discussion utilizing Hillocks Question Hierarchy (Wilhem, Ch. 5, p. 129). Students will synthesize their thoughts by applying their new knowledge to the journal entry prompt:To what extent can Kim have an impact on her community? Students will participate in a Reading Workshop (adapted from Tovani, Ch. 4, p. 47-71) Students will annotate their texts with questions, connections, evaluations, and predictions using a Double Entry Journal

Students will read and respond to each others Reader Response Journals. Students will prepare and participate in a discussion using Christenbury and Kellys Questioning Circles (Wilhelm 135)

10. Students will write a vignette about their gardening experiences inspired by their readings of Paul Fleischmanns Seedfolks. Students will reread their journal entries, conversation calendars, and Double Entry Journal Responses in order to generate inspiration for their gardening vignettes. Students will begin drafting their gardening vignettes Students will write descriptive similes and metaphors to supplement the drafts of their gardening vignettes. Students will finish drafting their gardening vignettes. Students will share their gardening vignettes in small groups. Students will respond to each others vignettes using the Double Entry Reader Response Journal Worksheet VIRGINIA SOLS: Select at least 2 related SOLs (at your units grade level) that fit into your learning framework. Give them the numbers that they carry in the State Department SOL document. SOL# SOL Objective

Oral Communication 6.1 The student will analyze oral participation in small-group activities. b) Evaluate own contributions to discussions. Reading 6.5 The student will read and demonstrate comprehension of a variety of informational selections. a) Identify questions to be answered. b) Make, confirm, or revise predictions. Writing 6.6 The student will write narratives, descriptions, and explanations. b) Establish central idea, organization, elaboration, and unity.

Part Five: Methods of Assessment Be careful: discussion is a behavior and you may begin assessing student behavior rather than student knowledge

A. Informal/Formative Conversation Calendars (5 total) (3 points each) See Rubric A. Adapted from Tovanis So What Do They Really Know? (160), a Conversation Calendar is a graphic organizer that serves as a simple means of communication between the student and the teacher. For 6th graders, I have embedded prompts into my unit of study that students will use to create their Conversation Calendars. Conversation Calendars are a simple means of checking in individually on a students understanding, and is the perfect forum for shy students such as Kyle and Diana to ask questions they may hesitate to ask in front of the entire class. For assessment purposes, Conversation Calendars will address specific topics discussed during the days lesson in order to perform a simple formative assessment throughout the course of the unit. Double Entry Reader Response Journals (4 total) (5 points each) See Rubric B Double Entry Reader Response Journals will ask students to make connections, evaluations, predictions, and ask questions. The Double Entry aspect of this reader response activity is that students will have the opportunity to interact with each others connections, questions, predictions, and evaluations. The Reader Response features of this strategy align with SOL 6.5 The student will read and demonstrate comprehension of a variety of informational selections. All of the students will benefit from being asked to slow down and interact with the text, particularly below-grade level readers such as Diana. Individual and Community Anticipation Guide (1 total, in 2 parts)(10 points) See Rubric C. This two-fold assessment will have student evaluate their feelings of how the impact an individual can have on a community. Students will perform this anticipation guide prior to our class reading and discussion of the vignette Kim from Paul Fleischmans Seedfolks during lesson 7. During Lesson 8, after our reading and discussion, students will reevaluate their feelings of the same statements from the previous class. Students then compare and contrast their two self-evaluations, synthesizing if their feelings about an individuals impact on a community has changed, and if so what from our reading and discussion prompted the change. Mindfulness Activity Self-Evaluations. (5 total) (3 points each) See Rubric D Students will perform a variety of mindfulness activities throughout this unit of study. Mindfulness is an intrinsically personal and individualized experience, and these selfevaluations will serve as a reflective piece to supplement the mindfulness activities themselves. This will serve as a powerful tool for students to mark down their feelings and will serve as a formative assessment of my affective objective #4: Students will feel self aware and mindful.

Gardening Log (8 total) (2 points each) See Rubric E. The gardening experience serves as a major portion of my frontloading and hook for my unit of study. Once students have planted their indoor gardens, students will be given time each day to provide care for their plants. The Gardening Log will require students to take make a simple log entry of how they took care of their plants each day. The Gardening Log will serve as a process assessment of maintaining their indoor gardens, which is my performance objective #8: Students will create and maintain an indoor garden. For management purposes, gardening groups would be asked to alternate who is to create the log for each day, so there is shared responsibility of the task. Also, keeping track of their gardening activities will help student self-regulate whether the care they are providing for their plants aligns with the plant care instructions they have created during the Seed Packet Profile activity. Seed Selection Graphic Organizer (1 total) (5 points) See Rubric F. This graphic organizer will serve as a visual aide for students while performing the miniinquiry research of the seeds they receive during Lesson 4. Each student in the gardening group will receive a different seed bag where they are only provided with the scientific name. Students will be responsible for researching their seeds and determining the plant the seed belongs to, care instructions, and anticipated growth time. Students will then come back to their gardening groups and jigsaw-style share their research with one another, filling in the other portions of the graphic organizer. After the graphic organizer is completed, students will then be asked to select one of the seeds to plant for their indoor gardening experience. Seed Packet Profile Graphic Organizer (1 total) (5 points) See Rubric G. This graphic organizer will differentiate from the Seed Selection Graphic Organizer because it will be pertinent information about the plant the group has decided to cultivate. Students will fill in the features of the graphic organizer as a pre-writing activity before creating their Seed Packet Visual Displays, which will serve as their student-created care instructions that students will be asked to follow in order to maintain their plants. The Seed Packet Visual Display is a group activity, and this graphic organizer serves as a means of individually assessing each students pre-writing. Oral Participation Peer-Evaluation (1 total) (5 points) See Rubric H During Lesson 7, Students will select a peer to evaluate them during a discussion using Hillocks Questioning Hierarchy (Wilhelm 129). Students who perform the peer evaluations will hone their listening skills to both the discussion and their peer-review partner, and will gain familiarity with the Oral Participation Rubric. Seedfolks Community Worksheet (1 total) (5 points) See Rubric I. This worksheet will serve as a post-discussion formative assessment of students understanding of individuals within communities during Lesson 7. Students will be asked to make predictions about the extent to which Kim will have an impact on her community. Oral Participation Self-Evaluation (1 total) (5 points) See Rubric J

During Lesson 11, students will participate in a discussion utilizing Christenbury and Kellys Questioning Circles discussion strategy (Wilhelm 135). After having previously assessed their peers, students will now utilize a similar rubric to assess their own contributions to discussion. Gardening Tool Feature Analysis Chart (1 total) (3 points) See Rubric K This graphic organizer will serve as a means for students to gain familiarity with gardening tools and their uses. Students will synthesize their understanding to create a list of verbs that can apply to each gardening tool, which will serve as student-generated vocabulary development. Simile and Metaphor Worksheet (1 total) (5 points) See Rubric L The simile and metaphor worksheet will benefit my language instruction lesson, where students will be asked identify an object in our classroom, create a descriptive comparison of that object, and then identify whether that comparison is a simile or a metaphor. This will serve as a scaffold for students to create similes and metaphors to weave into their finalized gardening vignettes. Gardening Vignette Self-Evaluation (1 total) (5 points) See Rubric M After their first day of drafting their gardening vignettes in Lesson 11, students will take a moment to evaluate their writing using the Gardening Vignette Rubric. This will serve as a formative assessment prior to the finalized gardening vignettes during the next lesson, and encourage students to utilize their lines that emulated a mentor text. Common Ground Exit Slip (1 total) (5 points) See Rubric N During Lesson 12, students will perform a silent round-robin style reading of their gardening vignettes with their gardening groups. This Common Ground exit slip will ask students to evaluate the variety of perspectives of a shared experience: cultivating a classroom garden. This will serve as a capstone self-evaluation of the theme of our unit of study Common Ground and affective objective 6 Students will feel connected to nature and one another. B. Formal/Summative Personal I Am Jam (20 points) See Rubric O. based only Writing Task and Style and Creativity portions of the writing rubric) The I Am Jam piece will serve as a creative means of student self-introduction. Students will use of Looking Like Me by Walter Dean Myers and Egotripping by Nikki Giovanni as model texts. Celebrating individuality aligns with objective 1, Students will evaluate their individuality. Students such as Luke, Bridget, and Diana will appreciate writing about themselves, and students such as Anh and Kyle will be given the opportunity to introduce themselves to their classmates through their writing. This will serve as diagnostic assessment that is meant to boost student confidence with writing during the first week of school. My philosophy of assessment is against assessing diagnostic assessments, but the purpose of providing a grade to this assessment is to serve as ego-boost during the first week of school for students who may have had negative

previous experiences with writing. I want students to feel that both their writing and their individuality are validated within my classroom. Journal Entries (5 total) (5 points each) See Rubric P. Journal entries in my unit of study is inherently both a process and a product assessment, however the concepts we will be addressing align with objectives in a manner that make the journals themselves a summative assessment. Journals will serve as a means of assessing students grasp of concepts, and also will be used as an important scaffold for the gardening vignette summative assessment. Gardening Vignette (40 points) See Rubric Q. The Gardening Vignette will be the capstone written product of this unit of study. Students will use Seedfolks as a model text, and their own gardening experiences within the classroom as their writing inspiration. Students will use the products of their journal entries as potential writing material to amend and adapt for the purpose of their gardening vignettes. The writing process of the gardening vignette will be kick-started by explicit syntax instruction using a line from the Maricela vignette as a mentor text during Lesson 11. Student writing will be further scaffolded by language instruction of simile and metaphor, using a mentor text from All Summer in a Day by Ray Bradbury, which comes from our classroom textbook.

Part Six: Unit Grade Formula Process/Formative Assessments: 121 points max Conversation Calendars (15 points) Double Entry Reader Response Journal (20 points) Individual and Community Anticipation Guide (10 points) Mindfulness Activity Self-Evaluations (15 points) Gardening Log (16 points) Seed Selection Graphic Organizer (5 points) Seed Packet Profile Graphic Organizer (5 points) Community Worksheet (5 points) Oral Participation Peer-Evaluation (5 points) Oral Participation Self-Evaluation (5 points) Gardening Tool Feature Analysis Chart (5 points) Simile and Metaphor Worksheet (5 points) Gardening Vignette Self-Evaluation (5 points) Common Ground Exit Slip (5 points) Product/Formal Assessments: 85 points max Personal I Am Jam (20 points) Journal Entries (25 points) Gardening Vignette (40 points)

A+ = 206-185 A= 184-155 B= 154-125 C= 124- 85 Incomplete <85 Late work will be accepted until the current grading period. Students who do not receive at least a C average in the course will receive an assessment of Incomplete for grading report purposes.

Part Seven: Appendix of Assessment Tools and Rubrics Rubric A: Conversation Calendar Rubric 5 Points You thoroughly address the assigned comment or question. You demonstrate a solid grasp of the learning objective being assessed. 4-3 Points You address the assigned comment or question. You demonstrate an understanding of the objective being assessed. 2 points Your answer to the prompt was off-topic. You need to demonstrate more understanding of the objective being assessed.

Rubric B: Double Entry Reader Response Journal ____/5 Exceeding Expectations (5 points) You made connections with the text using examples from you life. You made evaluations based on your previous life experiences. You anticipate and predict what is going to happen next. Your ideas come from specific examples in the text. Outstanding Job Satisfactory (4 points) Performance (3 points) You made solid personal connections with the text. You evaluations used your own personal judgment and were justified. You made strong connections that referred to parts of the text. You said your opinion without summarizing the story. You made connections to the text but your reasoning would have been stronger if you had used examples and/or referred to the text. You made evaluations but could have explained why? better. At times, you interacted with the text by retelling what it says. Can be Improved (2 points) Your connections with the text need to relate more to your life experiences. You showed that you understand the text through retelling it, but need to explain how you feel about it. You need to explain how you feel about the text.

Personal and Investigative Interactions with the text ____/5

Rubric C: Individual and Community Anticipation Guide Rubric ______/10 Exceeds Expectations Outstanding Job A (8 points) Satisfactory Performance Can be Improved

A+ (10 points) Before and After Evaluations & Comparing and Contrasting Results You thoroughly evaluated each feature both before and after our reading and discussion. You compared and contrasted your anticipation guide results with examples of why your feelings did or did not change. You evaluated each feature both before and after our reading and discussion. You compared and contrasted your anticipation guide results.

B (6 points) You evaluated each feature either before or after our reading and discussion. You discussed your anticipation guide results.

C (4 points) You need to evaluate each feature before and after our reading and discussion. You need to explain how you felt about the statements in the anticipation guide.

Rubric D: Mindfulness Activity Self-Evaluation ______/5 Exceeds Expectations A+ (5 points) Your selfevaluation thoroughly explained how you felt in relation to the mindfulness activity. You described mindful awareness of your mind, heart, and body through phrases and sentences. Outstanding Job A (4 points) Your selfevaluation explained how you felt in relation to the mindfulness activity. You described understanding of your mind, heart, and body through phrases and sentences. Satisfactory Performance B (3 points) Your selfevaluation explained how you felt, but did not talk about your feelings in relation to the activity. You listed words that described how your mind, heart, and body felt. Can be Improved C (2 points) Your selfevaluation did not describe how you felt. You need to describe each aspect of mindfulness: your mind, your heart, and your body.

Rubric E: Gardening Log Rubric ______/2 Green Thumb (2 points) You took care of your plants and kept a record of it in your gardening log. Greenhorn (1 point) You took care of your plants but did not keep a record in your gardening log.

Completion

Rubric F: Seed Selection Graphic Organizer ______/5 Exceeds Expectations A+ (5 points) Each part of your organizer is complete. You included a lot of specific details about your seed to share with your group. Outstanding Job A (4 points) Each part of your organizer is complete. You have details about your seed to share with your group. Satisfactory Performance B (3 points) Some parts of your organizer are not complete. You provide the essential gardening information about your seed to your group. Can be Improved C (2 points) Some parts of your organizer are not complete. You do not provide the essential gardening information about your seed for your group.

Completion

Rubric G: Seed Packet Profile Graphic Organizer Rubric ______/5 Exceeds Expectations A+ (5 points) Each part of your organizer is complete. You are an expert and have all the information to create your groups Seed Packet Visual Display. Outstanding Job A (4 points) Each part of your organizer is complete. You have a lot of information to create your groups Seed Packet Visual Display. Satisfactory Performance B (3 points) Some parts of your organizer are not complete. You have information to create your groups Seed Packet Visual Display. Can be Improved C (2 points) Your organizer is incomplete. You do not have any information to help your group create your groups Seed Packet Visual Display.

Completion

Rubric H: Oral Participation Peer-Evaluation Rubric ______/5 Exceeds Expectations A+ (5 points) You provided your peer with specific feedback of each feature of the Oral Participation Rubric. Outstanding Job A (4 points) You provided your peer feedback on each feature of the Oral Participation Rubric. Satisfactory Performance B (3 points) You provided your peer feedback on some of the features of the Oral Participation Rubric. Can be Improved C (2 points) You did not provide your peer with feedback using the Oral Participation Rubric.

Completion

Rubric I: Seedfolks Community Worksheet ______/5 Exceeds Expectations A+ (5 points) You answered all of the questions on the worksheet. Your answers were supported by examples from your life, our reading of the Kim vignette, and our class discussion. Outstanding Job A (4 points) You answered all of the questions on the worksheet. Your answers were supported by examples from your life, our reading of the Kim vignette, or our class discussion. Satisfactory Performance B (3 points) You answered all of the questions on the worksheet. Your answers would have been improved if you had used examples from your life, our reading of the Kim vignette, or our class discussion. Can be Improved C (2 points) You did not answer all of the questions on the worksheet. Your answers would have been improved if you had used examples from your life, our reading of the Kim vignette, or our discussion.

Rationale

Rubric J: Oral Participation Self-Evaluation Rubric ______/5 Exceeds Expectations A+ (5 points) Outstanding Job A (4 points) Satisfactory Performance B (3 points) Can be Improved C (2 points)

Completion

You evaluated yourself using each feature from the Oral Participation Rubric. You identified specific things to improve and specific areas where you performed well.

You evaluated yourself using each feature from the Oral Participation Rubric. You identified things to improve or areas where you performed well.

You evaluated yourself using each feature of the Oral Participation Rubric, but did not identify things to improve or where you performed well.

You did not evaluate yourself using each feature of the Oral Participation Rubric. You did not identify things to improve or where you performed well.

Rubric K: Gardening Tool Feature Analysis Chart Rubric ______/5 Exceeds Expectations A+ (5 points) You evaluated each feature of every gardening tool on the feature analysis chart. You created a thorough list of verbs that apply to each gardening tool. Outstanding Job A (4 points) You evaluated each feature of every gardening tool on the feature analysis chart. You provided several verbs that apply to each gardening tool. Satisfactory Performance B (3 points) You evaluated each feature of every gardening tool on the feature analysis chart. You provided verbs for some but not all gardening tools. Can be Improved C (2 points) You did not evaluate every gardening tool using the feature analysis chart. You did not provide any verbs that apply to the gardening tools.

Completion

Rubric L: Simile and Metaphor Worksheet Rubric ______/5 Exceeds Expectations A+ (5 points) You completed each portion of the worksheet. You correctly identified whether your creative Outstanding Job A (4 points) You completed each portion of the worksheet. You correctly identified whether your creative Satisfactory Performance B (3 points) You have not completed your worksheet. You made creative comparisons and correctly identified Can be Improved C (2 points) You have not completed your worksheet. You have misidentified whether your creative

Completion

comparisons were similes or metaphors. You picked to describe items that you could easily weave into your gardening vignette.

comparisons were similes or metaphors.

whether they were similes or metaphors.

comparisons were similes or metaphors.

Rubric M: Gardening Vignette Self-Evaluation Rubric ______/5 Exceeds Expectations A+ (5 points) You evaluated yourself using each feature from the Gardening Vignette Rubric. You identified specific things in your draft that are done well and specific areas to improve. Outstanding Job A (4 points) You evaluated yourself using each feature from the Gardening Vignette Rubric. You identified things in your draft to improve or that are done well. Satisfactory Performance B (3 points) You evaluated yourself using each feature of the Gardening Vignette Rubric, but did not identify things to improve or where you performed well. Can be Improved C (2 points) You did not evaluate yourself using each feature of the Gardening Vignette Rubric. You did not identify what you did well or things to improve.

Completion

Rubric N: Common Ground Exit Slip Rubric ______/5 Exceeds Expectations A+ (5 points) You answered every question on the exit slip. You compared and contrasted Outstanding Job A (4 points) You answered every question on the exit slip. You compared or contrasted Satisfactory Performance B (3 points) You answered every question on the exit slip. You described your Can be Improved C (2 points) You did not answer every question on the exit slip. You did not describe

Evaluation of Perspective of a Shared Experience

your perspective with one or more of your classmates, using specific examples. Rubric O: Person I Am Jam Rubric ______/20 Exceeds Expectations A+ (20 points) You really engaged with this writing task and after reading your I Am Jam I feel that I know a lot about you, your interests, or your personality.

your perspective with one or more of your classmates.

perspective or someone elses perspective, but did not compare or contrast the two.

your perspective or someone elses perspective.

Outstanding Job A (18 points) You wrote about yourself and after reading your I Am Jam I feel I know a lot about you.

Satisfactory Performance B (15 points) You wrote about yourself but after reading your I Am Jam I feel I know things about you that I didnt know before.

Can be Improved C (10 points) You did not write about yourself or your lifes experience. After reading your I Am Jam I feel I dont know much about you.

Writing Task Focus

Rubric P: Journal Entry Rubric ______/5 Exceeds Expectations A+ (20 points) You thoroughly evaluated the journal prompt and demonstrate an firm grasp of our learning objectives. Outstanding Job A (18 points) You evaluate the journal prompt. You demonstrate an understanding of the learning objectives. Satisfactory Performance B (15 points) You discuss the journal prompt but do not evaluate how you feel about it. You demonstrate what you know about our learning objectives. Can be Improved C (10 points) You did not discuss the journal prompt. You did not demonstrate what you know about our learning objectives.

Writing Task Focus

Rubric Q: Gardening Vignette Rubric ____/40 Seedfolk A+ (20 points) Your vignette addresses your gardening experience in a way that reveals strong connections with your plants or your classmates. Your vignette could be added to Seedfolks! Your vignette has descriptive similes and metaphors to describe your gardening experience. Your vignette has an imitation of our mentor text from the vignette Maricela. Green Thumb A (19 to 16 points) Your vignette addresses your gardening experience within our classroom but needs to demonstrate a connection with your plants or your classmates. Your vignette has similes and metaphors or an imitation of our mentor text from the vignette Maricela. Great Gardener B (15 to 11 points) Your vignette addresses experiences within our classroom, but could have focused more closely on your gardening experience. Greenhorn C (10 points) Your vignette does not address your experiences within our classroom.

Writing Task Focus _____/20

Use of Writing Instruction _____/20

Your vignette uses at least one simile or metaphor to describe your gardening experience, but your writing would have benefited from you using them more. You may not have used your imitation of our mentor text from the vignette Maricela.

You vignette does not use simile or metaphor. You did not use your imitation of our mentor text from the vignette Maricela.