Documentation Strategies: Consider using the following ways to organize and collect student learning evidence:

• Two of the Same: Students complete two of the same tasks which are documents over a period of time. For example, an impromptu write completed in October, and one completed in January; the two similar artifacts invite observations and comparisons, demonstrating student growth and learning.

• Showing the Knowing: Demonstrations/process-based sharing: student presents or “walks” through an activity, task, or process, explaining their thinking, the strategies they used, the connections they made, the decision making process, the problem solving skills they used, and the new understandings they have built.

• Celebrating the Learning: Documented student artifacts show skill and ability reflecting criteria of success. May include performance standard descriptors or task generated criteria; comments are made based on observed evidence that meets criteria.

Triangulation: Digital portfolios provide a great place for products of learning to be curated. Yet don't discount the importance of a simple conversation or observation that you may have in class with a student. Not every piece of evidence needs to be a 'Kodak' moment, in many cases posts of conversations and observations tend to be the most authentic learning evidence students and teachers can make.

Reflection needs to be taught and practiced: Don't expect students to know how to reflect. Using documentation strategies like the one above, or sharing a glow/grow for their work help provide students a good framework. In addition, we suggest using these strategies over and over again. As students become comfortable with them they will dig deeper and the strategies will turn into routines. For a list of helpful student reflection prompts click HERE and for some a list of Making Thinking Visible routines click HERE.

Not all learning needs to be documented: Just like we focus our instruction on our big ideas and those essential understandings, consider how you might do the same with your documentation. How might we document in a way that is holistic and provides students reflection point for multiple learning standards at once?

Get students to document: Much like author and educator Trevor Mackenzie advocates when considering inquiry, it works best when we slowly transfer control to the students. You might begin the year modeling what documentation looks like for students and do the majority yourself, but as the year progresses consider bringing students into the fold and letting them take responsibility for their learning. Tools like voice-to-text and video make this possible for even our youngest learners. In the blog post 'From CSL to SCL' you'll read how one of our team members advocates switching the Communicating Student Learning (CSL) acronym around to truly make it about students. Click HERE to read more!