10 Alternative Assessments for Homework

August 23rd, 2010 By: Diane Trim in Articles, Teachers' Corner

Homework is a dreaded word for many of our students. To them, homework means endless problem sets, memorizing vocabulary, or filling in the blanks. It’s hard for many kids to find a quiet place at home for homework or even a quiet place on the bus ride to the JV basketball game.

Extending classroom learning outside the school walls is a great idea; it reinforces objectives and makes for better classroom discussions. But the same ol’ read-and-respond assignments get dull. It’s good for everyone to mix up the assessments. It’s great to appeal to students’ learning styles. After all, the brain loves novelty.

1. Treasure hunt. After reading the chapter, find three small objects from home that a person in the chapter would have found useful. Bring the objects to class and be prepared to explain your reasoning.
2. List five things/diagram. After reading the chapter, list five things you’ve learned. Create a diagram that represents these five things in a graphic manner.
3. Haiku. The three-line unrhymed Japanese poem has a simple structure: five syllables, seven syllables, five syllables. The poem should have a sensory word and some contain a comparison. Instead of a chapter summary, ask students to create a haiku for the chapter.
4. Real-world example. If you’re teaching the sine wave, ask students to bring in examples of the sine wave in action (photos from magazines or newspapers are fine). If you’re teaching about adverbs, ask students to bring in a newspaper article with 10 adverbs circled.
5. Write a Tweet. Twitter messages are 140 characters in length. After reading the chapter, ask students for a humorous tweet from the main character or person. For examples of this kind of tweet, visit Historical Tweets.
6. List five things/pantomime. After reading the chapter, list five things you’ve learned. Develop a short pantomime for each of the five things. Be prepared to show the class one of your five things while the rest of us guess which concept you’re acting out.
7. Sell something. After reading the chapter, find an object from your house to “sell.” The item should be perfect for one of the people in the reading or solve a problem that the reading presents. Be prepared to present a 30-second commercial for your object and explain why this is a must-have item.
8. Write a theme song. After reading the chapter, write a short theme song for the main idea, problem, or person in the chapter. Using an existing song is O.K., as long as it fits with the reading. Students can sing, speak, or play their songs for the class.
9. Ask an adult. After the reading the chapter, talk about the material with an adult. What did the adult think of the chapter? What use did the adult have for the material?
10. What if? After reading the chapter, answer one of the following questions (4-5 sentences). What if the time were different? What if the people had more/less money or resources? What if the result were different?

I’m sure that you have many alternative assessments that you give your students instead of the read-and-respond homework assignments. What do you do to vary the homework that you assign?

Mime: On and off due to heavy workload Lighthelper / Darren felon on Flickr.com Creative Commons

Tags: assessment, differentiated instruction, homework