How To Let Kids Celebrate, Play, And Have Fun During Assessments

It’s hard to believe we’re already well into February! By now, many classrooms have celebrated Hundred Days, tried some Valentine’s Day activities, and maybe even explored a few winter-themed lessons. It’s a busy month, but it’s also full of opportunities to take stock of student learning.

Even if report cards or conferences aren’t coming up just yet, the work you do now sets the stage for spring reporting.

The great news? Many of the activities students have just completed can double as informal assessments. That Hundred Day counting challenge, a Valentine writing prompt, or a snowflake math game can all give you insight into literacy, numeracy, and problem-solving skills.

Observing how students tackle these activities, follow directions, and work with others can be just as informative as a formal test, and a lot more fun!

Here are a few ways to make mid-February activities work for you:

Document Recent Work: Keep samples from Valentine writing, Hundred Day projects, or winter math tasks; they’re practical evidence of what students can do.

Take Quick Observation Notes: Jot down how students approach tasks, collaborate, or solve problems. These small notes add up when it’s time for reporting.

Ask Students to Reflect: Simple questions like, “What was your favorite part of this activity?” or “What did you find tricky?” can reveal a lot about understanding.
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Focus on Key Skills: Make sure you’re looking at the learning goals that will matter for spring reporting, whether it’s reading, writing, math, or social skills.

Literacy Focus: Look at recent writing or reading tasks. Can students form complete sentences? Use new vocabulary? Express ideas clearly? What conventions do they know? Can they make predictions and find evidence to support their opinions? How much do they comprehend when reading?

Math Connections: Hundred Day activities, counting games, or problem-solving tasks with winter or Valentine themes can show understanding of number sense, place value, and strategies for solving problems.
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Collecting data on events in the Winter Olympics can demonstrate how well they can document information, classify it, compare it, and draw conclusions based on the information given.

Social Skills: Don’t forget to notice independence, persistence, and teamwork; these are just as important to track for spring reports.

We're halfway through the month, and February still has more to offer! The Lunar New Year is just beginning, and the Winter Olympics are in full swing. Both offer engaging ways to extend learning while gathering assessment data.

Students can explore writing, research, and math activities inspired by the Winter Olympics; think about measuring distances in ski jumps, graphing medals by country, or writing about their favorite winter sport. These celebrations and events give you more opportunities to observe skills in action and make learning relevant and exciting.

They can look at the lunar calendar and the different signs of the zodiac. They can determine their sign. They can read about the different animals and about ways different places celebrate the Lunar New Year. It is most commonly associated with the Chinese New Year, but many other cultures and places celebrate it too.

Even with all the activity and excitement, there’s time to gather meaningful information about your students. By turning recent and upcoming activities into informal assessments, you get a clear picture of growth while keeping the classroom fun and engaging. After all, who says you can’t celebrate, play, and assess all in the same month?

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