Assessment Tools

Animoto gives students the ability to make a short, 30-second share video of what they learned in a given lesson. I like Animoto because it is a practical tool for student assessment. Students benefit from using Animoto because they have to take the time to think about, prepare, and share what they have learned. Through this process, they are encoding that information. They are also having to curate information to be able to summarize what they have learned in 30 seconds. Not only is it beneficial for students but to teachers as well. Teachers can review student responses from anywhere and these responses allow the teacher a quick and easy way to assess students.

Animoto is a great assessment tool. It can also be used by students to create projects, for share time, for class discussions, the options are truly limitless. I would love to use Animoto in my class. One way I would use this is to use it as an opportunity for students to share. I would have students create a video to share with the class this could be about anything appropriate that they might want to share. This could be their weekend plans, a family vacation they went on, one of their hobbies, etc. Every morning during our morning meeting I would share a different students video.

The Answer Pad allows teachers to capture data from students using the web or the app and is touted as being ideal for the flipped or blended classroom. The tool has two main features that can help teachers manage formative and/or summative assessment. The Electronic-Answer Sheet lets teachers create online answer forms to use concurrently with a separate test or quiz. Question types include multiple choice, fill in the blank, slider bar, yes/no, pie chart, number wheel, and a blank space/graph for drawing. There are many student benefits, Answer Pad gives kids a simple and safe space to participate in class. It also makes learning more interesting and engaging, and kids can participate without the fear of speaking in front of the whole class. One great feature on Answer Pad is that it allows both teachers and students to see their scores and review the answers. Teachers get a summary of the student answers for immediate review, allowing them to adjust lessons accordingly. Another great teacher benefit is that it aligns to Common Core Standards!


I would definitely use The Answer Pad in my classroom. I would use the Quick Connect feature to create interactive student responses. I would provide students with a quick code so that they can join and answer questions I have provided for them. This would spark classroom collaboration. This would be easy and fun for students!

Use Chatzy to support backchannel conversations in a private setting. These live chats make great companions to classroom discussion, provide exit tickets, or keep a discussion going after the class is over. Chatzy is easy to use and no sign up is required. Teachers can start chats by filling out the simple start-up form. The teacher adds in the student’s email addresses and they receive a link to the chat room. Students benefit from this tool because it gives them an opportunity to open up discussions and to be involved with conversation. This is a great way to get the “shy” students involved in classroom collaboration. Chatzy can be used as a way for students to brainstorm and share ideas about a topic. It can also be used as a forum to ask questions. Teachers can also use Chatzy as a chat room to communicate with parents at scheduled times.

I would use Chatzy in my classroom! I would use it as a way to assess students. After a lesson, I would create a forum on Chatzy with a question related to our lesson. I would then ask students to respond to my question. After all students have responded, I would ask them to respond to their classmates to keep the discussions going.

Coggle is a mind-mapping tool designed to understand student thinking. Simplicity is key with Coggle. Students can create elaborate mind maps and brainstorms in a matter of minutes, and the collaboration options are a nice bonus. Coggle is great for keeping students organized. Students could use this tool before writing an essay to show the main ideas and sub ideas that they want to include. Visualization is important for students, because it teaches them to see the end product even before writing an introduction. The collaboration feature is perfect for peer reviewing and editing. After creating a map, students can share it with their peers. Then their peers can add feedback by using the comment feature. Teachers can also use this feature to see where students are in their brainstorming process and even to see a student’s revision history. This feature allows teachers to know when students get stuck in the brainstorming process or even to provide suggestions of main ideas or subtopics.

I would use Coggle in my classroom during the beginning stages of the writing process. I would have students use Coggle to create brainstorming maps on their assigned writing topics. Once students display all their ideas, they can drag and drop ideas under web squares containing their main topics. This site would also be great for creating any kind of flowchart a student would need for other projects or assignments.

Flipgrid is a website that allows teachers to create "grids" to facilitate video discussions. Each grid is like a message board where teachers can pose questions, called "topics," and their students can post video responses that appear in a tiled grid display. Grids can be shared with classes, small groups, or any collection of users interested in a common strand of questions. Students can respond via the Flipgrid app or website with any camera-enabled device or by uploading a previously recorded video. Responses can be 15 seconds to five minutes, and a maximum recording time can be set. Teachers can also allow students to record replies to classmates' responses. There are a variety of moderation features teachers can turn on or off per topic. 


Students can learn to articulate ideas with well-planned responses and consider alternate viewpoints as they listen to their peers' responses. Flipgrid can be a great way to gather student responses delivered at their own pace without kids feeling "on the spot" in the classroom. Students can take advantage of the "sticky note" on the recording screen to type a short outline or key points before they start recording. When used purposefully, Flipgrid is an engaging way for teachers to foster discussion

I would use Flipgrid to further classroom conversations by assigning questions as homework assignments and then continue the conversation in class the next day. For example, in social studies, I would have students weigh in on a critical current event. We could share and continue this in class the following day.

Kahoot is a free student-response tool for all platforms. Kahoot allows teachers to create game-like multiple choice answer quizzes. Teachers can either create their own quizzes or find, use, and/or remix public quizzes. Questions, along with answer choices, are projected onto a classroom screen while students submit responses using an internet-connected device (computer, tablet, or phone). Questions and answers can contain images and videos to hep appeal to all learners. Kahoot can be used for individual or team learning. One of the main benefits of Kahoot for students is how engaging this tool is. The energized, game-like atmosphere comes from the use of bright colors, suspenseful music, and points are awarded for response accuracy and speed. Students can also use the mobile app on a personal device, they can see their past results, pause/resume individual quizzes, and complete homework challenges.

I would definitely use Kahoot! I would use Kahoot as a way to review before quizzes and tests. I could also use it as an exit ticket. If we have a quiz on Friday, I would use Kahoot at the end of class on Thursday as a review on the topic being tested. I could also give students access to the Kahoot quiz and review over the weekend to view at home.

PlayPosit Is an interactive video and assessment tool that allows teachers to add formative assessment features (pauses and questions) to survey what students know about the topic. Teachers choose from a library of video content from popular sites such as YouTube, Vimeo, and others. Throughout any video lesson, students can rewind to hear any part of the video again. However, they can’t fast-forward to skip ahead of what they’ve already watched. Through a dashboard, teachers can get data about students’ use and performance within the embedded assessment items. Students benefit from this tool because these creative assessments can encourage them to apply the information to something personally relevant.

I would use PlayPosit as a way to assess my students! I would do this by creating a video that provides students with thought provoking questions. I would add pauses at regular intervals to break up a long session. I believe that this would keep students engaged and keep them listening. I could also use multiple-choice questions as a way to assess students with this tool.

Quia is a platform for teaching and assessing students that basically offers an interactive way for kids to learn, study, and take quizzes. Teachers provide the lesson material-questions, vocabulary, etc. Quia generates fun games and activities for students to use in any subject area. Quia also has a collection of shared activities from other teachers and a question bank that teachers can use to create quick assessments.

Students can benefit from the interactive activities on Quia. Quia provides students with activities that support memorization of facts and definitions through repetition, and rewards the students ability to recall information.

I would use Quia as a way for students to review. I could give a review quiz on Quia and have results just minutes later. This could be used as a guide to differentiation. I could also Use Quia to reinforce content vocabulary at the beginning or end of a lesson. I could have students review content vocabulary at home before we begin lessons.
Quizlet is an online database of nearly 300 million study sets created by students and teachers. These sets include both text-based and visual study materials. Students can remix existing sets or they can create their own. Teachers can also make and share custom study sets just for their classes. Quizlet offers different study activities, including matching and fill-in-the-blank games and timed quizzes, flashcards, and multiple choice questions.

One of the main benefits to Quizlet is how easy it is to use. Another benefit is that teachers and students can browse existing content or upload their own. Quizlet offers a variety of support for ESL students and students with learning differences. Students can click on a word or definition to hear it read aloud or attach voice recordings to flash cards. For visual learning, students and teachers can add images to definition cards or create custom diagrams.

I have used Quizlet as a student and found it very beneficial. Quizlet has always been one of my favorite resources. I would use Quizlet to help students review for quizzes and tests. I would encourage students to use Quizlet on their own time as homework to create their own custom flash card sets. Students could also share their creations with the class, this would be a nice way to help students collaborate as they prepare for tests.

SeeSaw helps teachers improve parent communication and makes formative assessment easy, while students can use the platform to document their learning. Teachers can use Seesaw to create meaningful multimedia experiences for students. Teachers can assign tasks that will engage students with a variety of work in the form of videos, photo, text, images, files, and drawings. Teachers are then able to approve posts, offer feedback, and can make posts accessible to families. Since teachers can view all student submissions, it is an easy way to check for understanding. Teachers can also enable comments which will allow students to provide peer feedback, allowing for a more connected experience.

One of the major benefits to using Seesaw is that it has so many features that will engage students. The audio, video, and drawing options add a ton of opportunities for differentiation and reflection, allowing teachers to accommodate a variety of learning styles. Another great benefit is that teachers can use Seesaw to communicate easily with all students and parents. Seesaw is a powerful way for kids to demonstrate their learning.

I have seen great things happen with Seesaw! We use this tool in the first grade classroom that I work in, and the kids absolutely love it. I would use Seesaw in my classroom in a variety of ways. I could use Seesaw in math, students could upload a video of themselves working through a problem. In reading, they could upload a video of them reading a poem along with a reflection. 



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