Teaching a multi-age classroom, I encounter all kinds of student needs. In every grade K-5, I have students who are performing on grade level, below grade level, and above grade level. Last week, I brought a dozen different spelling test papers, which I pulled from all over the place, to the copy machine. I also ran into problems with handwriting. I needed a test format with 20 lines, but I also needed it to have primary ruling. Ahh! On top of everything, some of my students argued over whose paper had which design, and it was just driving all of us batty (See what I did there with my October-esque pun? Har har.). A parent even was upset when I sent home spelling tests with half of the numbers crossed off for my kid who was performing below level. I needed something that looked the same but was differentiated.
I finally decided to make a spelling test format that met all of our needs. It has plain ruled and primary ruled line options for every test, and I created a test with 5 lines all the way through 20 lines. They all have a picture of an adorable bee (get it-- spelling bee?) thanks to Graphics from the Pond, perfect for early finishers to color and non-argument-inducing.
Check it out here!
