Assessment Information

There are many tools that educators use for reading documentation at the Singing Hills Elementary. Each assessment varies in length, purpose, and implementation. However, all provide the ongoing monitoring a teacher gathers while building a “body of evidence” to determine a child’s reading ability. With quick analysis, all provide direction for the next critical steps teachers use to guide a student toward continued reading success. The four assessments mentioned below are recognized by the state of Colorado as valid and reliable tools for gathering reading data:

DIBELS (Dynamic Indicators of Basic Early Literacy Skills) is a reading readiness test used by K-1 teachers to see if a child has basic skills in place to begin the reading process. The children are tested at the beginning, middle, and end of the school year with corresponding benchmarks. Each subtest provides the teacher with indicators for predicting future reading success.

School level Interim Assessments Interim assessments are being built and utilized to assess students' level of mastery towards grade level standards. Interim assessments will be given at the beginning and end of units to measure student performance and growth. Throughout instruction, teachers will meet in weekly data teams to review student's current levels and to plan interventions and enrichments to meet all student needs. 

CMAS (Colorado Measures of Academic Success) is the state’s premier tool to see how well all Colorado 3rd-10th graders are performing when measured against state standards and benchmarks. Third, fourth, and fifth graders are tested in Reading, Writing, and Math with fifth graders taking an additional Science exam. It is given once a year following a tight testing window and specific administration protocols for reliability and validity purposes. It is the primary tool, coupled with other school factors, to assign each school a yearly Excellent, High, Average, Low, or Unsatisfactory rating.

These brief assessment descriptions provide a general glimpse of the data gathering tools used at Singing Hills to document student growth. For in-depth analysis, please refer to the School Assessment Data sheet included in the student report card.