Early Childhood

Task 3: Assessment Commentary

TASK 3: ASSESSMENT COMMENTARY

Respond to the prompts below (​no more than 10 single-spaced pages, including prompts​) by typing your responses within the
brackets following each prompt. Do not delete or alter the prompts. Commentary pages exceeding the maximum will not be
scored. Attach the assessment you used to evaluate student performance (​no more than 5 additional pages​) to the end of this
file. If you submit evidence of learning, a student work sample, or feedback as a video or audio clip and you or your focus
students cannot be clearly heard, attach a transcription of the inaudible comments (​no more than 2 additional pages​) to the
end of this file. These pages do not count toward your page total.

1. Analyzing Children’s Learning

a. Identify the specific language and literacy learning objectives for the common
assessment you chose for analysis.
[The specific learning targets that were measured by the assessment I chose for analysis
include:
● Lesson 1: The students will be able to list attributes of two different types of text as they
compare and contrast each type of text.
● Lesson 2: The students will be able to differentiate between literary text and
informational text.
● Lesson 3: The students will be able to identify text features in an informational book.
Lesson 4: The students will be able to read an informational text and write about it.

I carefully chose each of the learning targets listed because they all build on each other
in order to meet the goal of the Central Focus which was: The students will read and
comprehend informational texts. The learning targets were also formulated by the learning
standard used throughout every lesson which was: CC.1.R.L.5 Craft and Structure: Explain
major differences between books that tell stories and books that give information, drawing on a
wide reading of a range of text types. ]
b. Provide a graphic (table or chart) or narrative that summarizes the class/group’s learning
for the common assessment.
[ Assessment 4.1

Meeting Standard Approaching Not at Standard

Standard

The student was The student was The student was

able to​ write​ the able to ​write​ the not able to​ write​ the
main idea of the text main idea of the text main idea of the text
and two to three and zero to one or supporting details
supporting details supporting details

Student 1 3 2 1

Student 2 3 2 1

Student 3 3 2 1

Copyright © 2018 Board of Trustees of the Leland Stanford Junior University.​ 1 of 9 | 10 pages maximum
All rights reserved. V06
The edTPA trademarks are owned by The Board of Trustees of the Leland Stanford Junior University. Use of the edTPA trademarks is
permitted only pursuant to the terms of a written license agreement.
 Early Childhood
Task 3: Assessment Commentary

Student 4 3 2 1

Student 5 3 2 1

Student 6 3 2 1

Student 7 3 2 1

Student 8 3 2 1

Student 9 3 2 1

Student 10 3 2 1

Student 11 3 2 1

Student 12 3 2 1

Student 13 3 2 1

Student 14 3 2 1

Student 15 3 2 1

Student 16 3 2 1
]
c. Use the class/group summary you provided in prompt 1b to analyze the patterns of
language and literacy learning for ​the class/group​.
[ The assessment listed above requires the students to write about the main idea and
supporting details of an informational text they have read. The students were asked to read an
informational text of their choice, then write to the best of their abilities what the main idea of the
book was along with supporting details. As I analyze the results for the assessment listed
above, I can report that most of the students have met the standard while a couple of students
have reached the approaching standard level. On the day of this assessment, 2 out of the 16
students were absent. Out of the remaining students, 2 out of 14 students achieved an
approaching standard level which means that those students were able to write the main idea
and 0-1 supporting detail. The rest, 12 students, scored at the meeting standard level which
means they were able to write the main idea and 2-3 supporting details.
As I analyze the patterns of language and literacy learning for the class I first need to
provide some background information. The students all got the chance to work with leveled
books in order to provide the best outcome. The students were divided into three groups labeled
as beginner, intermediate, and advanced. In my beginner group, I have a total of six students
which includes focus student 1. In my intermediate group, I have a total of six students. In my
advanced group, I have a total of four students including focus student 2. All students but 2 in
the beginner level group were able to meet the standard. The two that didn't meet the standard
reached the approaching standard level. All students that were able to meet the standard level
in the assessment provided evidence through their work. The student’s work samples all
provided with evidence of meeting the standard by each student through their writing as they

Copyright © 2018 Board of Trustees of the Leland Stanford Junior University.​ 2 of 9 | 10 pages maximum
All rights reserved. V06
The edTPA trademarks are owned by The Board of Trustees of the Leland Stanford Junior University. Use of the edTPA trademarks is
permitted only pursuant to the terms of a written license agreement.
 Early Childhood
Task 3: Assessment Commentary

were able to identify the main idea of the story. The work samples also provide 2-3 supporting
details to go along with the main idea. In most cases, the students were able to provide a
maximum of three supporting details. The student’s response shows that they can utilize the
learning strategies presented and be able to identify the main idea of a story. These results
show that most students were able to demonstrate that they can read an informational text and
comprehend what they have read by demonstrating what they have learned through their
reading by using a graphic organizer to write the main idea of the text along with supporting
details. The two students that reached the approaching standard level demonstrated to have
comprehended the content of the informational text by writing down the main idea but were only
able to write 0-1 supporting detail. These students have demonstrated to be able to have great
discussions about the text they read but might need more experience with transferring their
thoughts into writing. These students may benefit from writing one-word statements for each
detail and/or drawing a picture to illustrate their thoughts. ]
d. Analyze the patterns of learning for the ​2 focus children​. Reference the ​3​ ​sources of
evidence ​you collected​ for each of the 2 focus children​.

Consider children’s strengths (what children understand and do well), and areas of learning
that need attention (e.g., common errors, confusions, need for greater challenge).
[ As I analyze the patterns of learning for the two focus students I have concluded that the
students were able to meet the standard regardless of the difference in reading levels.
Based on the work samples I have provided, it can be observed that focus student 1 was able to
identify the main idea along with three supporting details for the corresponding text. The
assessment criteria proved that the student was able to meet the standard of the lesson. In
video clip 2 that was provided in task 2, the student can be seen struggling to use the academic
language taught throughout the lesson, (literary text and informational text). The student can be
heard recalling that the text can be either fiction or nonfiction which leads to the conclusion that
he has some understanding about the content and just needed some more interaction and
practice with the new language in order to make connections between his personal knowledge
and what I was teaching through the lesson. This can also be applied to what I have analyzed
with his work sample and assessment score. The student has a great knowledge bank but might
need more practice getting his thoughts into legible writing. The writing was good but was hard
to understand. If the student is allowed to practice the skills he will have a greater chance of
achieving the goal of producing more legible writing in order to write his thoughts down on
paper.
Based on the work sample provided for focus student 2, it can be observed that the
student was able to identify the main idea along with three supporting details for the
corresponding text. The assessment criteria proved that the student was able to meet the
standard of the lesson. The writing provided by the students work sample is very clear and easy
to understand. Focus student 2 has definitely demonstrated to be a strong reader as well as a
great writer. The student may benefit greatly from being challenged and by providing her with
books at a higher level than what she is already on. The student may also benefit from writing
longer pieces of writing that require paragraph form about her writing in order to challenge her.
These identified strengths may help her grow into an even stronger reader and writer. ]
e. If video or audio evidence of learning or a video or audio work sample occurs in a group
context (e.g., discussion), provide the name of the clip and clearly describe how the

Copyright © 2018 Board of Trustees of the Leland Stanford Junior University.​ 3 of 9 | 10 pages maximum
All rights reserved. V06
The edTPA trademarks are owned by The Board of Trustees of the Leland Stanford Junior University. Use of the edTPA trademarks is
permitted only pursuant to the terms of a written license agreement.
 Early Childhood
Task 3: Assessment Commentary

scorer can identify the focus children (e.g., position, physical description) whose work is
portrayed.
[ Video evidence of learning is provided through video clip 2. The focus student can be identified
easily as I am speaking directly to him and only him through the duration of the video clip. The
student is standing up and he is facing me and is wearing a gray sweater with green lines going
down his shoulders. ]
2. Feedback to Guide Further Learning
Refer to specific evidence of submitted feedback to support your explanations.
a. Identify the format in which you submitted your evidence of feedback for the 2 focus
children. ​(Delete choices that do not apply.)
◼ Written directly on work samples or in separate documents that were provided to the
focus children
If a video or audio clip of feedback occurs in a group context (e.g., discussion), clearly describe how
the scorer can identify the focus child (e.g., position, physical description) who is being
given feedback.

[ The feedback I have provided to the 2 focus students is in the form of work samples. The
feedback was written directly on the work samples and was later discussed with the students as
we met one-on-one. I had to consider that the students are not yet capable of reading and
analyzing their own feedback so I planned to meet with them one-on-one to discuss the
feedback with each child. As I met with each child I helped them read and understand their
strengths and weaknesses. I also helped them plan for further corrections and how to deepen
their understanding of the content. ]
b. Explain how the feedback provided to the 2 focus children addresses their individual and
developmental strengths and needs relative to language and literacy development.
[ The individual feedback provided to the two focus children addresses their individual and
developmental strengths and needs relative to language and literacy development in written
form directly on the work sample. The feedback that was provided was meant to help the
students make progress beyond what they were able to demonstrate the first time around. As
stated before, the students are at opposite levels of development, having focus student 1 at the
beginning level and focus student 2 at the advanced level. Therefore it is expected to receive
varying levels of achievement but it may not always be the case.
Focus student 1 is at a beginning level which correlates to him typically performing below
grade level. On the work sample the student performance met the standard which is not his
typical level of performance. At the end of lesson 4, the student was able to identify the main
idea and three supporting details in written form. For focus student 1, I provided feedback on his
strength which was listing the main idea and supporting details.This feedback was given in the
form of written comments right on the work sample using red ink. I commented on how well he
did identifying the supporting details. I also gave feedback on his weakness which is to provide
legible writing. I suggested that the student focuses on providing his best handwriting.
Focus student 2 is at an advanced level which correlated with her typically performing
above grade level. The work sample for this student shows how her performance met the
standard which is usually typical for her. At the end of lesson 4, the student was able to identify
the main idea and three supporting details in written form. For focus student 2, I provided

Copyright © 2018 Board of Trustees of the Leland Stanford Junior University.​ 4 of 9 | 10 pages maximum
All rights reserved. V06
The edTPA trademarks are owned by The Board of Trustees of the Leland Stanford Junior University. Use of the edTPA trademarks is
permitted only pursuant to the terms of a written license agreement.
 Early Childhood
Task 3: Assessment Commentary

feedback on her strengths which were listing the main idea and supporting details. This
feedback was given in the form of written comments right on the work sample using red ink. I
commented on how well she identified the supporting details. Since she is advanced in her
reading and writing skills I also provided a challenge and made a comment asking if she could
think of any more supporting details to go along with the text. ]
c. Describe how you will support each focus child to understand and use this feedback to
further their learning related to learning objectives, either within the learning segment or
at a later time.
[ I will support focus Student 1 in understanding and using the feedback provided in order
to further his learning related to the learning objective at a later time by meeting with him
one-on-one. I have taken into consideration that the student is not yet developmentally ready
and capable of reading and analyzing his own feedback. I will meet with the student
one-one-one to discuss the feedback and meet his individual needs. I will point out his strengths
which are to appropriately identify the main idea and supporting details of an informational text. I
will point out that it is important to always keep doing our best work and encourage him to keep
working as hard as he is. I will also point out what would be great things to do in order to work
on his weaknesses. His identified weakness if producing legible handwriting. Although his
writing is not extremely illegible I will encourage the student to improve his handwriting in order
to better present his information in written form. I will model how to properly create legible
writing and then have him practice on his own. I will provide extended time at a later time to
allow the student to implement the feedback and expand on the quality of his work.
I will support focus student 2 in understanding and using the feedback provided in order
to further her learning related to the learning objective at a later time by meeting with her
one-on-one. I have taken into consideration that the student is not yet developmentally ready
and capable of reading and analyzing his own feedback. I will point out her strengths and give
positive encouragement to keep working as hard as she is. I will point out her strengths which
are to appropriately identify the main idea and supporting details of an informational text. I will
also provide her with more challenging ways to expand on her work. The student will be
encouraged to write longer pieces of writing that require paragraph form for her writing in order
to challenge her. The student may benefit greatly from being challenged and by providing her
with books at a higher level compared to what she already is during future lessons. These
identified strengths may help her grow into a stronger reader and writer. I will provide extended
time at a later time to allow the students to implement the feedback and expand on the quality of
their work. A weakness that can be identified based on her above grade level performance is
that she can work on the correct spelling of words and producing complete sentences. I will
model how to create complete sentences by reviewing the parts of a sentence with her. I will
also encourage her to write complete sentences by prompting her to use her picture dictionary
as needed. ]
3. Evidence of Vocabulary Understanding and Use
When responding to the prompt below, use concrete examples from the video clips and/or
children’s work samples as evidence. Evidence from the video clips may focus on one or
more children.

Copyright © 2018 Board of Trustees of the Leland Stanford Junior University.​ 5 of 9 | 10 pages maximum
All rights reserved. V06
The edTPA trademarks are owned by The Board of Trustees of the Leland Stanford Junior University. Use of the edTPA trademarks is
permitted only pursuant to the terms of a written license agreement.
 Early Childhood
Task 3: Assessment Commentary

1
a. Explain how children were able to use the key vocabulary to support their learning of the
content.

For prompt 3a, refer to the evidence of children’s vocabulary use ​from ONE, TWO,
OR ALL THREE of the following sources:

1. Video clips from Instruction Task 2 and time-stamp references for evidence of
vocabulary use
2. Additional video file named “Vocabulary Use” of no more than 5 minutes in
length and cited vocabulary use (this can be footage of one or more children).
See Assessment Task 3 specifications in the Early Childhood Evidence Chart
for acceptable file types. Submit the video clip in Assessment Task 3, Part C.
3. Children’s work samples analyzed in Assessment Task 3 and cited
vocabulary use

[ The selected key vocabulary that was used to support the students learning of the
content was: Main idea and supporting details The students were introduced to the key
vocabulary during the introduction of lesson 4. The key vocabulary was introduced after we
reviewed the skills we had learned in the past three lessons. The past three lessons taught the
skills of finding similarities and differences in various text types, identifying literary and
informational texts, and identifying text features in an informational text. These skills build on
each other to help the students be able to read and informational text and be able to write about
it. The key vocabulary was taught explicitly by first defining each term for the students. The
students were asked to repeat each term after me along with its definition. Then I proceeded to
explicitly teach the group how to read an informational text and find the main idea and
supporting details of a text in order to write about the text that was read. As I taught the students
how to actively use the key vocabulary I asked students to volunteer and help me find the main
idea and supporting details as we read each page. The majority of the students were able to
correctly use the key vocabulary through oral discussions and in written form as they wrote
about the main idea and supporting details of their text. Through the students' work samples we
are able to analyze how the students were able to correctly place information on their graphic
organizers as they found the main idea and supporting details of their text. My focus students
were both able to discuss what the main idea of the text was and write the information in the
correct slot. For example, focus student 1 who is at the beginning level of performance was able
to fill out the slot for the main idea by writing:” The main idea: to tell us about was shark ”. On
the other hand, focus student 2 wrote: “The main idea: was to tell us about shark”. Here, both
students clearly use the first key vocabulary to fill in the slot where they are talking about the
main idea. My focus students are both able to also discuss supporting details that go along with
their main idea and correctly wrote the information on the correct slots. For example, for the first
supporting detail, both focus students wrote “ Detail 1: Shark have gills”. This demonstrated that
both focus students were able to use the key vocabulary as they wrote about the main idea of
the text. For supporting detail 2, Focus student 1 wrote: “Detail 2: Shark Embuto on embryo
1
​This vocabulary was identified in Planning Task 1 and refers to developmentally appropriate sounds, words, phrases, sentences,
and paragraphs that children use or create to engage in the learning experience.

Copyright © 2018 Board of Trustees of the Leland Stanford Junior University.​ 6 of 9 | 10 pages maximum
All rights reserved. V06
The edTPA trademarks are owned by The Board of Trustees of the Leland Stanford Junior University. Use of the edTPA trademarks is
permitted only pursuant to the terms of a written license agreement.
 Early Childhood
Task 3: Assessment Commentary

ofaneg egg”. Focus student wrote: “ Shark embryo an embryo is a tiep of an egg”. This
demonstrated a good understanding from both focus students although one sample is more
legible and advanced than the other. For supporting detail 3, Focus student 1 wrote: “
Somesheks kairy thir eggs”. while focus student 2 wrote: “ Some shrks kiry thir eggs”. Again,
both students came up with the same concept but one was written at a more legible and
advanced level. Overall, both focus students and most of the class were able to demonstrate
the proper use of the key vocabulary. Therefore, the students demonstrated an effective and
comprehensible development with the key vocabulary. ]
4. Using Assessment to Inform Instruction
a. Based on your analysis of children’s learning presented in prompts 1b–c, describe next
steps for instruction to impact children’s learning:
◼ For the class/group
◼ For the 2 focus children and other individuals/groups with specific needs
Consider the active and multimodal nature of children’s learning and the variety of learners
in your class/group who may require different strategies/supports (e.g., children with
IEPs or 504 plans, English language learners, children at different points in the
developmental continuum, struggling readers, and/or gifted children needing greater
support or challenge).
[ After analyzing the patterns of student’s learning I have decided to move on and plan for
the next step of working with informational texts. My decision was made based on the data
provided that shows that 12 out of 16 students have met the standard. This gives me the go
signal that most students are ready to move on.
Although most students are ready to move on I will continue to provide support for those
students who have not met the standard yet. I will provide individualized instruction for these
students in order to help them improve the quality of their performance. Using a small group and
individual instruction approach I will give differentiated instruction in order to help those four
students who have not yet met the standard. I will do this by planning supplementary lessons
that will help students review the concepts and practice the key vocabulary in an active in
multimodal way. This can be done by repeatedly seeing examples of how to find the main idea
and supporting details of a text. The students will also benefit from hands on activities where
they can interact with the text on their own and/or with partners to look for the main idea and
supporting details of the text. As the students get to collaborate with one another they can
discuss their points of view and share how they interact with the text to find the main idea and
supporting details. This group will also get the opportunity to work with students who have met
the standard in order to provide them with varied and rich experience of collaborating and
learning from those who are achieving at higher levels. The students will also receive multiple
opportunities to interact with the content in written form. I will have the students do
supplementary activities where thy will find the main idea and supporting details of their text and
write about them.
Focus student one will benefit from working with both the students who are approaching
the standard and those who are meeting the standard. By working with both groups the student
will reinforce the skills he has already acquired as he works with the lower performing group.
When he gets the chance to work with the higher performing group he will get the chance to to
strengthen the skills he already has and build on them to continue progressing on to the next
step.

Copyright © 2018 Board of Trustees of the Leland Stanford Junior University.​ 7 of 9 | 10 pages maximum
All rights reserved. V06
The edTPA trademarks are owned by The Board of Trustees of the Leland Stanford Junior University. Use of the edTPA trademarks is
permitted only pursuant to the terms of a written license agreement.
 Early Childhood
Task 3: Assessment Commentary

The rest of the class who is ready to move on to the next step of working with
informational text will get to engage in a more extent and higher order thinking type of learning
activities. I will continue to engage students in expanding their knowledge about finding main
ideas and supporting details as I expect more feedback from what they are learning in either
oral or written form. As the students get more comfortable with the content I will expect lengthier
and more detailed responses. Now that the students are progressing to being more descriptive
in their discussions and in their writing they will constantly refer back to skills learned in previous
lessons. It is very important to revisit skills that were previously learned because they enrich the
learning process and add value to the content they are learning. Next, those who have met the
standard will slowly progress to engaging in informative writing. This will take the advanced
students a step further and at the same time challenge those who have met the standard but
are not quite ready to move on just yet. ]
b. Explain how these next steps follow from your analysis of children’s learning. Support
your explanation with principles from research and/or developmental theory.
[ Now that I have analyzed the students' patterns of learning I have used the information
to plan and differentiate for everyone in the group and for my focus students. The next steps of
instruction that were explained in the previous prompt follow from my analysis of children's
learning by providing all students with meaningful experiences to make progress and build on
prior knowledge as I help all my students meet their individual needs. As I keep in mind all of my
students and their varying levels of achievement I have resorted to Vygotsky’s theory, Zone of
Proximal Development (ZPD). Vygotsky defined ZPD as "the distance between the actual
developmental level as determined by independent problem solving and the level of potential
development as determined through problem solving under adult guidance, or in collaboration
with more capable peers". Vygotsky believed that our role as educators is to provide children
with experiences that are within their ZPD in order to encourage and advance their individual
learning. For example, as I mentioned in prompt 4a that I will provide individualized instruction
for all students in order to help them improve the quality of their performance goes. I have
decided to meet my students and their varying needs by analyzing and identifying what they can
do with help in order for me to provide guidance and support to help them grow and advance on
to the next step in their developmental level.
The Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD) goes along with the idea of scaffolding
students when they are in the ZPD. Vygotsky firmly believed that when a student is in the zone
of proximal development for a particular task, scaffolding the students prior knowledge and
providing appropriate assistance will give them a chance to achieve better results on the
particular task. As I mentioned in prompt 4a I will engage the students in expanding their
knowledge about finding main ideas and supporting details as I expect more feedback from
what they are learning in either oral or written form. So not only am I meeting them where they
are, but I will be providing support and guidance to move a step forward to achieve the goals of
giving lengthier feedback about what they are learning.
Finally, I have planned for active and multimodal interactions between the students
regardless of their developmental level As stated in prompt 4a, the students will benefit from
hands on activities where they can interact with the text on their own and/or with partners to look
for the main idea and supporting details of the text. As the students get to collaborate with one
another they can discuss their points of view and share how they interact with the text to find the
main idea and supporting details. This can be supported by Vygotsky’s theory of social
development. Vygotsky’s social development theory explains that social interactions affects the
learning process of an individual. As social interactions happen the individuals cognitive

Copyright © 2018 Board of Trustees of the Leland Stanford Junior University.​ 8 of 9 | 10 pages maximum
All rights reserved. V06
The edTPA trademarks are owned by The Board of Trustees of the Leland Stanford Junior University. Use of the edTPA trademarks is
permitted only pursuant to the terms of a written license agreement.
 Early Childhood
Task 3: Assessment Commentary

development gets to work and allows the students to use those social interactions to learn to the
best of the students ability. For example, if the students get the chance to discuss a certain topic
with their peers the student then gets to learn from his/her peers through social interaction
therefore causing the newly learned information to be internalized.
overall, all three theories described go hand in hand to best help students reach their
independent goals as they work with the teacher and those around them. ]

Copyright © 2018 Board of Trustees of the Leland Stanford Junior University.​ 9 of 9 | 10 pages maximum
All rights reserved. V06
The edTPA trademarks are owned by The Board of Trustees of the Leland Stanford Junior University. Use of the edTPA trademarks is
permitted only pursuant to the terms of a written license agreement.