Begin at the End - What IS an Embedded Assessment anyway?

What the heck is an Embedded Assessment and what does it mean to "unpack" it?  Well, after the training I originally attended, I believed it was necessary to have a huge production for "unpacking" the embedded assessments.  I was even advised to wear some sort of theme-enhancing costume and really jazz it up!  I was onboard with this if I had to be, but come to find out, with the somewhat unrealistic rigorous pacing of SpringBoard, sporting some sort of academic outfit to blend metaphors with reality while literally unpacking a real suitcase, used as a prop, filled with sentence strips (or, even better - die cut shapes that match the theme) with the skills they would need to be successful on the embedded assessment printed on them fell by the wayside. 

So what is the best way to start?  At minimum, familiarize yourself with the Embedded Assessment that the students will be responsible for doing.  Read the assignment and the rubric.  A rule of thumb I have is double the amount of time they suggest you will need and prepare an alternate / fun assignment for early finishers.

A word of caution regarding Embedded Assessments: 1) they can take forever to grade (if you grade them as strictly as I do). 2) They aren't "assessments" in the sense that you are used to, and for that matter, your principal will think it is something that it isn't.  It is a project-based way for students to showcase that they understand the overall concepts taught throughout the literature and writing activities leading up to the assessment.  It is also a good preparation for the new state assessments we are all heading towards, in that it is, as I stated, project-based.  They do the entire thing in class with the ability to use resources around them (like we would do in the real world). And finally, 3) You need to reference the rubric as often as possible during the weeks leading up to the assessment, and tie activities to the assessment whenever possible, i.e. "which skill on the embedded assessment will this activity help with?"

Back to unpacking... how to do it?  Well the quickest way I found is to keep it simple.  Follow the first actvitiy at the beginning of the unit.  Spend as much time as you have in one class period discussing the final product and have the kids put it into their own language (they can take notes or just discuss) as best they can. 

Next, I've made the necessary skills into mini-posters that are displayed in the room for the entire unit.  You can use the box at the beginning of the teacher's guide to find the most user-friendly list of  skills.  Compare it to the rubric so that you and the students are clear on how they will be graded.   Then, whenever we finish an activity, we add the activity # next to the skill poster so that we know WHY we just did what we did.  I will inlcude pictures of what this looks like in my room.

I also started making graphic organizers for each unit with blank squares  for the kids to keep a small version of what is on our board in their notebook.  Again, I will attach pictures of this as well.

Don't spend more than one period introducing the Embedded Assessment.  Instead, make sure they have a general understanding of what they are working towards.  When you reference it (almost daily) as you progress through the activities, they will have a very clear understanding of what will be expected.  This also helps the kids who were absent the day you revealed their project as well as any new kids who have entered your class.