Information about the history, policy rationale, and research base of MMSR and its relationship to the national and state readiness goals are presented. MMSR defines Outcomes and Indicators for kindergarten children. It supports principles of teaching as espoused by the International Reading Association, the National Association for the Education of Young Children, the Educational Testing Service, and the National Education Goals Panel. MMSR clearly defines expectations for participation for teachers and school administrators.

Participants are introduced to key principles of assessment: complementary processes of assessment (documentation and evaluation); and two types of performance assessment (curriculum-embedded and on-demand).

Participants are introduced to the structure, vocabulary, and purposes of the Work Sampling System Developmental Guidelines. The Work Sampling Systemä Developmental Guidelines describe reasonable expectations for performance for children at each age across all domains of development, thus providing teachers with valid criteria for evaluation. Participants are introduced to the importance of providing teachers with valid criteria for evaluation. Participants are introduced to the importance of planning for observations in order to ensure that assessment is part of the daily classroom routine. They will have an opportunity to reflect and record when and where they can observe children's learning related to the 30 performance indicators. Developed at the University of Michigan, the Work Sampling System is a curriculum-embedded performance assessment for children age three to grade five. The Work Sampling System has been selected as a model approach to assessment for MMSR because of its alignment with the MSDE Assessment Outcomes and Indicators. Local school systems that have designed their own observational assessment and aligned it with the Primary Outcomes and Indicators focus on how to use it with MMSR, rather than using WSS.

Participants engage in a simulation activity in which they examine observational data in order to make evaluative ratings.

The focus of this section is observation. Emphasis is placed on using observation to build relationships with students. Through the use of videotaped vignettes and small and large group discussions, participants practice observing with a focus and examining what they bring to the process of observation. Discussion includes objectivity in observation and the importance of gathering sufficient evidence before making interpretations. Participants are introduced to various techniques of observational recording, are exposed to a range of methods and tools, and are encouraged to build on the strategies they already use.

Module II
Observing Effectively and Documenting Observations Using Checklists

Participants practice observing with a focus.

Participants engage in a simulation activity in which they examine observational data in order to make evaluative ratings.

Participants are introduced to the importance of planning for observations in order to ensure that assessment is part of the daily classroom routine. They reflect on daily classroom activities to determine when, where, and how they can observe in order to document children's learning of specific performance indicators. Participants are introduced to various techniques of observational recording, are exposed to a range of methods and tools, and are encouraged to build on the strategies they already use.

Module III
Promoting Each Child's Success as a Learner

Participants examine factors that influence observations and how to make the act of observing as objective as possible.

Participants learn how their questions about individual children guide their observations and instructional planning. They engage in an activity that promotes thinking about the degree to which they know specific information about individual students in their classrooms and develop an observation action plan to take back to their classrooms for implementation.

Participants engage in a model activity that illustrates the practices in action. They examine the activity to consider several issues: how specific classroom practices can support children's learning and promote effective assessment; what to observe during specific lessons; and designing the methods and tools needed to document the observations. Participants learn to use questions and comments to extend student's thinking.

Module IV
Linking Curriculum, Instruction, and Assessment

Working in small groups, participants share their experiences implementing observation action plans and discuss the impact the plans had on individual students, the classroom overall, and themselves.

Young children need to explore ideas, represents their thinking in different ways, solve meaningful problems, reflect on what they are learning, and feel a sense of autonomy and success as they work. In this section of the workshop, participants are presented with a framework – a set of questions to use when planning – that helps teachers ensure that the activities and themes they plan respond to the needs of all learners.

Participants read and review the Work Sampling System Guidelines for Personal and Social Development. Discussion centers upon reasonable expectations for children's performance in this domain.

The MMSR Planning Guide is designed to align state and local curriculum, instruction, and assessment. Participants are presented with a document that aligns MSDE Assessment Outcomes and Indicators with the Work Sampling System performance indicators. A primary purpose of this document is to help classroom teachers understand and interpret state standards and translate them into daily classroom practice. Emphasis is placed on the importance of clarity of purpose in lesson planning.

Module V
Analyzing and Synthesizing Assessment Information

In small groups, participants discuss and share their experiences designing and implementing activities, examining their own strengths and weaknesses with regard to aspects of the framework.

Participants view a videotape of children in the classroom. They examine their observational notes to consider the instructional implications.

This activity serves as a culmination for the year. Participants are presented with a framework for preparing and presenting case conferences on individual students. Presenting teachers leave these sessions with specific instructional strategies for one student about whom they have concerns. Case conferences can be applied to parent-teacher conferences, planning sessions, child study teams, or as the basis for developing intervention strategies.