Are We There Yet? Checking for Understanding Before It’s Too Late

Picture this:
You’re planning a road trip from California to Maine. You pack your food and snacks, you create your best playlist, and you do some research on the best National Parks to visit. And of course, you bring your trusty GPS to guide you.

You drive through storms, beautiful scenery, and dark, windy roads. You finished your 9th refuel of gas and your speedometer tells you that you’re reaching the 3,397 mile mark, which should tell you that you’re there.

You’re buzzing with excitement. (And you can finally tell the kids “YES” when they ask “Are we there yet?”)

Suddenly, you hear your GPS say, “Recalculating.” Turns out, you made a wrong turn six days ago, and now you’re nowhere near where you need to be. (And how would you know? The trees all look the same.)

Now that you’ve reached the end of the destination (or what you hoped to be the end), the GPS checks to see where you’re holding and then sees that you’re not in the right place. In its robotic female voice, the GPS tells you your trip failed. You’re in the wrong place. It will recalculate for you.

But, you’re already 500 miles past where you were supposed to make a turn but you missed it. You frustratingly (and rightfully) vent ‘Why didn’t the GPS tell me this 500 miles ago?’

Remember the good old days of printing a map or 15 pages of directions of MapQuest, where you’d only know if you are doing the right thing when you see the next step of directions? Luckily today, we have GPSs that constantly check where we are and recalculate continuously. And that’s how our classroom should be as well.

As teachers, how and when do we assess students? Is it only at the end of the unit (summative assessment) or are making frequent checks during the unit (formative assessment)? Are we giving assessments before a new topic (diagnostic assessment)? How can we bring in more checks for understanding throughout the lesson?

Don’t let your students’ learning journey end with a surprise “recalculating”—check the map as you go.

3 Ways to Check for Understanding throughout the lesson: 1. Personal Whiteboard Paddles: Quick and interactive, these small whiteboards allow students to write short answers, practice handwriting, or respond to true/false questions. They provide immediate feedback on whether students are following along. 2. Finger Responses: Perfect for reviewing multiple-choice answers or gauging understanding. Students can raise their fingers to choose from A, B, C or D. 3. Post-It Notes: At the end of the lesson, ask students to write their main takeaway on a Post-It note. This simple exit ticket can show what students understood and where clarification might be needed. Checking for understanding can help you know if you can continue straight on your current journey, or if, perhaps, you might need to do some “recalculating.”

May our learning journeys be, as we say in Tefilas Haderech, לְחַיִּים וּלְשִׂמְחָה וּלְשָׁלוֹם – with life, joy and peace.