Should a kindergarten rubric have points?
Usually not. Young children understand "Wow!", "Yes" and "Not yet" far better than 3, 2 and 1, and the rubric's job at that age is to show them what good work looks like. Keep the points for your own records if your school needs them.
Asked by teachers, answered by Peabody's editors. Checked .
A kindergartner can't read a grid of small print, so a K–2 rubric works best when you read it aloud and the child can point to where their work is. Short levels with plain names make that possible. A smiley face or a picture next to each level helps too.
An "I can" checklist does the same job from the child's side: "I can start my sentence with a capital letter." Read the list together before the work and again after, and let the child tick what they did.
On Peabody Teach
- Every premade rubric's K–2 version has three levels, Wow!, Yes and Not yet, and prints without points.
- In the rubric maker, the "K–2 levels" button sets those three levels and turns the score column off. A checkbox turns it back on if you need points.
- Every premade rubric page prints its "I can" lines as a checklist for each grade band.
Tools that help
- Kindergarten writing rubric: Three levels, no points, and an "I can" checklist to print.
- Rubric maker: One button for K–2 levels; a checkbox for the score column.
- Premade rubrics: Every one has a K–2 version.