Grab this Interest Inventory!

One of the best ways to get to know your new students is through an interest inventory. I love to collect as much information as I can about my students at the start of the school year. I want to know about their likes, their dislikes, their learning style, and so much more.

The Purpose of an Interest Inventory

I like to use an interest inventory in my classroom because it can really help me gain insight into the students that come into my classroom.  It quickly helps me determine how to structure my lessons based on my students’ learning styles, and it helps me differentiated both my content and assignments.  I also love that it allows me to quickly see my students’ strengths and areas that they need to work on.

It also provides me with a quick glance of who would work well together, what students’ attitudes are towards reading, school and other subjects, and what motivates them (or doesn’t).

While looking at a student’s academic file in the office or talking to a previous teacher may help, it doesn’t give you a rounded view.  I also think that sometimes students change a bit over the summer or that personalities can clash with other teachers.  I also understand that circumstances outside of school can have an impact on their school year that isn’t reflected in their academic file.  That is information that can sometimes be gleamed during an interest inventory.

I like to make sure that I provide my interest inventory to both my students and their parents.  This gives me insight to how the students view things and how the parents view things.  With two different points of view, I can get a better idea of things.

You can read all about my interest inventories and how I analyze for multiple intelligences by heading to my website, The Owl Teacher to download it.  While there, you can also read about 9 other ways that I get to know my students!

See you there!