Assessments quick ones that work.

As I think about the various types of assessment I have used this semester the first thing that pops into my mind is free-writes. I have used free-writes for pre-assessments and formative assessments. The most useful were the pre-assessment free-writes that allowed for opinion.
Another quick formative and pre-assessment that has been useful has been section heading discussions. To get an idea where the class and students are on a subject I will simply open my book and ask questions from the bold headings. If the students respond quickly with a good show of hands I know they are getting specific subject matter. If they need to refer to the book then I know who is weak in an area. Sometimes I will use popsicle sticks to pick who will answer.
I have followed suit with my cooperating teacher in regards to unit test. We will test over limited amounts of material, so test end up being about every two weeks. I sometimes will give the students a pretest so they know where they need to focus.
Most days we start class with bell work. The bell work is five questions that cover past material. The students keep a bell work notebook and we talk about the answers. Sometimes I will include a bell question to find out if they understand current material. Bell work is a school wide implemented strategy.