Retelling Rubrics

Easy-to-Use Assessments of Reading Comprehension

Science A-Z nonfiction and fiction retelling rubrics help teachers assess students' reading comprehension of books and other scientific texts. Scoring oral retellings on Science A-Z rubrics means that each student's retelling is rated against the same criteria and expectations.

After reading a full text or shorter passage, ask the student to tell you about the text in as much detail as he or she can remember. If necessary, use prompts such as “Tell me more about…” or “What happened next?” Analyze the details provided by the student against the retelling rubrics to determine how well he or she understood the literary or informational text.