Differentiating in Rubrics

How do I grade when I am differentiating?
Sometimes it can be difficult to develop a rubric for an assignment when differentiating takes place within a classroom. With so many various learning styles, teachers come up with various projects and assignements for one concept to help students to learn in the best way they know how. This, however, can make grading difficult for the teacher. How do you grade a project when they all look different? The answer is SIMPLE. That's it, that's the answer. When building your rubric, break it down, into it most simple form. Dr. Cindy Steury breaks it down in her video Rubrics to Simplify Grading asking, “What are the elements that you are going to evaluate?” She was talking about Chocolate Chip Cookies, but it is relevant to anything that is being evaluated. What elements are you looking for when you are checking to see if your students understand the assignment/project and the concept behond it? Below, I have built a simplified rubric that could be used whether a student was creating a rap, a play, an essay, a poem, a painting, etc. If the assignment was to show that you understand the causes of The American Revolution, students can show you that they understand by using a style that is best for them, while you can use one simple rubric to grade the various projects.

SIMPLE RUBRIC	Excellent (4)	Fair (3)	Good (2)	Needs Improvement (1)
Follows directions and includes all components	All components of the assignment have been fulfilled	Most elements of the assignments have been fulfilled	Only half of the assignment has been completed	Only a few steps of the assignment have been completed
Time Management	Student used class time efficiently	Student got distracted during class, but was able to refocus	Student was off task for most of the class, had some difficulty refocusing	Student was continuously off task during class, could not refocus
Creativity	Student used original ideas and was imaginative on assignment	Student used his/her own ideas most of the time	Student had difficulty using his/her own ideas	Student was unable to use his/her own ideas.
Conventions	Correct spelling, punctuation, grammar, and capitalization was used	Student used correct spelling, punctuation, grammar, and capitalization most of the time	Student used correct spelling, punctuation, grammar, and capitalization half of the time	Student had difficulty using correct spelling, punctuation, grammar, and capitalization
Appearance	The assignment looks professional, organized, and well put together	The assignment looks professional, organized, and well put together a majority of the time	The assignment needs organizational help but looks somewhat professional	The assignment needs organizational help and does not look professional