Resources · Mastery
Mastery rubrics.
One rubric per unit, plus the three demonstration rubrics. Every rubric uses the same three levels — Not yet, Approaching, Mastered — so the bar is identical for every student.
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How the rubrics work
The grading philosophy behind every rubric — decisions not points, a vocabulary published in advance, three tokens that absorb a bad day, and how unit mastery becomes a letter grade.
Unit rubrics
A mastery rubric for each of the eight units. Each one names exactly what a student must be able to do — not how many points they earned — to reach Mastered.
Unit 01
Observation & Asking Questions
Careful observation, testable questions, forming a hypothesis, variables, and observation vs. inference.
Unit 02
The Lab Notebook
Recording methods, data, and reasoning so that anyone could repeat the run.
Unit 03
Measurement, Units & Significant Figures
Reading instruments, SI units, precision, and reporting honest significant figures.
Unit 04
Designing a Controlled Experiment
Independent and dependent variables, controls, replication, and a fair test.
Unit 05
Data Tables, Graphs & Patterns
Organizing data, choosing the right graph, and reading the pattern it reveals.
Unit 06
Uncertainty, Error & Honesty
Sources of error, uncertainty, outliers, and reporting results honestly.
Unit 07
Lab Safety & Technique
Safe handling, correct technique, and clean, careful habits in the lab.
Unit 08
Communicating & Defending Findings
Clear reports, visuals that back the claim, claim–evidence–reasoning, and oral defense.
Demonstration rubrics
The three live demonstrations a student defends in person. These are the AI-proof assessments — you can't paste your way through any of them.
Demonstration
Experiment-design defense
Designing, running, and defending a controlled experiment of your own.
Demonstration
Timed data interpretation
Reading and graphing an unfamiliar dataset under time pressure to reach a justified conclusion.
Demonstration
Lab-notebook defense
Standing behind your recorded methods, data, and reasoning out loud.