I, too, was struck by the notion of assessing understanding as the basis for performance activities and rubrics. However, when they say a rubric must provide concrete answers to what understanding looks like, I could not help but say aloud “Well, what does understanding look like????” It is easy for me to read the text and follow the given examples of what understanding may look like, but I cannot help but wonder how I will fare at this task when I am on my own. The authors “explain” that the understanding being assessed in Stage 2 is drawn directly from the goals of Stage 1, which in turn achieve specific state standards.  That is all well and good, but am I the only one who has difficulty translating the state standards into usable guidelines for lesson and unit planning?