Differentiated Instruction: Examples & Classroom Strategies

Differentiating instruction may mean teaching the same material to all students using a variety of instructional strategies, or it may require ... TipsforTeachersandClassroomResourcesUpdatedApril29,2021 WhatisDifferentiatedInstruction?ExamplesofHowtoDifferentiateInstructionintheClassroom By CathyWeselby Facebook Twitter Pinterest Linkedin Email Justaseveryonehasauniquefingerprint,everystudenthasanindividuallearningstyle.Chancesare,notallofyourstudentsgraspasubjectinthesamewayorsharethesamelevelofability.Sohowcanyoubetterdeliveryourlessonstoreacheveryoneinclass?Considerdifferentiatedinstruction—amethodyoumayhaveheardaboutbuthaven’texplored,whichiswhyyou’rehere.Inthisarticle,learnexactlywhatitmeans,howitworks,andtheprosandcons. Definitionofdifferentiatedinstruction CarolAnnTomlinsonisaleaderintheareaofdifferentiatedlearningandprofessorofeducationalleadership,foundations,andpolicyattheUniversityofVirginia.Tomlinsondescribesdifferentiatedinstructionasfactoringstudents’individuallearningstylesandlevelsofreadinessfirstbeforedesigningalessonplan.Researchontheeffectivenessofdifferentiationshowsthismethodbenefitsawiderangeofstudents,fromthosewithlearningdisabilitiestothosewhoareconsideredhighability. Differentiatinginstructionmaymeanteachingthesamematerialtoallstudentsusingavarietyofinstructionalstrategies,oritmayrequiretheteachertodeliverlessonsatvaryinglevelsofdifficultybasedontheabilityofeachstudent. Teacherswhopracticedifferentiationintheclassroommay: Designlessonsbasedonstudents’learningstyles.Groupstudentsbysharedinterest,topic,orabilityforassignments.Assessstudents’learningusingformativeassessment.Managetheclassroomtocreateasafeandsupportiveenvironment.Continuallyassessandadjustlessoncontenttomeetstudents’needs. Historyofdifferentiatedinstruction Therootsofdifferentiatedinstructiongoallthewaybacktothedaysoftheone-roomschoolhouse,whereoneteacherhadstudentsofallagesinoneclassroom.Astheeducationalsystemtransitionedtogradingschools,itwasassumedthatchildrenofthesameagelearnedsimilarly.Howeverin1912,achievementtestswereintroduced,andthescoresrevealedthegapsinstudent’sabilitieswithingradelevels. In1975,CongresspassedtheIndividualswithDisabilitiesEducationAct(IDEA),ensuringthatchildrenwithdisabilitieshadequalaccesstopubliceducation.Toreachthisstudentpopulation,manyeducatorsuseddifferentiatedinstructionstrategies.ThencamethepassageofNoChildLeftBehindin2000,whichfurtherencourageddifferentiatedandskill-basedinstruction—andthat’sbecauseitworks. ResearchbyeducatorLeslieOwenWilsonsupportsdifferentiatinginstructionwithintheclassroom,findingthatlectureistheleasteffectiveinstructionalstrategy,withonly5to10percentretentionafter24hours.Engaginginadiscussion,practicingafterexposuretocontent,andteachingothersaremuchmoreeffectivewaystoensurelearningretention. Fourwaystodifferentiateinstruction AccordingtoTomlinson,teacherscandifferentiateinstructionthroughfourways:1)content,2)process,3)product,and4)learningenvironment. 1.Content Asyoualreadyknow,fundamentallessoncontentshouldcoverthestandardsoflearningsetbytheschooldistrictorstateeducationalstandards.Butsomestudentsinyourclassmaybecompletelyunfamiliarwiththeconceptsinalesson,somestudentsmayhavepartialmastery,andsomestudentsmayalreadybefamiliarwiththecontentbeforethelessonbegins. Whatyoucoulddoisdifferentiatethecontentbydesigningactivitiesforgroupsofstudentsthatcovervariouslevelsof Bloom’sTaxonomy(aclassificationoflevelsofintellectualbehaviorgoingfromlower-orderthinkingskillstohigher-orderthinkingskills).Thesixlevelsare:remembering,understanding,applying,analyzing,evaluating,andcreating. Studentswhoareunfamiliarwithalessoncouldberequiredtocompletetasksonthelowerlevels:rememberingandunderstanding.Studentswithsomemasterycouldbeaskedto applyandanalyzethecontent,andstudentswhohavehighlevelsofmasterycouldbeaskedtocompletetasksintheareasofevaluatingandcreating. Examplesofdifferentiatingactivities: Matchvocabularywordstodefinitions.Readapassageoftextandanswerrelatedquestions.Thinkofasituationthathappenedtoacharacterinthestoryandadifferentoutcome.Differentiatefactfromopinioninthestory.Identifyanauthor’spositionandprovideevidencetosupportthisviewpoint.CreateaPowerPointpresentationsummarizingthelesson. 2.Process Eachstudenthasapreferredlearningstyle,andsuccessfuldifferentiationincludesdeliveringthematerialtoeachstyle:visual,auditoryandkinesthetic,andthroughwords.Thisprocess-relatedmethodalsoaddressesthefactthatnotallstudentsrequirethesameamountofsupportfromtheteacher,andstudentscouldchoosetoworkinpairs,smallgroups,orindividually.Andwhilesomestudentsmaybenefitfromone-on-oneinteractionwithyouortheclassroomaide,othersmaybeabletoprogressbythemselves.Teacherscanenhancestudentlearningbyofferingsupportbasedonindividualneeds. Examplesofdifferentiatingtheprocess: Providetextbooksforvisualandwordlearners.Allowauditorylearnerstolistentoaudiobooks.Givekinestheticlearnerstheopportunitytocompleteaninteractiveassignmentonline. 3.Product Theproductiswhatthestudentcreatesattheendofthelessontodemonstratethemasteryofthecontent.Thiscanbeintheformoftests,projects,reports,orotheractivities.Youcouldassignstudentstocompleteactivitiesthatshowmasteryofaneducationalconceptinawaythestudentprefers,basedonlearningstyle. Examplesofdifferentiatingtheendproduct: Readandwritelearnerswriteabookreport.Visuallearnerscreateagraphicorganizerofthestory.Auditorylearnersgiveanoralreport.Kinestheticlearnersbuildadioramaillustratingthestory. 4.Learningenvironment Theconditionsforoptimallearningincludebothphysicalandpsychologicalelements.Aflexibleclassroomlayoutiskey,incorporatingvarioustypesoffurnitureandarrangementstosupportbothindividualandgroupwork.Psychologicallyspeaking,teachersshoulduseclassroommanagementtechniquesthatsupportasafeandsupportivelearningenvironment. Examplesofdifferentiatingtheenvironment: Breaksomestudentsintoreadinggroupstodiscusstheassignment.Allowstudentstoreadindividuallyifpreferred.Createquietspaceswheretherearenodistractions. Prosandconsofdifferentiatedinstruction Thebenefitsofdifferentiationintheclassroomareoftenaccompaniedbythedrawbackofanever-increasingworkload.Hereareafewfactorstokeepinmind: Pros Researchshowsdifferentiatedinstructioniseffectiveforhigh-abilitystudentsaswellasstudentswithmildtoseveredisabilities.Whenstudentsaregivenmoreoptionsonhowtheycanlearnmaterial,theytakeonmoreresponsibilityfortheirownlearning.Studentsappeartobemoreengagedinlearning,andtherearereportedlyfewerdisciplineproblemsinclassroomswhereteachersprovidedifferentiatedlessons. Cons Differentiatedinstructionrequiresmoreworkduringlessonplanning,andmanyteachersstruggletofindtheextratimeintheirschedule.Thelearningcurvecanbesteepandsomeschoolslackprofessionaldevelopmentresources.Criticsarguethereisn’tenoughresearchtosupportthebenefitsofdifferentiatedinstructionoutweighingtheaddedpreptime. Differentiatedinstructionstrategies Whatdifferentiatedinstructionalstrategiescanyouuseinyourclassroom?Thereareasetofmethodsthatcanbetailoredandusedacrossthedifferentsubjects.AccordingtoKathyPerez(2019)andtheAccessCenterthosestrategiesaretieredassignments,choiceboards,compacting,interestcenters/groups,flexiblegrouping,andlearningcontracts.Tieredassignmentsaredesignedtoteachthesameskillbuthavethestudentscreateadifferentproducttodisplaytheirknowledgebasedontheircomprehensionskills.Choiceboardsallowstudentstochoosewhatactivitytheywouldliketoworkonforaskillthattheteacherchooses.Ontheboardareusuallyoptionsforthedifferentlearningstyles;kinesthetic,visual,auditory,andtactile.Compactingallowstheteachertohelpstudentsreachthenextlevelintheirlearningwhentheyhavealreadymasteredwhatisbeingtaughttotheclass.Tocompacttheteacherassessesthestudent’slevelofknowledge,createsaplanforwhattheyneedtolearn,excusesthemfromstudyingwhattheyalreadyknow,andcreatesfreetimeforthemtopracticeanacceleratedskill. Interestcentersorgroupsareawaytoprovideautonomyinstudentlearning.Flexiblegroupingallowsthegroupstobemorefluidbasedontheactivityortopic. Finally,learningcontractsaremadebetweenastudentandteacher,layingouttheteacher’sexpectationsforthenecessaryskillstobedemonstratedandtheassignmentsrequiredcomponentswiththestudentputtingdownthemethodstheywouldliketousetocompletetheassignment.Thesecontractscanallowstudentstousetheirpreferredlearningstyle,workatanidealpaceandencouragesindependenceandplanningskills.Thefollowingarestrategiesforsomeofthecoresubjectbasedonthesemethods. Differentiatedinstructionstrategiesformath Providestudentswithachoiceboard.Theycouldhavetheoptionstolearnaboutprobabilitybyplayingagamewithapeer,watchingavideo,readingthetextbook,orworkingoutproblemsonaworksheet.Teachminilessonstoindividualsorgroupsofstudentswhodidn’tgrasptheconceptyouwereteachingduringthelargegrouplesson.Thisalsolendstimeforcompactingactivitiesforthosewhohavemasteredthesubject.Usemanipulatives,especiallywithstudentsthathavemoredifficultygraspingaconcept.Havestudentsthathavealreadymasteredthesubjectmattercreatenotesforstudentsthatarestilllearning.Forstudentsthathavemasteredthelessonbeingtaught,requirethemtogivein-depth,step-by-stepexplanationoftheirsolutionprocess,whilenotbeingrigidabouttheprocesswithstudentswhoarestilllearningthebasicsofaconceptiftheyarriveatthecorrectanswer. Differentiatedinstructionstrategiesforscience EmmaMcCrea(2019)suggestssettingup“HelpStations,”wherepeersassisteachother.Thosethathavemoreknowledgeofthesubjectwillbeabletoteachthosethatarestrugglingasanextensionactivityandthosethatarestrugglingwillreceive.Setupa“questionandanswer”sessionduringwhichlearnerscanasktheteacherortheirpeersquestions,inordertofillinknowledgegapsbeforeattemptingtheexperiment.Createavisualwordwall.Usepicturesandcorrespondinglabelstohelpstudentsrememberterms.Setupinterestcenters.Whenlearningaboutdinosaursyoumighthavean“excavation”center,areadingcenter,adinosaurartprojectthatfocusesontheiranatomy,andavideocenter.Providecontentlearninginvariousformatssuchasshowingavideoaboutdinosaurs,handingoutaworksheetwithpicturesofdinosaursandlabels,andprovidingafill-in-the-blankworksheetwithinterestingdinosaurfacts. DifferentiatedinstructionstrategiesforELL ASCD(2012)writesthatallteachersneedtobecomelanguageteacherssothatthecontenttheyareteachingtheclassroomcanbeconveyedtothestudentswhosefirstlanguageisnotEnglish.StartbyprovidingtheinformationinthelanguagethatthestudentspeaksthenpairingitwithalimitedamountofthecorrespondingvocabularyinEnglish. AlthoughELLneedalimitedamountofnewvocabularytomemorize,theyneedtobeexposedtoasmuchoftheEnglishlanguageaspossible.Thismeansthatwhenteaching,theteacherneedstofocusonverbsandadjectivesrelatedtothetopicaswell.Groupworkisimportant.Thiswaytheyareexposedtomoreofthelanguage.Theyshould,however,begroupedwithotherELLifpossibleaswellasgiventaskswithinthegroupthatarewithintheirreachsuchasdrawingorresearching. Differentiatedinstructionstrategiesforreading Tieredassignmentscanbeusedinreadingtoallowthestudentstoshowwhattheyhavelearnedatalevelthatsuitesthem.Onestudentmightcreateavisualstoryboardwhileanotherstudentmightwriteabookreport. ReadinggroupscanpickabookbasedoninterestorbeassignedbasedonreadinglevelErinLynch(2020)suggestthatteachersscaffoldinstructionbygivingclearexplicitexplanationswithvisuals.Verballyandvisuallyexplainthetopic.Useanchorcharts,drawings,diagrams,andreferenceguidestofosteraclearerunderstanding.Ifapplicable,provideavideoclipforstudentstowatch.Utilizeflexiblegrouping.Studentsmightbeinonegroupforphonicsbasedontheirassessedlevelbutchoosetobeinanothergroupforreadingbecausetheyaremoreinterestedinthatbook. Differentiatedinstructionstrategiesforwriting Holdwritingconferenceswithyourstudentseitherindividuallyorinsmallgroups.Talkwiththemthroughoutthewritingprocessstartingwiththeirtopicandmovingthroughgrammar,composition,andediting.Allowstudentstochoosetheirwritingtopics.Whenthetopicisofinterest,theywilllikelyputmoreeffortintotheassignmentandthereforelearnmore.Keeptrackofandassessstudent’swritingprogresscontinuallythroughouttheyear.Youcandothisusingajournalorachecklist.Thiswillallowyoutogiveindividualizedinstruction.Handoutgraphicorganizerstohelpstudentsoutlinetheirwriting.Tryfill-in-the-blanknotesthatguidethestudentsthrougheachstepofthewritingprocessforthosewhoneedadditionalassistance.Forprimarygradesgiveoutlinedpaperinsteadofajournal.Youcanalsogiveoutdifferingamountsoflinesbasedonabilitylevel.Forthosewhoareexcellingatwritinggivethemmorelinesorpagestoencouragethemtowritemore.Forthosethatarestillinthebeginningstagesofwriting,givethemlesslinessothattheydonotfeeloverwhelmed. Differentiatedinstructionstrategiesforspecialeducation Useamulti-sensoryapproach.Getallfivesensesinvolvedinyourlessons,includingtasteandsmell!Useflexiblegroupingtocreatepartnershipsandteachstudentshowtoworkcollaborativelyontasks.Createpartnershipswherethestudentsareofequalability,partnershipswhereoncethestudentwillbechallengedbytheirpartnerandanothertimetheywillbepushingandchallengingtheirpartner.Assistivetechnologyisoftenanimportantcomponentofdifferentialinstructioninspecialeducation.Providethestudentsthatneedthemwithscreenreaders,personaltabletsforcommunication,andvoicerecognitionsoftware.ThearticleDifferentiation&LRInformationforSASTeacherssuggeststeachersbeflexiblewhengivingassessments“Posters,models, performances,anddrawings canshowwhattheyhavelearnedinawaythatreflectstheirpersonalstrengths”.Youcantestforknowledgeusingrubricsinsteadofmultiple-choicequestions,orevenbuildaportfolioofstudentwork.Youcouldalsohavethemanswerquestionsorally.Utilizeexplicitmodeling.Whetheritsnotetaking,problemsolvinginmath,ormakingasandwichinhomeliving,specialneedsstudentsoftenrequireastep-by-stepguidetomakeconnections. Referencesandresources https://www.thoughtco.com/differentiation-instruction-in-special-education-3111026https://sites.google.com/site/lrtsas/differentiation/differentiation-techniques-for-special-educationhttps://www.solutiontree.com/blog/differentiated-reading-instruction/https://www.readingrockets.org/article/differentiated-instruction-readinghttps://www.sadlier.com/school/ela-blog/13-ideas-for-differentiated-reading-instruction-in-the-elementary-classroomhttps://inservice.ascd.org/seven-strategies-for-differentiating-instruction-for-english-learners/https://www.cambridge.org/us/education/blog/2019/11/13/three-approaches-differentiation-primary-science/https://www.brevardschools.org/site/handlers/filedownload.ashx?moduleinstanceid=6174&dataid=8255&FileName=Differentiated_Instruction_in_Secondary_Mathematics.pdf Booksaboutdifferentiatedinstruction TheDifferentiatedClassroom:RespondingtotheNeedsofallLearnersDVDSeriesTheDifferentiatedClassroom:RespondingtotheNeedsofAllLearners,2ndEditionLeadingandManagingaDifferentiatedClassroom–CarolAnnTomlinsonandMarciaB.ImbeauTheDifferentiatedSchool:MakingRevolutionaryChangesinTeachingandLearning–CarolAnnTomlinson,KayBrimijoin,andLaneNarvaezIntegratingDifferentiatedInstructionandUnderstandingbyDesign:ConnectingContentandKids–CarolAnnTomlinsonandJayMcTigheDifferentiationinPracticeGradesK-5:AResourceGuideforDifferentiatingCurriculum–CarolAnnTomlinsonandCarolineCunninghamEidsonDifferentiationinPracticeGrades5–9:AResourceGuideforDifferentiatingCurriculum–CarolAnnTomlinsonandCarolineCunninghamEidsonDifferentiationinPracticeGrades9–12:AResourceGuideforDifferentiatingCurriculum–CarolAnnTomlinsonandCindyA.StricklandFulfillingthePromiseoftheDifferentiatedClassroom:StrategiesandToolsforResponsiveTeaching–CarolAnnTomlinsonLeadershipforDifferentiatingSchoolsandClassrooms–CarolAnnTomlinsonandSusanDemirskyAllanHowtoDifferentiateInstructioninAcademicallyDiverseClassrooms,3rdEditionbyCarolAnnTomlinsonAssessmentandStudentSuccessinaDifferentiatedClassroombyCarolAnnTomlinsonandTonyaR.MoonHowToDifferentiateInstructionInMixedAbilityClassrooms 2ndEdition–CarolAnnTomlinsonHowtoDifferentiateInstructioninAcademicallyDiverseClassrooms 3rdEditionby CarolAnnTomlinson AssessmentandStudentSuccessinaDifferentiatedClassroom Paperback–CarolAnnTomlinson, TonyaR.MoonLeadingandManagingaDifferentiatedClassroom(ProfessionalDevelopment) 1stEdition–CarolAnnTomlinson, MarciaB.ImbeauTheDifferentiatedSchool:MakingRevolutionaryChangesinTeachingandLearning 1stEditionbyCarolAnnTomlinson, KayBrimijoin, LaneNarvaezDifferentiationandtheBrain:HowNeuroscienceSupportstheLearner-FriendlyClassroom –DavidA.Sousa, CarolAnnTomlinsonLeadingforDifferentiation:GrowingTeachersWhoGrowKids–CarolAnnTomlinson, MichaelMurphyAnEducator’sGuidetoDifferentiatingInstruction. 10thEdition–CarolAnnTomlinson, JamesM.CooperADifferentiatedApproachtotheCommonCore:HowdoIhelpabroadrangeoflearnerssucceedwithachallengingcurriculum?–CarolAnnTomlinson, MarciaB.ImbeauManagingaDifferentiatedClassroom:APracticalGuide–CarolTomlinson, MarciaImbeauDifferentiatingInstructionforMixed-AbilityClassrooms:AnASCDProfessionalInquiryKit PckEdition–CarolAnnTomlinsonUsingDifferentiatedClassroomAssessmenttoEnhanceStudentLearning(StudentAssessmentforEducators) 1stEdition–TonyaR.Moon, CatherineM.Brighton, CarolA.TomlinsonTheDifferentiatedClassroom:RespondingtotheNeedsofAllLearners 1stEdition–CarolAnnTomlinson Advertisement Youmayalsoliketoread CreativeAcademicInstruction:MusicResourcesfortheClassroom HowTeachersUseStudentDatatoImproveInstruction AdviceonPositiveClassroomManagementthatWorks FiveSkillsOnlineTeachersNeedforClassroomInstruction 3ExamplesofEffectiveClassroomManagement AdviceonImprovingyourElementaryMathInstruction Tags:CurriculumandInstruction,Diversity,EngagingActivities,NewTeacher,ProsandCons Advertisement AlsoofInterest:IntegratingTechnologyintheClassroom:Tips,...OnlineAssociateDegreesinEducationOnlineMEdPrograms be_ixf;ym_202210d_22;ct_50 be_ixf;php_sdk;php_sdk_1.4.26 https://resilienteducator.com/classroom-resources/examples-of-differentiated-instruction/ https://resilienteducator.com/classroom-resources/examples-of-differentiated-instruction/