REACHING ALL CHILDREN

IN THE CLASSROOM:
AN OVERVIEW OF
DIFFERENTIATION STRATEGIES

Objectives

Overview of differentiated instruction

Implement several differentiation

strategies

Identify things to consider when

implementing differentiation at the
classroom, school, and district level

Lets Define Differentiated

Instruction
Differentiated Instruction means creating multiple paths
so that students of different abilities, interests, or
learning needs experience equally appropriate ways to
learn.
Differentiation means tailoring the instruction to meet
individual needs. The use of ongoing assessment and
flexible grouping makes this a successful approach to
instruction.

The Rationale for Differentiated

Instruction
Different levels
of readiness

Different Interests

The Rationale for Differentiated

Instruction
Different Ability Levels

Different Cognitive Needs

Differentiation:
Content, Process, or
Product
If children do not learn the way we teach
them, then we must teach them the way
they learn.

Differentiating Content
What we teach The facts,
skills, concepts, principles, and
attitudes
&
How we give access to the
content Text, audio,
technology, dialog, hands on,
etc.

Differentiating Content

Resource materials at varying readability

levels
Audio and video recordings
Highlighted vocabulary
Charts and models
Varied resources
Peer and adult mentors

DIFFERENTIATING PROCESS

Process is how the learner comes

to make sense of, understand, and
own the key facts, concepts,
generalizations, and skills of the
content.

Differentiating Process
(making sense and meaning of content)

Use leveled or tiered activities

Interest centers
Hands-on materials
Vary pacing according to readiness
Allow for working alone, in partners, trios, and
small groups
Allow choice in strategies for processing and
for expressing results of processing

What does
Differentiating by
Product mean?
A product is a means by which students
demonstrate what they have come to
know, understand, and be able to do
(Tomlinson & Strickland, p. 8)
A major or culminating demonstration
of student learning that comes at the
end of a long period of learning (unit,
marking period, etc)
What you expect the students to
produce (Graphic Organizer, Paragraph,
Speech, etc)

Differentiating Products
(showing what is known and able to be done)

Tiered product choices

Model, use and encourage student use of
technology within products and presentations
Provide product choices that range in choices
from all multiple intelligences, options for
gender, culture, and race

DIFFERENTIATION
STRATEGIES

PRIOR KNOWLEDGE/READINESS:
The Value of Pre-Assessment...
Textbook Pretest
Student/Teacher Conference - as short as a 5 minute talk
K-W-L Chart
Journal - Write what you know about...
List - If I say ... What does it make you think of?
Concept Map...
Student Reflection

~You cant figure out what to teach em if you dont know em!

High-Prep Differentiation
Strategies
Tiered Activities
Flexible Grouping
Multiple
Intelligences/Learning styles
Jigsaws
Learning or Interest Centers
Stations
Literature Circles
Reading/Writing Workshop

Low-Prep Differentiation
Strategies
Mind-mapping/Graphic organizers
Use questions that are tailored to the
students comprehension level (Bloom)
Think, Pair, Share
Manipulatives
Vary pacing / length of time
Reading buddies
Peer Tutoring
Personal/Individual Agendas
Technology-enhanced
learning/webquests
Simulations
Models of student work at different
degrees of complexity

Tiered Activities

Designed to provide different levels of

complexity, abstractness, and openendedness. The curricular content and
objective(s) are the same, but the process
and/or product are varied according to the
students level of readiness

What Can Be Tiered?

Processes, content
and products

Assessments

Writing prompts

Anchor activities

Materials

Assignments
Homework
Learning stations

What Can We Adjust?

Level of complexity
Amount of structure
Pacing
Materials
Concrete to abstract
Options based on student interests
Options based on learning styles

Jigsaw Method

Stations
Learning stations are areas of the
classroom organized around a topic,
theme, or skill. They can target
students readiness levels, interests,
or learning profiles. The teacher
creates several stations that cover
portions of the material. To learn
about the topic, students must
complete the activities at each
station.

Flexible Grouping

Students work as part of many different groups

depending on the task and/or content.
Groups assigned:

Readiness
Assigned by teacher
Randomly
Chosen by students

Allows students to work with a wide variety of

peers and keeps them from being labeled

Flexible Grouping
Homogenous/Ability
-Clusters students of similar
abilities, level, learning style,
or interest.
-Usually based on some type
of pre-assessment

Heterogeneous Groups
-Different abilities, levels or
interest
- Good for promoting creative
thinking.

Individualized or
Independent Study
-Self paced learning
-Teaches time management
and responsibility
-Good for remediation or
extensions

Whole Class
-Efficient way to present new
content
-Use for initial instruction

24

Students choose from a menu of options.

Tasks vary by process and interest.

Some anchor activities can be required of all

students.

Homework, projects, and assessment can be

used as additional options.

25

Tic
Tac
Toe
*see book report
example

Anchoring Activity
(See the Anchoring Activity for: The Giver)
26

Self-paced, purposeful, content-driven activities

that students can work on independently
throughout a unit, a grading period, or longer
Meaningful ongoing activities related to the
curriculum
A list of activities that a student can do at any
time
A long-term project
An activity center/learning station located in the
room
These activities must be worthy of a students time
and appropriate to their learning needs

Learning Contracts

A written agreement between the student and the teacher

which includes opportunities for the student to work relatively
independently on primarily teacher-directed material.
The student has:
Some freedom in acquiring skills and understandings
Responsibility for learning independently
Guidelines for completing work
Guidelines for appropriate behavior

Learning Contract #1

Name _______________________
My question or topic is:

To find out about my question or topic

I will read:

I will look at and

listen to:

I will draw:

I will need:

Heres how I will share what I know:

I will finish by this date:

28

I will write:

Learning Contract #2
To demonstrate what I have learned about ___________________, I want to
_ Write a report
_ Put on a demonstration
_ Set up an experiment
_ Develop a computer presentation
_ Build a model

_ Design a mural
_ Write a song
_ Make a movie
_ Create a graphic organizer or diagram
_ Other
This will be a good way to demonstrate understanding of this concept because _____________
To do this project, I will need help with ____________________________________________
My Action Plan is______________________________________________________________
The criteria/rubric which will be used to assess my final product is _______________________
My project will be completed by this date _____________________________
Student signature: ________________________________ Date ______/_____/____
Teacher signature: ________________________________ Date ___/___/___
29

Graphic Organizers & Note

Taking

T-Notes
Cornell Notes
Lit Circle
Q-Notes
Inference Notes
Cluster Notes
Hierarchical Notes
Think-in-Threes

Timeline Notes
Venn Diagrams
Conversational
Roundtable
Episodic Notes
Spreadsheet Notes
This is a skill that must
be taught, use different
organizers with a specific
purpose in mind
Check what students
create

31

Diverse
needs
learning styles
interests

Provides
Choices
encourages student responsibility

32

Peer collaboration

Learn more content when taught with peermediated learning

In a diverse group of peers

learn from the strengths of others

feel like their own contribution is worthwhile.

33

Use of the learning profile will determine how the

students prefer to learn.

Learning and recognizing student interests will

connect the student interests to the content of
the curriculum.

34

Consider the readiness level to provide more

one-on-one instruction.

Pre-assessments, ongoing assessments and

final assessments

Teacher is aware of where the students are in the

learning process at all times.

The students are engaged through facilitation,

which gives them an opportunity for growth.

35

The classroom environment will provide students

with choices to learn by manipulating different
areas of the classroom.

Various learning styles will make a teacher

more flexible
understanding of all types of learners

The awareness of student learning, interests,

and readiness levels will include students with
learning differences and gifted students.

36

Differentiation Scenario Activity

37

High expectations for all students

Adjustment of content
Providing students with choices
Assigning activities geared to
different learning styles
Interests
levels of thinking

38

Acknowledgement of individual needs

Assessment to determine student growth and

new needs

The biggest mistake we have made in

past centuries in teaching has been
to treat all children as if they were
variants of the same individual and
thus to feel justified in teaching them
the same subjects in the same ways.
~Howard Gardner