Differentiating Instruction to Create a Culture to Support Diverse Learners

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Differentiating Instruction to Create a Culture
to Support Diverse Learners
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Our Targets

• Participants will KNOW
• Common DI definition, key concepts/principles,
  and why DI is important
• The importance of respectful tasks, knowing your
  target, and knowing your learner as a foundation
  for quality teaching effective DI
• Basic information about six DI strategies,
  including anchor activities, tiered activities,
  multiple intelligences, learning contracts,
  RAFTs, and student choice
• Ways to gather and compile learner profiles

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Our Targets

• Participants will UNDERSTAND
• The need for differentiated instruction to create
  a culture to support diverse learners
• That we are all leaders and learners and, as
  such, it is important that instruction be
  differentiated for both adults and students

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Our Targets

• Participants will be able to DO the following
• Identify two DI strategies that BLTs will study
  and implement in their Building PD Plan
• Begin development of a Building PD Plan that
  aligns with the District PD Plan and supports the
  study and implementation of DI in all classrooms

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Session Overview

• What Is Differentiation? Why use it?
• Respectful Tasks, Know Your Target, Know Your
  Learner
• Differentiated Strategies
• Resources

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Think of a Time

• Turn to a partner at your table and talk about a
  time when you were really engaged in learning
• What did that look like?
• What did that sound like?
• Why do you think you were so engaged?

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• The biggest mistake of 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 all the
  same subjects in the same way.
• Howard Gardner

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Differentiation is a Way of Thinking About
Teaching and Learning
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Dear Miss Brin, Yesterday you got really
really mad at me in class. I didnt argue with
you, because that just makes you madder and being
yelled at makes my stomach feel funny and I cant
think. But I want to say what happened. Maybe you
will understand why it looks like I dont pay
attention in class. You told us to open our
books to chapter 4 and read silently. Then you
asked everyone to put your hand up if we had
finished the third page and Sean didnt. You
waited for him to finish the page. Then you told
us to take turns reading out loud. When you got
to me, I asked you what paragraph to start on,
and you started yelling at me. You asked me a lot
of questions but you didnt let me answer any of
them. You answered them yourself but the things
you said werent true answers! This is what
happened. I started reading when you said. I
finished the chapter and stopped because you get
mad if I read any more. I didnt get out another
book because that makes you mad too. I didnt
doodle or do math or talk to Sarah or get up or
walk around because those things make you mad.
So I worked on my Greek in my head until you
called on me.
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• I tried to keep track of where the other kids
  were when they were reading. And I had the right
  page. I just didnt hear where Kim stopped. Her
  voice is sooo quiet and the verb I was saying was
  too loud in my head! So its not true that I was
  day dreaming! And Im not stuck up or arrogant
  or insolent or any of the things you said I was!
  I TRY to follow along but I CANT read that
  slow!!
• You said you got mad because I was wasting
  everybodies time. But I just asked which
  paragraph Miss Brin? Look at your watch and say
  it too. It takes 2 seconds. You could have said
  the third paragraph. That takes 21 seconds. I
  timed it too. Then Sarah and Amy R and Amy B
  would have 6 minutes to read aloud. Instead you
  yelled at ME for 6 minutes and they did not get
  to read any thing!
• Peter takes almost a whole minute to read Ben
  heard the bear cough behind him. I timed him.
  Its a game I made up to pay attention instead of
  doing Greek or making up poems in my head. If I
  ask you what paragraph and you tell me it still
  takes me less than half a minute for me to read a
  whole paragraph. So I guess I dont understand
  why you are mad or why you used 6 minutes to tell
  the class what a bad stupid mean person i am
  because I wasted their time for 4 seconds. I
  think YOU wasted their time!!! And I think YOU
  were mean to call me those names in front of
  everybody!!!!

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• Miss Brinn I want to do what you tell me! I
  dont understand why I cant keep reading at the
  end of a chapter. Or get out my other books. or
  study my Greek. Or draw or doodle or write in my
  journal. But you dont want me to do that so I
  dont. But I cant sit and stare at the wall. If
  i try to do that I just start thinking about
  something else! I dont know HOW to not think! I
  dont know HOW to read slow! Please tell me what
  to do so it wont make you mad at me all the
  time. And PLEASE dont yell at me in class.
• love,
• your sad student,
• Anne

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I know its been a long time since you heard from
me. I wanted to let you know what I am doing now
and that I think of you often, even though I have
not been a particularly faithful correspondent.
When you last saw me, you must have had some
doubt about what I might do with my life. The
interesting thing, though, is that if you did
have doubts, you never let me know about them.
You treated me as though I had all the
possibilities in the world in my hands. The fact
that I could not pass a vocabulary test seemed
incidental to you. What mattered was what I
could do. I didnt get that at the time. I was
too exhausted from years of lugging around my
disabilities. You need to know that I will be
receiving a Masters Degree in just a few days.
My mom asked who I wanted to know about that from
back home. You need to know. Your belief in me
when I had no belief in myself opened the door
that led here. . .
R.G.
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Foundations of Differentiated Instruction WHAT
IS DI?

• Differentiated instruction is a teaching
  philosophy based on the premise that teachers
  should adapt instruction to student differences.
  Rather than marching students through the
  curriculum lockstep, teachers should modify their
  instruction to meet students varying readiness
  levels, learning preferences, and interests.
  Therefore, the teacher proactively plans a
  variety of ways to get at and express
  learning.
• Carol Ann Tomlinson

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Differentiation
Is a teachers response to learners needs
Guided by general principles of differentiation
Quality Curriculum
Flexible grouping
Building Community
Respectful Tasks
Assessment for Instruction
Teachers Can Differentiate Through
Affect/Environment
Content
Product
Process
According to Students
Readiness
Interest
Learning Profile
Through a range of strategies such as
Multiple intelligencesJigsaw4MATGraphic
OrganizersRAFTS CompactingTiered
assignmentsLeveled textsComplex Instruction
Learning Centers
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Differentiation must be an extension of not a
replacement for high quality curriculum.
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Foundations of Differentiated Instruction WHAT
IS DI?

• Lets delve deeper
• How does a differentiated classroom differ from a
  traditional classroom?

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• Differentiation is not so much the stuff as
  the how. If the stuff is ill conceived, the
  how is doomed.
• Carol Ann Tomlinson

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Foundations of Differentiated Instruction WHY
DIFFERENTIATE?

• All people are different.
• One size does not fit all.
• Differentiation provides all students with access
  to all curriculum.

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Foundations of Differentiated InstructionRESPECT
FUL TASKS

• Respectful tasks recognize student learning
  differences. The teacher continually tries to
  understand what individual students need to learn
  most effectively. A respectful task honors both
  the commonalities and differences of students but
  not by treating them all alike.

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Foundations of Differentiated InstructionRESPEC
TFUL TASKS

• A respectful task offers all students the
  opportunity to explore essential understandings
  and skills at degrees of difficulty that escalate
  consistently as they develop their understanding
  and skill.

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Foundations of Differentiated InstructionKNOW
YOUR TARGET

• Teachers answer the critical question What do we
  want all students to know and be able to do?
• They clearly identify communicate KUDs
• What students will.. Know
• Understand
• Do. as a result of the unit/lesson
• Knowing your target is essential to quality
  formative and summative assessment.

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KNOW (facts, vocabulary, dates, rules, people,
etc.) ecosystem elements of culture
(housing/shelter, customs, values,
geography) UNDERSTAND (complete sentence,
statement of truth or insight want students to
understand that . . . ) All parts of an
ecosystem affect all others parts. Culture
shapes people and people shape culture. DO
(Basic skills, thinking skills, social skills,
skills of the discipline, planning skills ---
verbs) Write a unified paragraph Compare and
contrast Draw conclusions Examine varied
perspectives Work collaboratively Develop a
timeline Use maps as data
Tomlinson 02
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Foundations of Differentiated InstructionKNOW
YOUR LEARNER
Learner Profile Factors
Learning Environment quiet/noise warm/cool still/
mobile flexible/fixed busy/spare
Group Orientation independent/self
orientation group/peer orientation adult
orientation combination
Gender Culture
Cognitive Style Creative/conforming Essence/facts
Expressive/controlled Nonlinear/linear Inductive/
deductive People-oriented/task or Object
oriented Concrete/abstract Collaboration/competiti
on Interpersonal/introspective Easily
distracted/long Attention span Group
achievement/personal achievement Oral/visual/kines
thetic Reflective/action-oriented
Intelligence Preference analytic practical creati
ve verbal/linguistic logical/mathematical spatial/
visual bodily/kinesthetic musical/rhythmic interpe
rsonal intrapersonal naturalist existential
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Discussion Question
Now that you have a general awareness of what
Differentiated Instruction is What examples of
differentiated instruction can you identify in
your classroom and/or building? What examples of
differentiated instruction can you identify in
your building professional development? Why
would it be important to differentiate for
adults, as well as students?
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Differentiation Strategies

• Six of many DI Strategies
• Student Choice
• Tiered Activities
• Learning Contracts
• RAFTs
• Anchor Activities
• Multiple Intelligences

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Differentiation Strategy STUDENT CHOICE
Diner Menu Photosynthesis

• Appetizer (Everyone Shares)
• Write the chemical equation for photosynthesis.

• Entrée (Select One)
• Draw a picture that shows what happens during
  photosynthesis.
• Write two paragraphs about what happens during
  photosynthesis.
• Create a rap that explains what happens during
  photosynthesis.

• Side Dishes (Select at Least Two)
• Define respiration, in writing.
• Compare photosynthesis to respiration using a
  Venn Diagram.
• Write a journal entry from the point of view of a
  green plant.
• With a partner, create and perform a skit that
  shows the differences between photosynthesis and
  respiration.

• Dessert (Optional)
• Create a test to assess the teachers knowledge
  of photosynthesis.

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Differentiation Strategy STUDENT CHOICE
THINK-TAC-TOE Book Report
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Differentiation Strategy TIERED ACTIVITY
Writing a Persuasive Essay 4th6th Grade
Classroom
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Differentiation Strategy LEARNING CONTRACT
Learning Contract 1
Name _______________________
My question or topic is
To find out about my question or topic
I will look at and listen to
I will write
I will read
I will need
I will draw
Heres how I will share what I know
I will finish by this date
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Differentiation Strategy LEARNING CONTRACT
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 ___/___/___
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What is a RAFT?
Differentiation Strategy RAFT

• RAFT stands for
• Role
• Audience
• Format
• Topic

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Parts of a RAFT
Differentiation Strategy RAFT
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Courage RAFT Project Created by Kathleen
Kryza www.kathleenkryza.com Used with
permission
Differentiation Strategy RAFT

• Know Attributes of courage
• Understand People show courage in different
  ways and for different purposes
• Do Create a project from the perspective of a
  character that shows understanding of the concept
  of courage

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Courage RAFT Project Created by Kathleen Kryza
www.kathleenkryza.com Used with permission
Differentiation Strategy RAFT

• Role A character from Iron Will, White Fang or
  novel with a theme of courage
• Audience Teenagers today
• Format Song/Poem/Rap, Comic Strip, Motivational
  Speech, Public Service Announcement, Childrens
  Book
• Topic Share what this character learned about
  courage, and give advice about how to be
  courageous in todays world.

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DNA Raft
Differentiation Strategy RAFT
Source http//www.cobb.k12.ga.us/smitha/dna/dn
a.htmlRaft
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What Do I Do If I Finish Early?
Differentiation Strategy ANCHOR ACTIVITIES

• Work on independent study of your choice
• Play a math or language game
• Find out how to say your spelling words in
  another language
• Practice ACT / SAT cards
• Solve a challenge puzzle with write it up
• Practice anything!
• Get a jump on homework
• Use your imagination and creativity to challenge
  yourself!

• Read comics, letters, books, encyclopedia,
  poetry, etc.
• Write a letter, poetry in your Writers
  Notebook, a story, a comic, etc.
• Practice your cursive or calligraphy
• Keyboarding
• Help someone else
• Create math story problems or puzzles

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Differentiation According to Sternbergs
Intelligences
Differentiation Strategy MULTIPLE INTELLIGENCES
Tall Tales Grade 3

• Know What makes a Tall Tale
• Definition of fact and exaggeration
• Understand An exaggeration starts with a fact
  and stretches it.
• People sometimes exaggerate to make their
  stories or deeds seem more wonderful or
  scarier.
• Do Distinguish fact and exaggeration
• Analytical Task
• Listen to or read Johnny Appleseed and complete
• the organizer as you do.
• Practical Task
• Think of a time when you or someone you know was
  sort of like the Johnny Appleseed story and told
  a tall tale about something that happened. Write
  or draw both the factual or true version of the
  story and the tall tale version.
• Creative Task --- RAFT Assignment
• Role Audience Format Topic
  
• Someone Our Diary entry Let me tell you
• in our class class what happened while Johnny
  A. and I were on the way to school today.

Johnny Appleseeds
Facts Exaggerations
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From Attache Magazine
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• Students in a differentiated classroom do not
  need to work the system . . . . .
• because the system works for them!

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Where are you on the continuum of
DIFFERENTIATION?

• What will it take for you to move?
• What roadblocks are in your way?
• How can you remove them?

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My teacherdid not careas much aboutpage 51as
she didaboutME! S. Kronos