Knowing Our Learners: Tapping the Power of Differentiated Instruction

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Knowing Our LearnersTapping the Power of
Differentiated Instruction

• Deborah Espitia, Coordinator
• Leslie Grahn, Resource Teacher
• Office of World Languages
• Howard County Public Schools, MD

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Participants will

• Enhance background knowledge of differentiated
  instruction
• Explore the process of collecting data on student
  readiness, interest, and learning profile
• Discuss and reflect on choosing differentiation
  strategies in response to student data collected.

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A definition

• "What we share in common makes us human. How we
  differ makes us individuals. In a classroom with
  little or no differentiated instruction, only
  student similarities seem to take center stage.

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A definition

• In a differentiated classroom, commonalities
  are acknowledged and built upon, and student
  differences become important elements in teaching
  and learning as well ....

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A definition

• Students have multiple options for
• taking in information
• making sense of ideas
• expressing what they learn.

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A definition

• In other words, a differentiated classroom
  provides different avenues to
• acquiring content
• processing or making sense of ideas
• and developing products."

Carol Ann Tomlinson
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Differentiation intentional response to
student needs
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Differentiation concepts

• Classroom elements
• Content
• Process
• Products
• Learning Environment/ Affect
• Assessment

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Differentiation Concepts

• Student characteristics
• Readiness
• Interest
• Learning Profile

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How well do I know my students?

• Think of a particular student.
• Create a web of information you know about that
  student.

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How well do I know my students?

• Highlight and label the learner characteristic
  for each item
• Learning profile LP
• Interest I
• Readiness R

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How well do I know my students?

• What dont you know that would be helpful?
• Reflect on how you might get to know that student
  better.

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daretodifferentiate.wikispaces.com
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Differentiation Concepts

• Student characteristics
• Readiness
• Interest
• Learning Profile

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Tools for Knowing the LearnerInterest
Learning Profile
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Collecting data about student interest and
learning profile
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Multiple Intelligences MI Way
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http//www.ncwiseowl.org/kscope/techknowpark/LoopC
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http//www.ncwiseowl.org/kscope/techknowpark/LoopC
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Caves of the Code Breakers
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t/Welcome.html
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Where does your intelligence lie?

• Class Intelligence Profile

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Lets create a differentiated activity based on a
class profile
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Differentiation Strategies

• Learning Centers
• Choice Boards

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What are Learning Centers?

• Areas set up in the classroom with learning
  activities directed at a specific
• Interest
• Skill
• Extended study of essential concept

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CHOICE BOARDS

• Students choose from a menu of options
• Tasks vary by process and interest
• Some anchor activities can be required of all
  students
• Can be used for homework, projects, and
  assessment

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Differentiation Concepts

• Student characteristics
• Readiness
• Interest
• Learning Profile

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Tools for Knowing the LearnerReadiness
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What are respectful tasks?

• Every students work is
• Equally engaging
• Equally appealing
• Equally important

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What are respectful tasks?

• Respectful tasks
• Emphasize strengths.
• Are relevant.
• Provide choices.
• Stretch students.
• Scaffold learning.

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A classroom teacher ensures that students'
learning is respected by

• assessing the readiness level of each student by
  evaluating competency in the skills and concepts
  included in the local curriculum standards
• expecting and supporting continual growth in all
  students by providing challenging curriculum
• offering all students the opportunity to explore
  skills and understanding at appropriate degrees
  of difficulty
• offering all students tasks that are equally
  interesting, important and engaging.

http//www.adifferentplace.org/differentiated.htm
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Designing Respectful Activities

• Teachers in a differentiated classroom must
  ensure that the different activities feel equally
  respectful.
• Each activity must be engaging and appropriately
  challenging for the students for whom it is
  designed.
• The teachers goal is to make sure that no matter
  what task a student gets, it is so exciting and
  appealing that the student really wont care what
  other students are doing!

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Respectful Tasks Dos Donts
Step left DO
Step right DONT
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Formative Assessment Techniques
High Five
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Tiering for Readiness
Advancing
Developing
Emerging
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What our students seek
The yearning for deep connection describes a
quality of relationship that is profoundly
caring, is resonant with meaning, and involves
feelings of belonging, or of being truly seen and
known.

• Rachael Kessler
• The Soul of Education Helping Students Find
• Connection, Compassion and Character at School
• (ASCD, 2000)

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Student Voices on Differentiated Instruction
I really like this class because it makes me feel
like I can do it. It doesnt make me feel smart
or dumb, big or smallIt makes me feel important.
Meg, elementary school
student
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Student Voices on Differentiated Instruction
I like this class because theres something
different going on all the time. My other
classes, its like peanut butter for lunch every
single day. This class, its like my teacher
really knows how to cook. Its like she runs a
really good restaurant with a big menu.
5th grade student, in a comment from a course
evaluation
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Knowing Our LearnersTapping the Power of
Differentiated Instruction

• despitia_at_hcpss.org
• lgrahn_at_hcpss.org

All images unless otherwise indicated are from
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