Differentiation??? Who has the time? Bryan Beck Liberty High School Frisco ISD

Differentiation for students Content ●what the student needs to learn or how the student will get access to the information; Process ●activities in which the student engages in order to make sense of or master the content; Product ●culminating projects that ask the student to rehearse, apply, and extend what he or she has learned in a unit; and Learning Environment ●the way the classroom works and feels. Excerpted from: Tomlinson, C. A. (August, 2000). Differentiation of Instruction in the Elementary Grades. ERIC Digest. ERIC Clearinghouse on Elementary and Early Childhood Education.

Differentiation of Content What the student needs to learn isn’t up to us, but how they get access to the information could be totally up to us! 1. We can to get creative in how our students manipulate content. 2. We can let students drive their own learning. 3. We can allow students to teach other students the content and how they managed to master it.

Differentiation of Process Here are three documents that I have created for my classes that help with differentiation: 1. Student Cheat Sheet 2. Teacher Notes 3. Assignment Matrix Student Cheat Sheet Gives students an idea of what they will be studying. This is the calendar I give my students to, so they can know what to do, when to do it, and make sure it is done well. Teacher Notes I use this to lesson plan. This is where I choose the assignments that go on the Assignment Matrix, for students.

Differentiation of Process Student Choice Assignment Matrix – Allows students to choose their homework/classwork assignments Point values are based on how much time/effort the assignment should take Choices: *Guided Readings *Drawing Illustrations *Case Study Readings *Problems to solve *Graphs/Data to analyze *Problems to complete While choice lies with the student, the learning goals are the same for all.

Differentiation of Process Positive Outcomes to Student Choice 1. Students get involved in looking at the work. 2. An advantage to giving multiple assignments, is that it gives the teacher a wider range of things to talk about. 3. Assignments can be proactive or reactive to that lesson’s content. 4. Since students are doing different assignments, there can be more content to drive lessons. The “Dark Side” of Student Choice 1. Differentiation can seem like more work for the teacher. 2. For the beginning teacher (in survival mode), it can be a little overwhelming. 3. Since students are choosing, it is hard sometimes to tell how many students will choose an assignment. (for making copies, etc.)

Differentiation of Product Since the assignments are varied, the products you have turned in can be used to paint a wider picture. *For example: When we looked at aquatics, I had some students choose to draw lotic bodies, and some chose to answer questions from the book, both before our discussion on the topic. *My role then, was to bring an application of the new verbiage to the concrete drawings to which it will be applied. This more easily allows the teacher to truly be the “guide on the side.” You have students that have become “experts” on the same topic, from different viewpoints. My lessons have become more about posing questions that lead students to answers, more than information originating with my lecture.

Differentiation on Product Example: My last quiz grade … Check out the white paper on your desk (this should be stapled to the red paper), and see what you think … What could you do differently to make this adapatable in your class?

Differentiation of Product Differentiation with Projects/labs: Projects are just larger assignments, you can differentiate these in the same way. Instead of telling students how to do something, tell them what they can’t do, and let them be creative. The downside to this is making a rubric!!! Differentiation when Quizzing: Paper Quizzes Online Quizzes Use technology (those “clickers”) to make quiz questions within a lecture/discussion Open note/book quizzes Posters/Presentations Differentiation while Tests: CBAs (if you have them) can’t easily be differentiated  Retests can be open ended Try to get away from multiple choice (but this makes grading a little tougher) Maybe make tests where they have to answer 30 questions, out of 35 offered?

Differentiation of Environment Make your room like none other in the building You teach SCIENCE, your room should be interesting … Have things for students to inquire about. No matter what you teach, use your creativity to have plants, animals, experiments, demos that inspire students to question! Show them that their hard work has paid off. Reward good work by making mention of it in class. Show them that you know them! Differentiation can be something as simple as treating the kids with individuallity. Use a kind word or comment every now and then to let them know you see them as an individual not just “as a student.”

Differentiation of Environment Things that I have done/still do in my classroom to make it different: 1. I use living things in my room to make examples all the time. 2. I am running small experiments all the time. 3. I use my environment as a teaching tool. (Kinda easy, I teach APES-pun intended) 4. I use any assignments they turn in that are visual in nature into wall art, and reference it in class.

Last Notes None of this differentiation stuff matters if you can’t reach the student. “People don’t care what you know, until they know that you care” Sometimes the differentiation isn’t in the design of your lesson, the number of problems on your quiz, or whether you have a fish swimming around for them to look at. It boils down to how you can get on the level of the student and bring them up to where you want them to be. Sometimes, we need to get out of our comfort zones and just try something new. And, when doing that, don’t be afraid to fail, sometimes that is where the real learning happens.

Questions, anyone??? Bryan Beck Frisco-Liberty High School Please do your survey: Session Number: 028