1. Dare to Differentiate Deborah Espitia
Coordinator of World Languages & ESOL
Leslie Grahn
World Language Resource Teacher
Howard County Public Schools, Maryland

2. Let’s do a fuel gauge check
1/4 tank: in need of more “fuel”
1/2 tank: enough to take short trips
Leslie
3/4 tank: ready for a long journey
full tank: enough fuel to share with others

3. Warm-up: Mixed readiness groups
Create a group of 3 or 4 who have a variety of fuel levels indicated on their gauge.
Sit together in a group.
Leslie

4. Warm-up: Readiness groups
Cut and paste activity: In your groups, cut apart and collaboratively develop categories for the ideas on the strips of paper. Glue them to the large colored paper and label with the agreed upon categories.

5. Differentiation Foldable
Differentiation strategies I’ve tried
Challenges to incorporating differentiation
Questions I have about differentiation

6. Workshop Choice Board

7. Dare to Differentiate Outcomes Participants will:
Build background knowledge of research and application of differentiation strategies.
Participate in simulations of differentiation strategies.
Create differentiated activities for immediate use in their classrooms.
Receive a packet full of differentiation activity templates and examples.

8. What about my special needs learners?

9. Who are the diverse learners in our classrooms?

10. The diversity of our diverse learners
Ability
Gender
Ethnicity
Socio-economics
Interests
Prior experiences
Learning preferences

11. Lining it all up: TRADITIONAL TEACHING LENS


Teaching
to the middle

Struggling learners
Advanced learners
Regular/Average learners

12. Lining it all up: DIFFERENTIATION TEACHING LENS
        
Struggling learners
Advanced learners
Students’ positions on this continuum change from theme to theme, topic to topic, level to level.

13. Lining it all up: DIFFERENTIATION Speaking
Struggling learners
Advanced learners
Students’ positions on this continuum change from theme to theme, topic to topic, level to level.

14. Lining it all up: DIFFERENTIATION Writing
Struggling learners
Advanced learners
Students’ positions on this continuum change from theme to theme, topic to topic, level to level.

15. Lining it all up: DIFFERENTIATION Preterit
Struggling learners
Advanced learners
Students’ positions on this continuum change from theme to theme, topic to topic, level to level.

16. Lining it all up: DIFFERENTIATION Imperfect
Struggling learners
Advanced learners
Students’ positions on this continuum change from theme to theme, topic to topic, level to level.

17. Lining it all up: DIFFERENTIATION Art Unit
Struggling learners
Advanced learners
Students’ positions on this continuum change from theme to theme, topic to topic, level to level.

18. Lining it all up: DIFFERENTIATION Sports Unit
Struggling learners
Advanced learners
Students’ positions on this continuum change from theme to theme, topic to topic, level to level.

19. Suggestions for working with struggling learners
Look for the learner’s positives.
Don’t let what’s broken extinguish what works.
Pay attention to relevance.
Go for powerful learning.
Teach up.
Use many avenues to learning.
See with the eyes of love.
Tomlinson, How to Differentiate Instruction in Mixed-Ability Classrooms, ASCD

20. DIFFERENTIATION: What is it?

21. Differentiation based on research and writings of:
Carol Ann Tomlinson
Professor of Educational Leadership
University of Virginia

22. 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.

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

24. A definition… Students have multiple options for taking in information
making sense of ideas
expressing what they learn.

25. A definition… acquiring content processing or making sense of ideas
In other words, a differentiated classroom provides different avenues to
acquiring content
processing or making sense of ideas
and developing products."
Carol Ann Tomlinson

26. Differentiation Non-Negotiables
Supportive learning environment
Continuous assessment
High-quality curriculum
Respectful tasks
Flexible grouping
Leslie

27. The Cogs of Differentiation
Tomlinson, 2003

28. Differentiation is a teacher’s response to learners’ needs
guided by general principles of differentiation, such as
respectful
tasks
ongoing
assessment
flexible
grouping
Teachers can differentiate
Content
Process
Product
according to students’
Readiness
Interests
Learning Profile
through a range of instructional and management strategies

29. Differentiation concepts
Classroom elements
Content
Process
Products
Learning Environment/ Affect
Assessment

30. Differentiation
Content
Process
Product
Environment
Assessment

31. Differentiation
Content
Process
Product
Environment
Assessment

32. Differentiation
Content
Process
Product
Environment
Assessment

33. Differentiation
Content
Process
Product
Environment
Assessment

34. Differentiation
Content
Process
Product
Environment
Assessment

35. How do I know how to DIFFERENTIATE?

36. Strategies for getting to know our learners

37. Knowing the learner WHO Knowing the Learner Development Personal
Cognitive
Development
Personal
Social

38. Differentiation Concepts
Student characteristics
Readiness
Interest
Learning Profile

39. Differentiation Concepts
Learning Profile
Grouping Preferences
Cognitive Style
Learning Environment Needs
Information Processing

40. Differentiation Concepts
Readiness & Interests
Pre-assessments
Every Student Response
Surveys ??

41. TV Interest groups
On a colored index card, write the name of your two favorite television shows.
Find five other people who have at least one show/type of show in common with you.
Sit together in a group.

42. How well do I know my students?
Think of a particular student.
Create a web of information you know about that student.

43. How well do I know my students?
Highlight and label the learner characteristic for each item
Learning profile = LP
Interest = I
Readiness = R

44. How well do I know my students?
What don’t you know that would be helpful?
Reflect on how you might get to know that student better.

45. Strategies for getting to know our learners- LEARNING PROFILE

46. Strategies for getting to know our learners- LEARNING PROFILE

47. MULTIPLE INTELLIGENCES
Visual-
Spatial
Naturalist
Musical-
Rhythmic
Logical-
Mathematical
Bodily-Kinesthetic
Verbal-Linguistic
Intrapersonal
Interpersonal

48. Strategies for getting to know our learners- LEARNING PROFILE

49. Strategies for getting to know our learners- INTEREST

50. Strategies for getting to know our learners- READINESS

51. Time for a break!

52. Digging deeper into DIFFERENTIATION

53. What are respectful tasks?
Emphasize strengths.
Are relevant.
Provide choices.
Stretch students.
Scaffold learning.

54. Differentiation Strategies
Learning Centers
Tiered Assignments
R.A.F.T.s
Choice Boards
Flexible Grouping

55. DIFFERENTIATION STRATEGIES: Learning Centers

56. What are Learning Centers?
Areas set up in the classroom with learning activities directed at a specific:
Interest
Skill
Extended study of essential concept

57. Learning Centers (random groupings)
(pink) A
(green) B
(yellow) C
(orange) D
(white) E

58. Reflection on Learning Centers
How could I transform the learning centers I just experienced to ones I can use for my classroom?

59. Learning Centers
A = Picture prompt
B = Color coding activity
C = Experience with/not
D = Highlight words that relate
E = Choose from lists

61. SUGAR RUSH!!! What’s your favorite dessert?
Line up alphabetically based on your favorite dessert’s first letter.

62. Fuel gauge check
Think about your comfort level with differentiation in terms of a fuel gauge.
1/4 tank: in need of more “fuel”
1/2 tank: enough to take short trips
3/4 tank: ready for a long journey
full tank: enough fuel to share with others

63. DIFFERENTIATION STRATEGIES: RAFT Assignments

64. RAFT Assignments Focus on: Writing and reasoning Ideas around a topic
Student choice, interest
Learning styles, preferences

65. What does RAFT mean?
R = ROLE
A = AUDIENCE
F = FORMAT
T = TOPIC

66. Let’s build a RAFT

67. RAFT Assignments As a group, choose a topic for your RAFT.
Individually, choose a role and then add your RAFT idea to the template.

68. DIFFERENTIATION STRATEGIES: Choice Boards

69. 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

71. Build Your Own Choice Board
Choose a content topic and language structure.
Create a choice board of activities, projects, or performances with your diverse student learners in mind.

72. DIFFERENTIATION STRATEGIES: Tiered Assignments

73. Tiered Assignments What are they?
Tiered assignments are parallel tasks at varied levels of complexity, depth and abstractness with various degrees of scaffolding, support, or direction. Students work on different levels of activities, all with the same essential understanding or goal in mind.

74. Tiered Assignments What are they?
Tiered assignments accommodate mainly for differences in student readiness and performance levels and allow students to work toward a goal or objective at a level that builds on their prior knowledge and encourages continued growth.

75. Tiered Assignments Why use them?
One of the main benefits of tiered assignments is that they allow students to work on tasks that are neither too easy nor too difficult.
They are highly motivating because they allow students to be successful at their level of readiness.
Tiered assignments also allow students to work in their specific learning styles or preferences.

76. Tiered Assignments How to use them?
1. Make sure all tiered activities are introduced with the same level of enthusiasm and interest.
2. Take care to give different work, not simply more or less work, for different tiers.
3. Ensure that all students are equally involved and active.
4. Ensure that all activities are equally appealing and desirable.

77. Tomlinson’s Equalizer

78. Analyzing a Tiered Assignment
Parallel tasks
Varying levels of complexity
Various degrees of scaffolding, support, or direction
Different levels of activity with same essential goals
Builds on prior knowledge and encourages continued growth

79. DIFFERENTIATION STRATEGIES: Flexible Grouping

80. How did we group you today?
Interest (TV shows)
Random (colored index cards)
Interest (favorite dessert)
Mixed Readiness (fuel gauge)

81. Fuel gauge check
Think about your comfort level with differentiation in terms of a fuel gauge.
1/4 tank: in need of more “fuel”
1/2 tank: enough to take short trips
3/4 tank: ready for a long journey
full tank: enough fuel to share with others

82. Dare to Differentiate Wiki
daretodifferentiate.wikispaces.com

83. Dare to Differentiate wiki:
daretodifferentiate.wikispaces.com

84. Differentiation Buddies

85. Wait! We’ve got . . .
PRIZES !!!

87. Dare to DIFFERENTIATE
Take the dare.

88. despitia@hcpss.org lgrahn@hcpss.org
Dare to DIFFERENTIATE