DIFFERENTIATING INSTRUCTION

Wilkes County Middle Grade ELA/SS

September 29, 2014

(adapted from LINDA P. ROBINSON’S presentation to the administrators of

Wilkes County Schools)

WHY?

• Brainstorm . . .

•WHY do we differentiate instruction?

Any Classroom on Any Given Day

                                                  

NOT READY JUST READY READY TO GO BEYOND

You aim down the middle and hope

you hit as many as possible.

My teacher says teaching is like

bowling.

She must be a terrible bowler.

REASONS FORCHALLENGING ALL LEARNERS

Lack of challenge leads to poor attitudes toward school.

Lack of challenge leads to failure to develop study skills.

Lack of challenge leads to low frustration levels.

What does differentiation

look like?

Let’s Move!

TWO GLOBAL CHOICES

COMPACTING• Preassessing to determine

prior or earlier mastery

• Ensuring mastery of ALL standards and competencies

• Providing alternatives that challenge and engage.

• (Credit by Demonstrated Mastery)

TIERING• Providing CHOICES for

• NOT YET READY

• JUST READY

• READY TO GO BEYOND

learners based on the

SAME OBJECTIVE.

TIERED ASSIGNMENTS

SKILL LEVEL

  

VOCABULARY

 

COMPLEXITY

 

LEVEL OF THINKING

 

INTEREST LEVEL

ABSTRACTNESS

 

SOPHISTICATION OF RESEARCH

 

OPENNESS OF PROCESS/PRODUCT

 

PERSPECTIVE/REAL- LIFE ROLES

 

REAL-LIFE PRODUCTS

Tiered Assignments…

…are challenging and respectful for each student.

…provide fluid grouping based on on-going assessment.

…are focused on the same objective but differ based on the criteria.

…can incorporate some existing activities from the text.

Tiered Assignments…

…are not a matter of giving the “rich assignments” to one group of students.

…do not pigeon-hole students into stagnant groups.

…are not designed for Tier 3 to do all of the work of Tiers 1 and 2.

…do not have to be designed from scratch by the teacher.

TIERED BY

SKILL LEVEL

TIERED MATH ASSIGNMENT

Developed by a Nine-year old 3rd Grader

EASY: How many ounces equal 1 pound.

MEDIUM: Someone has a box that weighs 80 ounces. How many pounds does the box weigh?

HARD: If a chair that weighed 4 kilograms lost a leg that weighed 567 grams, how much would it weigh?

INTENSE: A pencil weighs 13 grams. How much do 3,767 of them weigh?

EXTREME: About how many pounds would that be?

BESERK: A kit comes with 3 batteries that weigh 3 oz. Each, 1 instruction book that weighs 5 oz., and 4 wires that each weigh ½ ounce. How many pounds do 5,734 kits weigh?

TIERED ASSIGNMENTS

Directions: Complete the activity in the center. For each activity, if you experience success, complete the activity to the right. If you struggle, complete the activity to the left.

     

     

     

     

TIERED BY

VOCABULARY

Oceans: Official Companion to the Disney Feature Film by Francois Sarano and Stephane Duran (Hardcover - Mar. 23, 2010)

Over in the Ocean: In a Coral Reef by Marianne Berkes and Jeanette Canyon (Paperback - Aug. 2004)

Ocean (DK Eyewitness Books) by Miranda MacQuitty (Hardcover - June 30, 2008)

(

The Magic School Bus on the Ocean Floor (Paperback)

WEBSITES:

http://newsela.com - this free site allows you to choose from a variety of topics and provides articles with which you can alter the lexile level.  The advantage of this site allows the user to move the lexile level up or down.

http://rewordify.com - this free site allows you to copy and paste any text into the program and change the lexile level; however, it only simplifies the text by lowering the level.  It should only be used for your struggling readers.

Modifying Lexile LevelsVOCABULARY

TIERED BY

COMPLEXITY

TIERED ASSIGNMENT: PARAGRAPHS

 

Pre-assessment: Writing sample- 3 paragraph minimumTier 1: Complete assignment on writing a paragraph from the text and teacher’s lesson.

Tier 2: Using a book you are reading or have read, analyze the paragraphs on 3 – 4 pages in the following ways:. Average number of sentences per paragraph:_. Average number of words per paragraph:__. Look also at the order of the sentences. Now do the same for another book by the same author. Using a Venn diagram, compare the paragraphs in the two books.

Tier 3: Choose the paragraph from your reading that you would nominate as the best-written paragraph, and the one you would consider the worst-written. Show them to at least 5 friends. Can they tell which is your choice for best? Present your data as a graph or paragraph. 

TIERED BY

LEVEL OF THINKING SKILLSCreating

EvaluatingGeneratingAnalyzingApplying

OrganizingKnowing

North Carolina Lighthouses

Bloom’s Taxonomy

Remembering: Research and find the names of the main NC lighthouses. Where are they located? What are daymarks? What is their light pattern?

Understanding: Research why the Hatteras Lighthouse was moved. What were the arguments for and against moving it? What is the importance of lighthouses having different daymarks and light patterns?

Applying: Create a salt map of the coastal plain of NC and the Barrier Islands. Be sure to include the major lighthouses, keeping in mind height and daymarks.

Analyzing: Study the landforms found along the coast of NC. Study the landforms found underwater off the coast of NC. What land features/forms create a need for lighthouses? Compare our coast to the land surrounding Lake Erie. How are lighthouses and the Research Triangle Park alike and different?

Evaluating: Predict whether you think lighthouses will become obsolete, both in terms of being used and historical importance. Give evidence to support your prediction.

Creating: Select a NC Lighthouse to live in. What resources would be readily available to you? How would you alter that lighthouse in order to make it livable for you and your family? Sketch or describe your re-design. Why did you choose this lighthouse over 2 others?

(Developed by Jessica Sproat, Grade 4, Oak Grove Elem., Wake County Schools, in CONNECTIONS-NC, Inc. class)

TIERED BY

ABSTRACTNESS

Rank order the characters in the story in terms of who you like the most to the least.

Rank order the characters in the story based on who would make the best principal for our school.

Rank order the characters in the story based on who has the most power.

CIVIL WAR: Tiered Assignment

 

NOT YET READY:You are a soldier for either the North or the South. The date is _____________ and you have just fought in the battle at _________________. Write a letter to your mother about what happened today and how you feel about it.  JUST READY:You are a soldier for either the North or the South. The date is _____________ and you have just fought in the battle at _________________. Write a letter to either Gen. Lee or Gen. Grant telling them your perspective about what happened today and what you think their side should do and why.

 

READY TO GO BEYOND:You are a soldier for either the North or the South. The date is _____________ and you have just fought in the battle at _________________. Write a letter to citizens of Iraq using evidence from this battle to suggest what they should do concerning their country’s civil war.Dev. By L. Robinson, CONNECTIONS-NC, Inc., 2005. Copy protected for use in classrooms.

TIERED BY

SOPHISTICATION OF RESEARCH

Tiered Based on Sophistication of Research

TIER 1: Select a famous person of interest to you. Read about that person in at least two encyclopedia or on-line articles. Write a two-page summary of the key information about that person's life and why they were influential.

 

TIER 2: Select a famous person of interest to you. Read about that person first in an encyclopedia or on-line article, then in a brief biography about that person. Develop a two-page resume' about that person's life as if they are applying for a specific job. Specify the job for which you think they are best suited in this time period.

 

TIER 3: Select a famous person of interest to you. Read about that person first in an encyclopedia or on-line article, then through at least 4 primary documents related to that individual. Develop a persuasive speech and presentation using any medium to convince one of the Nobel Prize committees that this individual should be a recipient.  Developed by L. Robinson, CONNECTIONS-NC, Inc.

TIERED BYOPENNESS OFPROCESS OR

PRODUCT

Tiered based on Openness of Process or Product: THE CHINESE CINDERELLA

(A novel by Adeline Yen Mah) PRACTICE OF FOOT BINDING

 

TIER 1: Research and find 3 other examples of cultural beauty. Compose an essay of your findings.

 

TIER 2: Write a comparative essay that compares the Chinese practice of foot binding to the practices of tattooing or piercing in our society.

 

TIER 3: Examine cultural ideas of beauty across the world and across time. Choose one practice to evaluate based on the ideas of disfigurement or expressions of beauty. Write a persuasive essay based on your view of this practice.

 Developed by Shannon Moser and Kelly Vuncannon, Lead Teachers in Randolph County Middle Schools- T.E.A.M.S. working with CONNECTIONS-NC, Inc.

TIERED BY

PERSPECTIVE AND

REAL-LIFE ROLES

S T A K E H O L D E R R O L E SA s y o u re a d th e B i l l o f R ig h ts , a s s u m e th e ro le – th e th in k in g a n d th e p e rs p e c t iv e – o f o n e o f th e fo l lo w in g :

. P re s id e n t

. P o l ic e O f f ic e r

. L a w y e r

. J o u rn a l is t

. E d i to r

. N a t iv e A m e r ic a n C h ie f

. A f r ic a n A m e r ic a n S la v e

. K in g /Q u e e n o f E n g la n d

. P u r i ta n w h o w a s p e rs e c u te d in E n g la n d

. D o c to r d e c id in g s ta n d o n a b o rt io n. N a t io n a l R if le A s s o c ia t io n P re s id e n t

. B u d d h is t p r ie s t

B e re a d y to a n s w e r th e f o l lo w in g q u e s t io n s :. W h ic h a m e n d m e n ts a re re le v a n t to y o u r ro le ?. A re th e re a m e n d m e n ts th a t y o u c o u ld n ’ t s u p p o r t?. A re th e re a m e n d m e n ts th a t y o u w o u ld a d d ?. W ith w h o s e v ie w s m ig h t y o u c o n f l ic t?

B a s e d o n id e a b y D e b b ie F a rr e ll , I re d e ll-S ta te s v il le S c h o o ls , in C O N N E C T I O N S -N C C o u r s e , 2 0 0 4 .

                                      

FIGURATIVE LANGUAGEFuneral Home Director

Sportscaster

Advertising Executive

Fisherman

Songwriter

Principal of a High School

CEO of a Failing Bank

President in a State of the Union Speech

Tax accountant counseling a client

Teacher in a parent conference

Psychologist or Psychiatrist

Real estate broker

When Tiering:Adjust--- • Level of Complexity

• Amount of Structure

• Materials

• Time/Pace

• Number of Steps

• Form of Expression

• Level of Dependence

MANAGEMENT CHOICES• Compacting

• Independent Study

• Interest Centers or Interest Groups

• Tiered Assignments

• Flexible Skills Groups

• Learning Centers

• Higher Level Questions

• Mentorships/Apprenticeships

• RAFTS

• Contracts/Management Plans

• Think-Tac-Toes

• Web sites and web quests

DIFFERENTIATION SHOULD HAPPEN IN…

•CONTENT

•PROCESSES

•PRODUCTS

•LEARNING ENVIRONMENT

WHAT ADMINISTRATORS WILL ASK

• Did you PLAN for those not yet ready, just ready and ready to go beyond?

• Were there times in the lesson that the distinct needs of these three groups were addressed?

• How did you respond to students who already had significant mastery?

• Were all learners challenged, learning something new, using their time wisely, and equally engaged?