Dare to Differentiate - 50 Terrific Teacher Tips! Response: More Ways To Differentiate Instruction -- Part Two - Classroom Q&A With Larry Ferlazzo (This is the second post in a two-part series on differentiation. You can see the first post, which includes responses from Carol Tomlinson and Rick Wormeli, here) I posed this question last week: "What is the best advice you can give to a teacher about differentiating instruction?" I've shared my response in an Ed Week Teacher article that I've co-authored with my colleague, Katie Hull Sypnieski. Today's column includes commentaries from Dr. Response From Dr. Dr. Interested in differentiating instruction in your classroom? * Recognize that differentiation is an approach to teaching and learning, not a list of strategies. * Recognize and celebrate what you already do. * Assess yourself to identify your strengths and areas for growth. * Set reasonable goals/expectations for yourself. * Learn! * Be candid with your students, administrators, and parents about what you are doing. * Find a collaborative group of colleagues with whom you can learn and dialogue. Response From Megan Allen
Differentiating the curriculum The Policy and implementation strategies for the education of gifted and talented students: Support package: Curriculum differentiation (2004) (pdf 1345kb) provides an introduction to curriculum differentiation for gifted and talented students and is suitable for all stages of schooling. It needs to be read in conjunction with the Policy and implementation strategies for the education of gifted and talented students (revised 2004) and its companion document (2004) (pdf 270kb). The purpose of differentiating the curriculum is to provide appropriate learning opportunities for gifted and talented students. Three important characteristics of gifted students that underscore the rationale for curriculum differentiation (Van Tassel–Baska, 1988) are the capacity to: learn at faster rates find, solve and act on problems more readily manipulate abstract ideas and make connections. The creation of a differentiated curriculum requires some pre-planning. Definitions Article (pdf 25kb) Acceleration Web page
Integrating the 16 Habits of Mind In outcomes-based learning environments, we generally see three elements in play: 1) learning objectives or targets are created from given standards; 2) instruction of some kind is given; and then 3) learning results are assessed. These assessments offer data to inform the revision of further planned instruction. Rinse and repeat. But lost in this clinical sequence are the Habits of Mind that (often predictably) lead to success or failure in the mastery of given standards. In fact, it is not in the standards or assessments, but rather these personal habits where success or failure -- in academic terms -- actually begin. Below are all 16 Habits of Mind, each with a tip, strategy or resource to understand and begin implementation in your classroom. The habits themselves aren't new at all, and significant work has already been done in the areas of these "thinking habits." And a renewed urgency for their integration. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. Ask students to map out their own thinking process. 6. 7. 8.
Article List - Differentiation Central Practical/Application Chapman, C., & King, R. (2005). Eleven practical ways to guide teachers toward differentiation. Journal of Staff Development, 26(4), 20-25. Professional development is a process that needs time to grow and develop. Grigorenko, E. and R. Learning profile adds to our understanding of students' performance and should be taken into account in classrooms in terms of both instruction and assessment. Popham, W. What is the meaning of formative assessments? Sternberg, R. When students are matched to instruction suited to their learning preferences, they achieve significantly better than comparable students whose instruction is not matched to their learning preferences. Sternberg, R., & Grigorenko, E. (2005). Thinking styles are examined as a way to differentiate in the classroom. What works for students at risk: A research synthesis Learning to love assessment Research/Theory Beecher, M., & Sweeny, S. (2008). Bruner, J. (1961). Grigorenko, E. (1997). Hebert, T. (1993).
Oz the Great and Powerful (2013 Using Bibliotherapy with Gifted Children - Unwrapping the Gifted Hopefully we’ve all had that experience of reading a book that powerfully “spoke” to us, a book whose characters we could relate to, and whose struggles and triumphs we identified with. Taking this experience a step farther is the strategy of bibliotherapy, the process of helping the reader learn about and cope with any social or emotional struggles or developmental needs by identifying with a character in a book who shares a similar struggle or need. The reading is typically followed up by discussion with a trusted adult. Bibliotherapy of course can be done with all students, particularly students who might be experiencing a divorce in the family, a learning disability, adoption, etc. In addition to helping them learn new strategies for dealing with their various social and emotional issues, bibliotherapy with gifted kids can help them to better understand themselves, their sensitivity, and their quirks. * Who in the book do you identify with and why? Anastasia Krupnik by Lois Lowry.
Homepage - Differentiation Central Dream Moods A-Z Dream Dictionary Symbols are the language of dreams. A symbol can invoke a feeling or an idea and often has a much more profound and deeper meaning than any one word can convey. At the same time, these symbols can leave you confused and wondering what that dream was all about. Acquiring the ability to interpret your dreams is a powerful tool. To guide you with your dreams interpretations, we have interpreted over 5900 keywords and symbols and over 20,000 different meanings in our ever expanding dream dictionary. Every detail, even the most minute element in your dream is important and must be considered when analyzing your dreams. Differentiating Instruction Differentiating Instruction ... One Size Doesn't Fit All Effective Strategies to Improve Student Performance ! We have students in our classrooms who struggle academically and others who learn at an advanced level and accelerated pace. We can meet the needs of all learners by differentiating instruction. This workshop provides an understanding and application of the principles and strategies needed to set up a classroom that provides success and challenge for academically diverse students. Testimonials about the workshops -- Fran McAleer is a valuable contributor to our work, training to create a new and better workplace in our schools. More! Franny McAleer has been providing staff development for teachers in the Berwick Area School District for the last four years, including whole staff workshops with the Six Thinking Hats as well as focused workshops detailing best practices with instructional strategies for gifted and honors students. AWESOME! Franny McAleer is a dynamic presenter.
Guide to special needs apps Complete guide to educational and special needs apps With over 300,000 apps it's easy to become overwhelmed by the number of app choices. It's also easy to spend a small fortune on a lot of useless apps. As a special needs parent I wanted to get right to the "good stuff" and figured you did too. Check out our guide that breaks down the best of the apps by skill set so you can easily find and buy apps that most benefit your child. Great for kids with autism, ADHD, apraxia, learning disability, sensory issues and more. by Dawn Villarreal, One Place for Special Needs Android apps (all) Android does not have the nice interface of iTunes for viewing apps on the Internet as opposed to your device. Aphasia appsApps specific to those with aphasia Apraxia appsApps specific to those with Childhood Apraxia of Speech Articulation appsApps that focus on articulation. Auditory memory apps Auditory memory is the ability to remember what you heard. Autism appsApps specific to those on the autism spectrum
Tomlinson - Differentiation Central Teaching the Gifted and Talented: 33 Websites Where You Can Find Good Resources I wish the Internet was available to me as a kid in elementary school. In New York City, where I attended kindergarten through sixth grade, they called the gifted and talented class "SP". I remember being put into a class to learn French, but very little else. SITES 26 Livebinders for Gifted Teachers- by Teach a Gifted Kid bloggerADHD and Children Who Are Gifted Byrdseed Gifted Classroom Ideas- blog followed by 4,000 peopleCharacters of Intellectually Advanced Young PeopleThe Center for Gifted Studies- The Center for Talented Youth- for pre-collegiate students; through Johns Hopkins UniversityCommon Myths About Gifted Students Council for Exceptional ChildrenCrossover Children: LD and Gifted Gifted But Learning Disabled: A Puzzling Paradox Gifted Exchange-"blog about gifted children, schooling, parenting, education news and changing American education for the better."