What do you wish regular education teachers knew about differentiation?
What I Wish All Regular Education Knew about Differentiation
Many students want to do well and impress their teachers and parents. They might have been passed to the next grade even though they did not learn the material in the previous grade(s). They often lack the confidence after years of not doing well academically. A student like this is only some differentiated assignments, lessons, homework and tests away from beginning to build that confidence in him/herself that he/she needs to feel and be successful.
Not all students have the same background knowledge as their peers. Also, students do not all learn at the same rate of speed. Within one class room you might have a student working 3-4 grade levels above their current grade level while another who is challenged by single digit addition and subtraction and/or reading well below grade level. Differentiated math assignments and readings are a great way to bridge this gap. It is important to meet the lower leveled learners where they are while also pushing the advanced students to their capacity. There is many websites where you can print out a text on the same topic on all different reading levels. You can still have a class discussion or assignment on the topic and often times the students do not know that they are even reading different leveled texts if they are in differentiated small groups.
In math specifically, many times a student may know how to solve the problem when given the correct formula, an example or fill in the blank response etc. However, many times it is presented in a wordy word problem that is hard for them to figure out the correct operation and they will give up even though they know how to solve the problem. They are just not sure how to set it up. There are many different ways to differentiate classroom assignments, homework assignments, tests and quizzes.
In conclusion, all regular education teachers should know that sometimes a student may not complete his/her work or act out in class because he/she does not know how to complete the assignment and they might be embarrassed in front of their peers. It often requires extra planning, copying, time and energy but in the end it is the only way to meet certain students. Luke Bannon Special Ed. Resource West Broadway Middle School Providence, R.I.
What do you wish regular education teachers knew about differentiation?
ReplyDeleteWhat I Wish All Regular Education Knew about Differentiation
Many students want to do well and impress their teachers and parents. They might have been passed to the next grade even though they did not learn the material in the previous grade(s). They often lack the confidence after years of not doing well academically. A student like this is only some differentiated assignments, lessons, homework and tests away from beginning to build that confidence in him/herself that he/she needs to feel and be successful.
Not all students have the same background knowledge as their peers. Also, students do not all learn at the same rate of speed. Within one class room you might have a student working 3-4 grade levels above their current grade level while another who is challenged by single digit addition and subtraction and/or reading well below grade level. Differentiated math assignments and readings are a great way to bridge this gap. It is important to meet the lower leveled learners where they are while also pushing the advanced students to their capacity. There is many websites where you can print out a text on the same topic on all different reading levels. You can still have a class discussion or assignment on the topic and often times the students do not know that they are even reading different leveled texts if they are in differentiated small groups.
In math specifically, many times a student may know how to solve the problem when given the correct formula, an example or fill in the blank response etc. However, many times it is presented in a wordy word problem that is hard for them to figure out the correct operation and they will give up even though they know how to solve the problem. They are just not sure how to set it up. There are many different ways to differentiate classroom assignments, homework assignments, tests and quizzes.
In conclusion, all regular education teachers should know that sometimes a student may not complete his/her work or act out in class because he/she does not know how to complete the assignment and they might be embarrassed in front of their peers. It often requires extra planning, copying, time and energy but in the end it is the only way to meet certain students.
Luke Bannon
Special Ed. Resource
West Broadway Middle School
Providence, R.I.
Tell a Story of a grouping choice you made this week---this visual will help while I explain my response:
ReplyDeletehttps://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1trRgkcPIJYfQYS2P7MmDuPAGRw_P_CwBij8uovgYIgo/edit?usp=sharing
Sari and Cassie
ReplyDeletehttps://coggle.it/diagram/WELcm9iCRsohymNc/d65af0a34fa5bb7604535a95b3b63a74d2290c306ed21d15524f3424fe087f5f
Another way to group...
ReplyDeletehttps://docs.google.com/a/providenceschools.org/drawings/d/1fDUihM4S43Cj1nKBJQFCEU_bXoPnKygK1gU26KxExII/edit?usp=sharing