Category: Differentiation

Dedicated Teacher at Work!

10/20/2014

Recently, I had the chance to visit a co-taught biology class at a Colorado high school. Many of the students at the school are English Language Learners, and the district is committed to supporting them by having ELL specialists co-teach the major subject area classes.

When I walked in the room, the ELL specialist turned toward me and this is what I saw. She had a piece of paper clipped to her shirt as she moved around the room. On the paper she had quickly illustrated a language concept (few, some, many and most) that was critical to the biology lesson. I was excited by how simple the idea was, but even more excited by her dedication to doing whatever it takes to help students succeed. What an easy and effective idea.

Bravo!

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Learning Time Line

6/19/2014

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A Learning Time Line is a wonderful way to capture learning over time or throughout a unit of instruction. Because research supports the use of non-linguistic approaches to capture and review concepts, I have used this strategy with students in the past. This week I decided to try it with adults. During a 3 day professional learning workshop on co-teaching, we documented our learning with words and pictures on a scroll of chart paper hung on the wall. I love no-prep strategies like this one!

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Can your students dig deeper?

4/7/2014

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Perhaps because it is snowing outside my window, I am feeling an intense craving for sunshine and the beach. Local stores seem to be stocking the shelves with the fun toys of summer, so I thought I would share with you a strategy for getting students to dig a little deeper.

Obtain a plastic beach bucket and a handful of plastic shovels. On the scoot of each shovel, adhere a piece of paper with one of the following higher level thinking prompts.

Do you see any patterns?
Can you take a different perspective?
Have you noticed any trends?
Are there any ethical issues to consider?
What relationships are obvious? subtle?
Can you make connections across content areas?

Place the shovels in the bucket and carry it with you as you wander the room. If you find a student who is finished early, or just needs some higher level stimulation, ask them to take a shovel from the bucket and
dig deeper into the content.

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Looking for a new vocab strategy?

3/24/2014

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Memory researchers tell us that it is easier to retain semantic information when it is linked to unusual locations. This strategy, Vocabulary Shapes, capitalizes on that by linking spelling or vocabulary words to a simple shape. I have used it with elementary, middle and high school students as a simple, no-prep strategy.

Play this short Educreations video to see how easy this is - and then try it tomorrow with any vocabulary terms you are teaching!

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How do you compare 2 informational texts?

2/4/2014

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How do you compare 2 informational texts? One of the anchor standards for reading expects students to be able to analyze two or more texts on similar topics to compare approaches the authors take. My co-teachers and I worked on this standard with our students this week, and, as usual, I wanted to be put a visual/tactile spin on it.

We distributed pieces of yarn, about 12 inches in length, to each student, and broke the students into two groups. They read a passage in the history book, and then another document detailing the same event in history. The second text was chosen in part because it portrays the event with different facts.

After reading each text, we asked a series of questions designed to encourage students to read closely. For example, “Who was Edward H. Moffat?” This historical figure is described very differently in each text. We then asked the students to use their piece of yarn to connect the location in each text so that we could compare. This forced them to be very focused on the textual evidence, before beginning to draw inferences. We then had robust discussion about why the authors chose to describe the person so differently.

The yarn served a great purpose of focusing students on specific evidence, and engaging tactile learners during a difficult reading task. Simple yet effective!

PS Some students chose to tape the yarn in place using restickable highlighter tape.

image by Lori Ann mamawit.wordpress.com

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Fantastic Fraction Accommodation

1/7/2014

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Students often struggle with trying to find common denominators when adding or subtracting fractions. Carol Gillis, a special education teacher in Webster, NY, developed this creative accommodation to assist students.

Make two copies of a multiplication chart - one on blue paper and one on green.
Laminate the charts and then cut them into strips as shown in the photo.
Paste the outer row/column to a piece of laminated card stock.
Apply a strip of sticy-backed velcro to the center back of each chart, and the corresponding velcro strip to the laminated piece of card stock.
When students are working with uncommon denominators, they pull the two strips off the chart, and line up the strips to see the common number. (See example above on right.) Then they can count over to determine the correct number needed to multiply the fraction to find the equivalent.

Thanks for sharing, Carol!

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Math Discussion Chips

10/23/2013

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The Common Core State Standards in math expect students to be able to explain their thinking and discuss mathematical concepts. This is quite a challenge for most students, but especially for those who struggle with language as English Learners or students with disabilities.

Discussion Poker Chips are something I have used successfully for literature circle discussions. Last week we tried them out in an inclusive, co-taught Algebra 1 class for the first time.

Students were placed in groups of 4 and provided with a Math Discussion Board. This is available for download here. (Modify to fit the level of your students.)

Each student was given 3 poker chips of a single color (1 student had green, 1 student had red, 1 student had blue and 1 student had white.)

My co-teacher and I modeled how to use the chips to have a conversation while working together through a set of problems.

We explained that the goal was to use the vocabulary represented on the board. If a student used the word, he could place his chip on that space. Students were encouraged to cover as many of the spaces as they could – just a hint of competition!

While it took a little while for the conversation to get started, we began to see students who never talk participating in the discussion! I credit three aspects of the activity – the symbols on the board serve as cues for students who can’t think of what to say, the poker chips add a tactile component that heightens alertness and the friendly competition between groups provided some motivation.

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Reading Comprehension Booster

7/23/2013

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After more than a year in development, my Reading Comprehension Booster iPad app is now available on the App Store! Many of my regular readers have attended my workshops and seen the app in the early stages. I welcomed your input and changed the design to include your suggested features. Testing with children of various ages also improved our design to the point where I believe it will be an asset to any literacy program.

What makes my app different? I have reviewed many apps tagged as reading comprehension apps. What I found was that most of these provide students with text to read and then answer questions. It seems to me that this assesses reading comprehension but doesn’t work on the skills needed to improve reading comprehension! Reading Comprehension Booster targets the foundational elements of understanding fiction and non-fiction and engages students in interactive responses to these. The app is also fully accessible - children can respond with audio recordings, drawings, text and drag and drop.

Click here for a video overview of the app, or read below for the specific details. If you feel that it is worthwhile, I would appreciate you spreading the word for me through your contacts, blogs and other networks. I will also welcome your feedback as we work on updates. I already have ideas for adding more non-fiction features in a future release.

Boost reading comprehension with this set of interactive tools! Based on the idea of paper bookmarks, each booster encourages the child to record responses, while they are reading, based on a specific reading focus. No more wondering if your child or student was actually paying attention while s/he was reading!

Booster bookmarks were designed by an expert in the field of differentiated instruction, and are based on essential instructional elements identified in literacy, brain and learning research. Each booster has a variety of interactive options to tap into different ability levels and interests. Users can read or listen to directions, draw, type, drag or record responses, and much more. Children can choose from Characters, Connections, Story Seeds and other bookmarks, or use several simultaneously. Children can easily email their work to a parent or teacher for review and discussion.

Features

•    Interactive tools to increase reading engagement and comprehension

•    Each bookmark provides cues to prompt thinking

•    For beginning readers through early teens

•    Allows for multiple users for classrooms sharing iPads

•    A range of response options increases accessibility

•    Data can be emailed to parents, teachers, RtI specialists, IEP team members

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Learning Bands

6/4/2013

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Athletic teams and charitable groups have used wrist bands for several years as a way to promote their organizations and goals. Frequently, students can be seen with several different colored bands dangling around their wrists. Here's an idea for tapping into this interest to promote your learning goals, especially with rote information such as spelling words and math facts. (Great for primary grade students!)

Obtain two different colors of Velcro ( the non-adhesive type.) From one color, cut strips approximately 7 inches in length. On the other color, use a permanent marker to write numbers and operational signs (or letters for spelling.) The written material will attach to the wrist band strips, so be sure to use the opposite Velcro structures so that they will stick together. Fnally, cut a one inch piece to serve as a clasp or connecting device to hold the band together.

At the start of the day direct your students to create a band that shows one of the math facts that they have not yet mastered (or to spell their name, or phone number, or missed spelling word.) As they wear the learning bands throughout the day they will see a frequent reminder of the key fact they need to learn!

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What makes an effective Graphic Organizer?

5/15/2013

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I am fortunate enough to be invited to co-teach in classrooms all over the country. When these opportunities arise, I ask the classroom teacher to email me the lesson plan and any accompanying materials a few days in advance so that I can look at them. My goal is to analyze the materials from the perspective of a special educator, thinking about what adaptations or differentiation I can add to support struggling students.

Often, these classroom materials include a graphic organizer (GO) of some kind. Recently I reviewed several different “graphic organizers” and was struck by the breadth of what that term seems to mean to teachers. Some of the GOs were very detailed, while others were minimalistic. Reflecting, I wondered if educators need a rubric of some kind for what an effective GO looks like. (A web search led to several rubrics to use after a student has designed and completed a GO, but none for teachers to use in designing or choosing a GO to provide students. If you know of one, please share.)

Here is my first attempt at the criteria to include in a GO Rubric. Please let me know what you think!

·      The format allows for relationships or patterns to be clearly seen

·      Illustrations/graphics support the learning objective

·      Prompts are provided in a simple but clear manner

·      Scaffolding (as necessary) provides access to the concepts

·      Once complete, the graphic organizer can be interpreted in a meaningful way

The GO on the left was provided to me, designed for a lesson on the Civil War, in which the primary objective was for students to be able to identify multiple perspectives on a topic, especially that of the African American soldiers. The GO on the right shows my redesign, based on the above rubric, including supports for struggling students. It is generic enough to be used for any discussion of multiple perspectives. Feel free to download it here.