How to Differentiate
Once you know and understand the students in front of you, differentiation starts with a specific learning objective.
Begin with clearly identifying and clearly communicating what you want students to:
- Know
- Understand
- Do
By considering student readiness, interests, and learning profile (your student’s starting point) in addition to what you want them to know, understand, and do (the end goal of learning) you can begin to consider the ways you can differentiate the Content, Process, product, and environment to support all your students.
When using Differentiated Instruction, it is important to avoid:
- Ableism
- Static groups (ie, grouping by high, medium, and low ability)
- Drawing attention to students using a different learning approaches (ie. pointing out who is using assistive technology)
- Creating one really fun activity and one boring activity for students to choose from
- Only providing the strategies or materials that work for YOU as the educator
Remember, according to Carole Ann Tomlinson, differentiated instruction is meant to be:
- Respectful of student strengths, needs, and abilities
- Flexible
- Guided by ongoing assessment and adjustment
Just as your students differ in infinite ways, so too can your differentiation. Two main approaches to differentiated instruction. One is led by the teacher and the other allows students to help co-construct their learning.