Differentiation in the Differentiation in the Classroom Classroom

Susan Purmort

Differentiated Instruction

Differentiated instruction is a philosophy of teaching that assumes all students learn in different ways.

Instruction is tailored to meet the unique needs and maximize the strengths of each learner in order to meet rigorous state standards.

Georgia Department of Education

Why Differentiate?

• Meet the individual needs of our students• Ensure best opportunity for learning for all

students• Proactively plan so that needs are addressed before the lesson occurs

Teaching Students with special needs:

• Inclusion : The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act of 2004 (IDEA) and its preceding legislation do not include the term "inclusion," consequently; a legal definition has not been established. Inclusion in its broadest meaning, implies that students with disabilities are a part of the overall school community and should be included in all activities associated with the school.

Georgia Department of Education

Teaching Students with special needs continued:

• Least Restrictive Environment – Begins with support in the general education classroom.

• Individual Education Plan (IEP) –Lists goals set for a child and any special support needed to achieve those goals.

Georgia Department of Education

Today we will focus on students who need assistance with :

Learning Disabilities

ADD/ADHD

Gifted

Learning Disability• A learning disability is a disorder in one or more of the basic

psychological processes involved in understanding or in using language, spoken or written, that may manifest itself in an imperfect ability to listen, think, speak, read, write, spell or do mathematical calculations.

Georgia Department of Education

• A learning disability results from a difference in the way a person's brain is "wired."

• Children with learning disabilities are as smart or smarter than their peers. But they may have difficulty reading, writing, spelling, reasoning, recalling and/or organizing information if left to figure things out by themselves or if taught in conventional ways.

LD online

Common Types Learning DisabilitiesDyslexia Difficulty processing

languageProblems reading, writing, spelling, speaking

Dyscalculia Difficulty with math Problems doing math problems, understanding time, using money

Dysgraphia Difficulty with writing Problems with handwriting, spelling, organizing ideas

Dyspraxia (Sensory Integration Disorder)

Difficulty with fine motor skills

Problems with hand–eye coordination, balance, manual dexterity

Auditory Processing Disorder

Difficulty hearing differences between sounds

Problems with reading, comprehension, language

Visual Processing Disorder

Difficulty interpreting visual information

Problems with reading, math, maps, charts, symbols, pictures

Strategies for Teaching in:

• Presentation

• Reading

• Testing

First and foremost be patient, not all strategies work for every student.

Strategies for Teaching using Presentation

• Use the projector to show the outline of a unit/lesson or day.

• Provide photocopies of notes• Verbalize anything written on the board• Give assignment both in written and oral format• Record complex lessons for students to review at a

later date• Provide and teach memory associations

(mnemonic devices)• Use props and examples

Strategies for Teaching Reading

• Find alternate materials at a lower reading level

• Read material aloud (Have the computer read the book to the student)

• Preview, review and summarize

• Break up long sentences

• Use highly visual materials

Strategies for Testing

• Clearly separate items on an exam• Consider other forms of testing (hands-on, oral, etc)• Read the test aloud• Allow extended time• Allow the use of tools (calculator, dictionary, computer,

etc)• Allow students to record answers instead of writing

Gifted

• A gifted student demonstrates a high degree of intellectual and/or creative abilities.

• A gifted student exhibits an exceptionally high degree of motivation.

• A gifted student excels in specific academic fields and needs special instruction or special ancillary services to achieve at levels commensurate with his or her abilities.

Georgia Department of Education

General Characteristics of Gifted Students

• Ability to learn quickly• Ability to multi-task• Often driven• Often self-directed• Perfectionist• Think abstractly• Need constant mental stimulation• Not always an “A” student

Famous Gifted Who Were Overlooked

• Albert Einstein – was 4 yrs old before he could speak and 7 before he could read

• Isaac Newton – performed poorly in grade school

• Thomas Edison – teachers told him he was too stupid to learn anything

• Walt Disney – fired from a newspaper because he had “No good ideas”

Common Challenges of Gifted Students

• Motivation

• Behavior

• Finding suitable challenging work

• Time

Strategies for Teaching• Let go of “Normal”• Use formative assessments• Re-familiarize yourself with Piaget and Bloom• Involve parents as resource locators• Enrichment v. Acceleration• Make use of technology resources Online-learning Research projects

Acceleration via computer

ADD/ADHD

• ADHD is a problem with inattentiveness, over-activity, impulsivity, or a combination.

Pub Med Health

• Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder -- also referred to ADD or ADHD -- is a biological, brain based condition that is characterized by poor attention and distractibility and/or hyperactive and impulsive behaviors.

About.com

Common Challenges of Students with ADD/ADHD

• Demand attention by talking out of turn or moving around the room.

• Have trouble following instructions, especially when they’re presented in a list.

• Forget to write down homework assignments, do them, or bring completed work to school.

• Lack fine motor control, which makes note-taking difficult and handwriting hard to read.

• Have trouble with operations that require ordered steps, such as long division or solving equations.

• have problems with long-term projects where there is no direct supervision.

Strategies for Teaching

• Reduce seating distractions

• Use a homework folder for parent-teacher communication

• Break down assignments

• Give positive reinforcement

• Teach study skills

Assistive Technology

• The Tech Act and the IDEA define an AT device as any item, piece of equipment, or product system (whether acquired off the shelf, modified, or customized) that is used to increase, maintain, or improve the functional capabilities of a child with a disability. AT devices may be categorized as no technology, low technology, or high technology (LD Online, 2001).

Areas in which AT can help students:

• Organization• Note taking• Writing• Academic productivity• Access to reference and general educational

materials• Cognitive assistance.

AT and Students with special needs

• Spell checkers• Tape recorders• Text reading systems• Word Prediction• Reading Pens• Concept Mapping Software• FM listening systems• Talking calculators

• These are just a few of the tools out their to help us meet our students where they are. These tools can be used with students with various needs from ADHD, LD to gifted students.

Assistive Listening Devices

Uses:

• Amplify sound• Reduce background noise• Increase signal-to-noise

ratios so the hearing-impaired can listen better in class.

Types:

• Hearing aids• Cochlear implants• FM devices• Alerting systems

ResourcesDavidson Institute for Talent Development. (2011). Retrieved from:

http://www.davidsongifted.org/.

Kids Health. (2011). Retrieved from: http://kidshealth.org/parent/positive/learning/iep.html#

Help Guide. (2011). Retrieved from http://helpguide.org/mental/adhd_add_teaching_strategies.htm

LD online www.ldonline.org

The Gifted Journey. (n.d.). Retrieved from: GiftedJourney.com

Resources continuedThe Rhode Island State Advisory Committee on Gifted and Talented Education http://www.ri.net/gifted_talented/rhode.html

Pub Med Health. (2011). Retrieved athttp://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmedhealth/PMH0002518/

South Carolina Assistive Technology Programs. (2011). Retrieved at:http://www.sc.edu/scatp/ld.htm

Special Education Service Agency. (2010). FM Systems and Listening Problems in the Classroom. Retrieved from: http://sesa.org/2010/05/fm-systems/

Resources continuedSpecial Needs Education Suite 101. (n.d.). Retrieved at: http://karenplumley.suite101.com/assistive-listening-devices-in-the-classroom-a86435

Strategies for teaching students with learning disabilities. (2005). Retrieved from: http://www.as.wvu.edu/~scidis/learning.html

Thomson, D. L., (2010). Beyond the classroom walls: teachers’ and students’

perspectives on how online learning can meet the needs of gifted

students, Journal of Advanced Academics., 21(4) 662-712.