Using Instructional Strategies for
Differentiating Instruction
Dr. Joseph Merhaut
Dr. Robert Snyder
Choice Boards & Menus
• Also called Tic Tac Toe Boards or Learning
Menus.
• A type of learning that provides a “menu”
of activities-some that all students must do,
and some that allow students choices.
• Ensures that each learner focuses on
knowledge, understanding and skills
designated as essential.
Think-Tac-Toe Money Unit
Complete any three boxes. The products and assignments are due by ___________.
Complete the Sweet Treat
shopping cut and paste activity
sheet.
Complete the file folder games on
money.
Count the money amounts in each
piggy bank and record the amount
on the recording sheet.
There are 13 different ways to
make 25 cents using a quarter,
dimes, nickels, and pennies. Use
the table worksheet to record the
ways that you can find.
Draw a picture of a toy you want.
Tell how much it will cost. Then
draw the money to show its cost.
Write an explanation to someone
telling how you would count the
money in the money envelope.
Play the Shop ‘Til You Drop game.
You will turn in your shopping list
after you play this game.
Complete the Choices, Choices
worksheet
OR
In the Garden
worksheet
Complete the Money riddles
activity.
Choice Board Activity
Language/Level: English 7
Unit/Theme: Poetry: Literary Elements
Locate at least one example of
each of the following: elements:
alliteration and hyperbole, from
the poem Sarah Silvia Cynthia
Stout.
Locate at least one example of
each of the following: idiom and
personification from the poem…
Locate at least one example of
each of the following: simile and
metaphor from the poem…
Explain the literal meaning of a
hyperbole from the poem Sarah
Silvia Cynthia Stout.
Explain the literal meaning of an
idiom or personification from the
poem…
Explain the literal meaning of a
simile or metaphor from the
poem…
Create your own example of
alliteration and hyperbole.
Create your own example of an
idiom and personification.
Create your own example of a
simile and metaphor.
Choice Board Ancient Egypt – Grade 6
CONTRIBUTIONS
IMPORTANT PEOPLE
GEOGRAPHY
( You need to choose one topic from each row and one style from each column for your
assessments in this chapter.)
BUILD IT
CREATE IT
As an ancient cartographer, you
have been ordered by the pharaoh
to create a map of the Egyptian
Empire during the reign of Ramses
II. Be sure to includes elements
common to most maps and at
least 10 notable landmarks from
the time period.
Assume you are persuading
others to visit your ancient
civilization. Design a descriptive,
accurate travel brochure.
Include both natural and manmade elements that would
attract tourists.
WRITE IT
You are a builder commissioned by
the pharaoh to transport stone from
the quarry to the destination site for
the temple. As you travel the Nile
River, be sure to include the
geographic features you would see,
wildlife you would encounter, and any
difficulties you might encounter along
the way.
You are a famous sculptor.
Create a 3D representation of a
well-known leader, god,
goddess, or common citizen.
Include detailing who the statue
is of and what their role and
accomplishments may have
been.
You are pharaoh of Egypt.
Create a Photostory profiling
your life. Include name,
birth/death, family (parents,
spouses, children, important
siblings), monuments erected,
important achievements.
Write a journal entry from the
prospective of a tomb robber. Give a
detailed account of your plan to rob a
famous pharaoh’s tomb and how your
plan came to fruition. This should
include risks taken and rewards.
What did you see, hear, feel, and
smell as you searched the tomb.
Construct one of the great
architectural achievements from
the time. This can be made
from any materials of your
choice. Include a note card
containing who built it, when it
was built, use of it, and
dimensions.
Written language was essential
to Egyptians. Your task is to
create your own written
language to serve as a Rosetta
Stone. Include a translation into
modern English and place a
message in your language and
English on an artifact to submit.
Write an essay detailing the
importance of the art of
mummification in world history.
Thoroughly explain the process
for the ancient Egyptians as well
as its similarities to what we do
in the United States today.
Choice Board
1.
Choose a number.
1.
Get a magazine.
1.
Cut out pictures that show 1.
your number.
Glue your pictures to the
correct number poster.
OR
1.
Choose a number.
1.
Look at our math word
cards.
Created by Julie Dill -Math Coach, Wicomico County, 2010
1.
Find a card that matches
the number you chose.
1.
Sort them into the correct
basket.
Dinner Menu Example
• Main Dish (Complete all)
• Measure the length of the objects in the
measurement container using any of the
nonstandard units we have used in class.
• Use the large paper clips to measure the pictures
of the objects on the worksheet R 17.1
• Complete the “Different Units of Measure”
worksheet.
Dinner Menu Example
• Side Dishes (Select at least 2)
• Read the book The Biggest Fish. Measure the length of
the fish in the fishing net to the nearest inch. Then glue
them onto a sentence strip from shortest to longest.
• Complete the “What’s My Length?” activity.
• Use a ruler to draw and label lines for the following
measurements: 10 inches, 5 inches, 3 centimeters, 15
centimeters, 1 foot, 1 inch, 3 inches, and 10 centimeters.
• Organize the pictures of the objects in order from smallest
to largest.
• Complete the “How Far to the Dragon’s Lair?” activity
sheet
Dinner Menu Example
• Dessert (Optional- Select 1)
• Draw a map. Label 4 locations on your map with
a large dot. Using you ruler draw lines to connect
these locations. Measure and label these lines on
your map to the nearest inch. Write a story
problem on an index card that can be solved using
your map.
• Read How Big is a Foot? Then pick 5 objects
from the measurement container to measure using
a small paper clip, an eraser, and a ruler.
Complete the worksheet for this activity.
Cubing/Think Dots
• Cubing is an instructional strategy that asks
students to consider a concept from a
variety of different perspectives.
• The cubes are six-sided figures that have a
different activity on each side of the cube.
• A student rolls the cube and does the
activity that comes up.
Cubing/Think Dots
• Not all students receive the same cube.
• You can differentiate cubes according to readiness,
learning profile, or interest (see differentiated
cubing examples included).
• Cube Side Suggestions:
Describe it * Compare it * Associate it *Analyze it * Apply it *
Connect it * Illustrate it* Change it * Solve it* Question it
*Rearrange it * Satirize it * Evaluate it * Relate it to something
else * Contrast it * Investigate it * What is the significance of
it? * Put it in historical perspective * What are the cause/effects
of it * Cartoon it * Tell the parts of it * Argue for/against it *
Think Dots
Probability and Statistics
Argue it
Conduct a survey
Use it
Make an argument for which
graphing method is the easiest to
read: pie charts, stem-and-leaf
plots, bar graphs, or line
graphs. Construct a visual model
to show us
why.
Choose a random sample of n=
15 students from this class and
conduct a survey of their
favorite sports team/food rock/
star/etc. (your choice1). Describe
how you arrived at your random
sample, and create a data display
of your results.
Is there such a thing as a truly
“random
Sample.
Define it
Evaluate it
Plot it
What is a random stratified
sample? When
would you use it?
Look at today’s USA
newspaper’s opinion poll. What
type of graph is it using to
display its results? Do you feel
that the data display is accurate
or misleading?
Plot the distribution of scores
from last year’s final exam (get
the scores from the teacher—
sorry, all names have been
removed!)
Geometry Think Dots
Directions: At your table group, take turns rolling the dice and complete the learning task from the
corresponding dot. It is okay if more than one person rolls the same number as each person’s response will be
individual.
TRIANGLE TOOTHPICKS
Find all the triangles you can make
using 3-12 toothpicks, and sketch
them on a piece of paper. Label each
triangle with its name.
PROTRACTOR PROS
Using your protractor, measure each
angle on your card. Be sure to label
the angles as acute, right, obtuse, or
straight.
MAKE A MAP OF LINES
Create a map of the school. Include
each hallway. List the hallways that
are parallel, perpendicular, and
intersecting.
SHAPE TASK CARDS
Label each task card with its
geometric name. Be sure to tell how
many sides, angles, and vertices each
shape has.
COLORED SYMMETRY
Color the following sheet in a
symmetrical way. Be sure to make
your picture colorful and neat.
CONGRUENT SORTING
Sort the shapes from your envelope.
Pair up all the shapes that are
congruent. Keep the extra shapes
separate. List the congruent pairs
on your sheet.
THINK DOTS
Describe…
Apply…
Question…
Argue for or
against…
Satirize…
Compare and/or
contrast…
•
RAFT (Role, Audience, Format,
Topic)
Role of the Writer – Students choose a role they wish to emulate. Options may
include a soldier, a chemist, a bird, a mayor, or a sheep. Writing from a different
perspective helps students to develop critical thinking skills as they have to consider
what would be important to the specific role they chose.
•
Audience – Writing for a specific audience also leads to high order thinking as the
student will need to consider what the audience needs to know. An audience could be a
person or a group of people and might include anything from zoo patrons to the United
States Congress. Reviewing informal and formal types of writing will be key when
discussing how to address a specific audience.
•
Format – The writing format should correspond with the role of the writer, the
audience, and the topic. Teachers will want to step away from regular reports and
essays. Let students work on writing formats such as lyrics, raps, letters, speeches,
journals, fables, flyers, or even political cartoons.
•
Topic – Topics can stem from the research students are doing within a subject, themes
that are being studied in school, or subtopics within a unit that needs more clarification
or enrichment. The goal is to make sure the topic is not too broad (Strayer & Strayer,
2007).
Possible Ideas for a RAFT
Choose ideas that advance the learning goals.
Characters
from a story
Public service Key terms
job
Scientists or
politicians
Historical
figures
Musical
instruments
Diseases
Geographic
formations
Vocabulary
words
Cartoon
characters
Types of
fabric
Composers or
artists
Instruments
or tools
Shapes or
colors
Authors or
inventers
Business or
industry person
Minerals or
chemical
elements
Cities,
countries or
continents
Brand
name or
object
Technical terms
Possible RAFT Formats to Differentiate by
Learning Modality
Written
Visual
Oral
Kinesthetic
Diary entry
Bulleted list
Obituary
Invitation
Recipe
Movie critic
FAQs
Editorial
Gossip
column
Comic
Crossword
puzzle
Map
Graphic
organizer
Print ad
Photograph
Fashion
design
Song
Monologue
Radiocast
Museum
guide
Interview
Puppet show
Political
speech
Story teller
Model
Cheer
Mime
Demonstration
Sales pitch
with demos
Sew, cook,
build
Wax museum
Fractions RAFT
ROLE
AUDIENCE
FORMAT
TOPIC
Do You
Fraction
Whole Number
Children’s
Book
Want a Piece
of Me?
Fraction
Its
Invitation and
Come to the
Equivalents
a Mask
Masquerade
Ball!
Wanted
Warning!
This
disguised
Poster/
dangerous
-as-a
decimal
Warning Ad
fraction is
disguised as
a decimal…
Paper People
What to
Wardrobe
wear when
Changes
you are a
fraction,
Fraction-
Fraction
The Public
Other Students
decimal, and
percent
Other Math RAFT Ideas
Role
Audience
Format
Topic
Exponent
Jury
Instructions
Laws of Exponents
Acute Triangle
Obtuse Triangle
Dear John Letter
Our Differences
Percent
Student
How-To Guide
Mental ways to calculate
percent
Prime Number
Rational Numbers
Club Membership Form
How to Join My Club
Parts of a Graph
TV Audience
Script
Which of Us Is Most
Important?
Plus Sign
Multiplication Sign
Romantic Card
Why We Go Together
Analyzing a RAFT Lesson
• What are the learning goals for this lesson and are
they built into every choice?
• How is this RAFT being differentiated?
– Does it appeal to different learning styles?
– Is there a range of difficulty in the:
• Roles?
• Formats?
• Readiness levels?
– Do the roles, formats or topics appeal to a variety of
interests?
Structured Academic Controversy
• Controversy can fuel some great discussions and
cultivate rich thinking and language. Structured
academic controversies (SAC) emphasize
communication, perspective-taking, and problemsolving (Johnson & Johnson, 1995).
• Unlike debates, students work together to
collaborate on a resolution to the controversy after
they have taken both sides of the issue. They are
less competitive—there is no “winner” or “loser.”
SAC Example
• US Metric Conversion
• One position is: The metric conversion is
necessary for the health of the US economy.
• The other position is: The need for metric
conversion is obsolete and would actually
harm the economy if businesses were
mandated to change.
SAC Example
• Science: Acid Rain
• Fact: Industries provide us with needs and
wants that in some cases result in acid rain.
• Team 1: The needs and wants of a
community are more important than the
effects of acid rain.
• Team 2: The results of acid rain are more
dangerous than limiting industries’
production of needs and wants.
SAC Example
• To Drop or Not to Drop?
• This structured academic controversy lesson is designed to teach
students both sides of the debate surrounding the use of the Atomic
bomb at the end of World War II. The bombings of Hiroshima and
Nagasaki were the catalysts that caused the end of World War II and
are the only two times that a nuclear weapon has been used in war. It
is important that students learn about the circumstances leading to their
use and understand the controversy that surrounds those events. It is
also important for students to understand the magnitude and significant
destruction caused by atomic weapons so that they can be informed
participants in today’s world. The purpose of this lesson is to present
students with arguments from both sides of the debate so that they may
draw their own conclusions regarding the bombing of Hiroshima and
Nagasaki.
Curriculum Compacting
• Curriculum compacting is a three-step process
implemented by the teacher for one or more students
who have mastered portions of the essential
curriculum:
• pre-assess to determine what a student knows about
content/skills to be taught;
• modify learning activities so that the student
receives instruction only about what he/she does not
already know provide alternative learning activities
that offer acceleration of meaningful, challenging
enrichment
Tiering
• Tiered instruction is like a stairwell
providing access within the large building
called learning. The bottom story
represents learning tasks for students
with less readiness and fewer skills. The
stairwell continues through enough levels
to reach the appropriate challenge for
advanced readiness students with very
high skills and complex understanding.
WHAT CAN BE TIERED?
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ASSIGNMENTS
ACTIVITIES
CENTERS & STATIONS
LEARNING CONTRACTS
ASSESSMENTS
MATERIALS
EXPERIMENTS
WRITING PROMPTS
HOMEWORK
What is Tiered Instruction?
Teachers use tiered
activities so that all
students focus on
essential understandings
and skills but at different
levels of complexity,
abstractness, and openendedness.
By keeping the focus of the
activity the same, but
providing routes of access at
varying degrees of difficulty,
the teacher maximizes the
likelihood that:
1) each student comes away with
pivotal skills & understandings
2) each student is appropriately
challenged.
Creating Multiple Paths For
Learning
Key Concept
or
Understanding
Struggling
With The
Concept
Reaching Back
Some
Understanding
READINESS LEVELS
Understand
The
Concept
Reaching Ahead
IDENTIFY OUTCOMES
WHAT SHOULD THE STUDENTS KNOW,
UNDERSTAND, OR BE ABLE TO DO?
THINK ABOUT YOUR STUDENTS
PRE-ASSESS READINESS, INTEREST, OR LEARNING PROFILE
INITIATING ACTIVITIES
USE AS COMMON EXPERIENCE FOR WHOLE CLASS
GROUP 1
TASK
GROUP 2
TASK
GROUP 3
TASK
Guidelines for Tiered Instruction
• 1. Ensure that group membership is flexible.
The word tiered is not a euphemism for stagnant low-middle-high
groups that label who can learn and who is not learning. Tiered
assignments denote all children as able to learn the same essential
skills in different ways. The make-up of students working at each
tier varies with the content, assignment, and quantity of tiers.
• 2. Plan the number of levels most appropriate for instruction.
Different quantities of tiers are needed for different curricula
areas, concepts, and skills in relation to different learners' needs.
Sometimes, two tiers are sufficient; at other times, three to five or
more work better to match the wide range of learners. Changing
the number of tiers is also a way to vitalize flexible groupings and
ensure that students are not always in the same group.
Guidelines for Tiered Instruction
• 3. Recognize that complexity is relative.
The complexity of a tiered assignment is relative because it is
determined by the specific needs of the students and because learners'
readiness levels vary in different curricula areas. In classes with below
grade-level learners, the lowest tier would respond to those students. In
classes in which all students are at or above grade level, the lowest tier
would respond to grade-level or even above grade-level readiness.
• 4. Promote high-level thinking in each tier.
Avoid always allocating simple thinking tasks for students with the
fewest skills. All students need opportunities to analyze, synthesize,
and evaluate information.
• 5. Provide teacher support at every tier.
Every tier requires teacher modeling and support for the students
working at that tier. All learners benefit from a teacher's instruction,
interaction, guidance, and feedback--even gifted children whom some
educators perceive as always making it on their own.
Tiered Lesson Example
• Tier I will be made up of students who I feel will benefit best from a
simpler form of learning, such as defining and giving the significance
of various key terms or people and answering basic questions. Some
of the terms they will be expected to identify will be:
• Slavery, Nat Turner, Elijah Lovejoy, William Lloyd Garrison,
abolitionists, Henry Clay, John Calhoun, Stephan Douglas, popular
sovereignty, Fredrick Douglass, Harriet Beecher Stowe’s Uncle Toms
Cabin, John Brown and Harper’s Ferry, Dred Scott Case, Abraham
Lincoln, republicans, democrats, Lincoln/Douglas debates, KansasNebraska Act, and the Presidential Nominating Conventions of 1860,
etc.
Tiered Lesson Example
• Tier II would be comprised of students that I felt capable of taking
historical facts and analyzing them to show how these people/events
led to the escalation of conflict that led to the civil war. I would give
these students various questions that asked them to link certain events
to the causes of the civil war. Some example questions that I may ask
of these students are:
• 1) How did the publishing of Harriet Beecher Stowe’s Uncle Toms
Cabin help lead to civil war?
2) What did the Dred Scott Case decide? What did it mean for slaves
and former slaves? Did the Supreme Court overstep its constitutional
limits in their decision?
3) What were the differing points of view in the Lincoln/Douglas
debates?
4) What key figure in this time period favored popular
sovereignty? How did other key figures react to his ideas?
5) What were the views of the abolitionists? What were the
differences in views held by Lovejoy, Garrison, and Douglass?
Tiered Lesson Example
• Tier III students will be those students who I feel have a
good grip on the ideas presented and can think critically
and explain how these key terms/figures/events eventually
led to the civil war. I would ask these students to present a
3-4 page essay on how the key points of the lecture and
readings ended up causing the civil war. These students
will be expected to provide their own ideas on why these
situations occurred and what the effects of these events
were. These students will be given more freedom to
handle the material. Their own ideas will shape their
responses and mold the essay.
Tiered Lesson Example
• Tier 1
• Students will illustrate the five geometric terms and create a book out
of it.
• Materials: Paper, stapler, colored pencils.
• Procedures:
• Students learn about the five geometric terms: point, line, line segment,
ray, and angle using the Geometry Powerpoint.
• Each student individually takes 3 sheets of paper and folds them in half
to make a book. Secure the book by stapling the crease.
• On each page a new term is written, and an illustration of that term is
drawn using colored pencils.
• Add a title to the book on the front.
Tiered Lesson Example
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Tier 2
Students will compare and contrast two of the five geometric terms.
Materials: Paper, pencil.
Procedures:
Students learn about the five geometric terms: point, line, line segment,
ray, and angle using the Geometry Powerpoint.
• Students will individually complete a Venn diagram on Inspiration
choosing only two of the terms to compare/contrast.
Tiered Lesson Example
• Tier 3
• Students create an argument for which of the five geometric terms is
most important.
• Materials: Paper, pencil
• Procedures:
• Students learn about the five geometric terms: point, line, line segment,
ray, and angle using the Geometry Powerpoint.
• Students either individually or in pairs create an argument about which
of these five terms is the most important for the world of math.
• Students can use the paper to plan for an oral presentation of their
argument, or use the paper to prepare a written piece which can be
typed in Microsoft Word.
Tiered Lesson Example
• Tier 4
• Students will go on a scavenger hunt in the room of each of the five
geometric terms.
• Materials: Paper, pencil, classroom environment
• Procedures:
• Students learn about the five geometric terms: point, line, line segment,
ray, and angle using the Geometry Powerpoint.
• Students get into pairs.
• Each pair is given a sheet of paper that is divided into 5 categories, one
for each term.
• Student pairs are given 10 minutes to find as many examples of each as
they can, and then draw a picture or write about it in the correct
category on the paper.
References
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http://daretodifferentiate.wikispaces.com
http://sciencespot.net/Pages/classbio.html
http://walch.com/station-activities-text-books/
http://www.ltps.org/webpages/jpolakowski/files/Differe
ntiated%20Instruction%20for%20Math.pdf
• http://www.montgomeryschoolsmd.org/curriculum/enric
hed/giftedprograms/mathstations.shtm