Chapter 6 Reflection: What do you see as the most important "next steps" for you to
take in making your classroom more academically responsive?
What support would be helpful to you in that pro cess?
Jack Sague I plan to take the following steps to make my classroom more academically responsive: 1. I will plan my differentiated instruction based on student interests, readiness and learning profile. 2.Get into the differentiated process at a pace that is both comfortable for me and my students. 3. I will differentiate taking into consideration how much time a student's attention span will sustain doing an assignment. 4.I will have extra activities for those students who finish faster than others. 5. Develop task cards or activity sheets for the separate groups. 6.Have a student in each group who can help those who don't understand so that I am free to help the other groups. 7.Manage behavior so that noise, roaming around and other distracting activities will not become a problem. 8.Give students as much responsibility for their learning as possible.
I believe that the most important "next steps" for me to take in making my classroom more academically responsive are:
* to reinforce the importance of mutual respect among teacher and students, interchangeably. This way, students feel comfortable and free to try their best and truly be vulnerable in order to receive the corrective instruction that they need.
* allow for more technology use in the learning process in my classroom. This will involve creativity on my part and allowing suggestions from students as to how they would like to use technology in their classrooms.
* have the mind that differentiation is ongoing and always look for ways to make learning better for my students
* continue to improve classroom and time manaagement
* continue to improve my activity transition time with students
The support that would be helpful to me in this process include:
* parental support in reinforcing the character of mutual respect within their children at home, so that they will bring that character to school with them
* permission from administration to allow unconventional technology into the classroom for educational use
* continuing to be provided with professional development opportunities on the subject of differentiation
* modeling and observations from Reading Coach, followed by debreifings for positive feedback
As a teacher, I must first have a strong rationale for differentiating and find a comfortable pace that will allow me to teach my students properly. The time line in chapter 6 of Tomlinson’s “How to Differentiate Instruction in Mixed-Ability Classrooms” I found to be a great resource for approaching differentiation fittingly. Tomlinson gives an outline for both Low-Prep and High-Prep Differentiation that helps reduce preparation time for teachers which in turn can provide more attention toward understanding his/her students’ abilities. For example, a low-prep differentiation approach could be to give students homework options or flexible seating. For high-prep differentiation an example could be to have stations for students or tiered centers. Understanding student abilities will also allow a teacher to give his/her students more responsibility.
The most important steps for me to follow are: 1.Make sure students understand that following the classroom rules will help create a good learning environment. 2.Have a clear picture of what students need to learn. Then, come up with the appropriate DI activities that will help students, at all levels, be successful. 3.Find an appropriate and clear way to communicate seating arrangements to students. 4.Deliver clear directions that all students understand . 5.Be clear as to what I expect from students regarding calling a halt, students that finish early, etc. 6.Allow students to provide feedback about classroom procedures. 7.Most importantly, teach students to assume responsibility for their own learning.
It would be very helpful to have supplemental materials that support D.I.
As people and more importantly as Teachers we grow and change constantly. I always tell my students "you are not the same person you are today as you were yesterday and will be tomorrow". So we are the same these PD's give us new vitality and motivation to become better as people and as teachers. Sometimes we also see that we are on the ball because we have been doing that right. For this coming year I plan on doing:
1 To incorporate even more DI activities. 2 Listen to the students more and really cater to them more. 3 Do all the new incorporation of strategies at a pace that is good for both them and me. 4 Coordinate time allotment more effeciently. 5 Have more "anchor activities to free me up more to help the lower students. 6 Group the students so their group leader takes an active roll in help out. 7 Promote more on task behavior and ownership of responsibility.
I am sure that by the time we finish next week I will need to revise this list.
Last summer i did a stream makeover of my classroom by painting, buying new furniture and decorations. This year i will try to implement an academic responsive stream makeover trying to implement the things I learned in this class to make my classroom a differentiated classroom ready. Some of these aspects i will have into account are as i explained before to have identifiable work stations for my students with access to learning resources according to their readiness, interest, and learning profile. Provide for time differentiated activities, use anchor activies, create a 'home base" and specific rules so that the movement in the classroom is done in an organized manner. have a plan for "quick finishers" etc.
First and foremost I have to make sure I have strong classroom and time management. Realistically, I need to start small...a fully functional and effective DI class does not happen over night. Next, I need to think outside the box and provide students with varied differentiated activites that support student success. Also, in order to keep students engaged and active I need to promote on task behavior. With that said, I also need to understand and allow for student interaction because they learn from eachother. Lastly, students will need to be kept informed of their progress and be held more responsible/accountable for their learning progress. The support needed would be continued professional development, support in the classroom (paraprofessional), and most importantly parental support.
First step is to learn all that I can personally learn. Next I have to learn & understand my students. Once I understand my students, I will than plan to meet all their learning styles and levels. I will do this by setting up the learning environment. I will make sure it is comfortable and welcoming. I will than learn my student interest and have reading material that match their interest as well as their level & grade level. The reason I will have independent & grade level material is because I want the students to see personal growth. Once they have mastered their independent reading level, I have to build a bridge to get them to their grade level. I will also let the students teach the subject matter he/she is comfortable with. This helps builds the student’s confident and makes them what to achieve more. I will also use technology to provide visual and hands on experience.
I would like to have more support from my administrators in allowing more flexibility in how classrooms are run and for the district to offer more professional development courses. This is needed as times and students are changing. We need to come together more to share ideas.
In chapter 6 their were 17 key strategies listed to successfully meet the challenge of designing and managing differentiated instruction for learners, of the 17 the one that stood out in terms of what would be the most responsive academically; the most important key strategy to me, which I personally struggle with would be the third key strategy, time. Since taking this course on D.I. I realize why I struggled with time, I wasn't alway prepared or lacked knowledge on how to prepare or manage a D.I. The two things suggested in chapter 6 to remember are:(1) time allotted for a task should be a bit shorter than the attention span of the students who work on the task, and (2)advanced learners often have extended attention spans. So my new goal is to strive for , over time, is helping all students sustain group and independent task for longer than what was initially comfortable for them. The key to reaching that goal is their sense of success in those task. Karen Smith
The most important steps for me to take in making my classroom more academically responsive are differentiating all activities to ensure that the needs of my students are met on a daily basis. Differentiating the activities will help support student success in the class. I will be creating interesting and engaging activities to free up the focus of my attention from my independent groups. I will be creating and delivering instructions carefully by ensuring my students understand the content prior to moving on to the next activity. One of my goals is to create a clear routing for my DI groups, to diminish the noise level. As a result, I will have a well organize classroom which will promote higher level of learning.
The most important “next steps” is to prepare myself and the classroom. Develop a purposeful presentation to share with my students and parents. The presentation will inform both parties the purpose, importance, and outcome of differentiated instruction. I feel once they have a clear understanding of how and why we must utilized differentiated instruction in our classroom; it will become purposeful and more effective. Time management will play a vital role in me implementing effective differentiated instruction. Instead of a blocked schedule, my school is reverting to a modified block schedule. I will now see my students daily. A Low-Prep Differentiation will be the model I will follow. The support that would be helpful to me is having access and utilizing various activities to encourage student success. As the students progress, allow them to move to another group. I will keep progress monitoring folders that are accessible to my students. Patreece Perry-Pelt
1) Creat a reliable and broad, yet focused interest/learning style/product preference inventory for the students to fill out and keep in their D.I. folders.
2) Create a reliable blueprint for the students to follow that explains how to transition to and from all learning situations (whole class/pair, trio, quartet)
3) Explain my choices, where appropriate, related to classroom set up, and explicitly tell them how their own individuality is informing the way they participate in learning. I hope that this will create a sense of ownership, as well as helping them become more aware of themselves as learners
4) Strive to ingrain procedures into the students to allow students to be on different timelines. Not everyone must be working on assignments for the same amount of time. I'll have to be ultra-observant and flexible so that my mangement choices aren't random.
5) Create, use, revise, and enforce groupwork rubrics.
6) Have individual or group INDEPENDENT work ready on the learning menu as "what to do when you're done" items. This allows me flexibility when supervising and facilitating other groups still working.
I’m already implementing differentiated instructions in my lessons. I also manage my classroom very well because I use many effective management techniques that help me. However, I battle with the amount of time it takes to plan. There is just not enough planning time giving to teachers to search for and to create materials for the diverse learners. I have to find a way to collaborate better with my colleagues through sharing of information or resources. Leaving the school at 6pm three or more times weekly is discouraging!
What do you see as the most important "next steps" for you to take in making your classroom more academically responsive? What support would be helpful to you in that process?
As I mentioned in Reflection #5 having both me and my students set achievable goals and encouraging them to focus on long-term improvement, not just grades or on current assignments. Students learn to evaluate their progress, critique their own work, analyze their strengths, and address their weaknesses.
Chapter 6 provides us with strategies and classroom management tips for a successful DI experience. Certain Steps and strategies can assist in differentiated instruction. These key strategies include and are not limited to a strong rationale and communication. Time plays a factor. I have to make sure that the time allotted for each task HAS to be shorter than the students' attention span. When tasks are too long, disruption occurs. Another great suggestion Chapter 6 suggest anchor activities. These activities will add to your academic planning and will assist in classroom management. Anchor activities are highly affective and can be completed after assigned DI work tasks . The aim is to move on to another activity with as much effort and concentration once the first task is completed.
Then book suggests task cards or assignment sheets when giving directions. I currently create a life size poster with all the possible centers and just have close pins labeled with the students' name, clipping them on their designated center for that given day. Then, in the centers I have pre-made DI folders with the given assignment and directions inside. A great way for students to ask for help is by asking three other classmates for assistance before asking the teacher or by skipping the question and posting it on the classroom parking lot. Work whether finished or not needs to be put back in the DI folder...depending on the task a second day will be given to complete it. I believe that once all these strategies and rules are established, students will know exactly what to do and DI will be successful!
To make my classroom more academically responsive I will devise my classroom based on student’s readiness, interest and learning profile .Then share my ideas with the students in order to have them buy in. As new teacher to differentiating instruction, 1. I will begin at a pace that is comfortable for me. 2. I will plan students’ activities according to their interest and attention span 3. Student will move from one activity when completing assigned Task. 4. I will assign group leaders to assist in sharing directions and delivering instructions
5. I will assign groups by listing their names on a chart. To minimize noise, we will practice at the beginning of the year to use hand signals to ask for help. 6. To promote on task behavior teacher will place a checklist on the wall to indicate the number of students that are on task each day.
A differentiated classroom becomes alive when teachers and students take on active roles. You could compare or relate these roles to character profiles. Teachers use their observations to learn about students’ academic levels, and personal interest. Teachers use their knowledge to provide various learning options and experiences. Learning options are presented according to readiness of students. Students are knowledgeable of their expectation, and responsibilities. Instructions goals are clearly defined. Activities are presented to accommodate students learning styles. Students and teachers make a collaborative effort to fulfill course objectives related to content. Teachers act as facilitators. They orchestrate and monitor progress, for continuous programming. Barbara harris
Students should be empowered toward high achievement and provided with multiple doorways into learning various materials. An academically responsive classroom approach creates an ideal environment for all learning activities. But, the most important “Next Step” for me to take in making my classroom more academically responsive, is to ensure that all students get what they need. I will modified activities for those students who are functioning at a lower level and constantly monitor them. In each center there will be hands on activities, visuals models, and other materials that students will be able to utilize. There will be color coded folders to indicate what activities they will be working on in a particular center. Additionally a differentiate classroom can be clearly identified by design when teachers and student s share mutual respect for each other. Teachers should use the knowledge they acquired about students to structure learning task. Students are given choices acquired from survey or personal inventory. Teachers will use various modalities to tap into students learning styles. Students’ performance is measures according to ability levels, and not a standard code. Assessments are used with individual students in mind. Grades are used to measured growth, not a final sentence or threat that may cause a student to feel defeated, or incapable of achieving. Carolyn Collins
I would make my classroom more academically responsive by taking the first step which is to teach the students to assume responsibility for their own learning. The ELL students are very dependent and they are always seeking reassurance, so I will follow the chapter suggestion of assigning “the expert of the day” to assist; in addition, I will show them how to keep records of their own work, use a chart to record their progress and have them design their own tasks and make suggestions. Another step would be to manage time more effectively because I get so involved that I’m non-stop, so maybe a stop watch will be useful or assign a student to remind us of the time. It’s sometimes difficult to predict which assignment will take more time than another or who will finish first because the assignment was not as complicated for that particular student as I thought it would be. I also need to create more centers. Maria Santiago-Parreno
The next steps in making my classroom more academically responsive, is by recreating the way I think as a teacher. My teaching style has to change and how I manage the learning environment. By adjusting the material that is taught (content) encouraging critical thinking (process), and providing a variety opportunities for students to demonstrate what they have learned (product), more students including students with learning disabilities will have the chance to achieve academic success in the classroom. After teachers observe and interview their students to determine their interest (books, talking, and technology) learning styles (auditory, visual, tactile/kinesthetic) and learning preferences (large group, small group, individual), interest, experience, and prior knowledge. The information is valuable when developing unit plans, guidelines, determining the skills students need to acquire) and creating assessment criteria to determine the knowledge gained by each student. Teachers need to incorporate a variety of teaching techniques or pedagogical strategies that provide students with a variety of opportunities to engage in the learning process. A sample of pedagogical strategies include: whole group discussions, small, collaborative learning groups, individual contracts, self-paced learning centers, literature circles, or team technology projects. Providing numerous opportunities for students to engage in classroom activities, makes students less competitive with each other and helps to prevent underachievement among these students by giving them more choices in the way they process information and in the kinds of activities and materials they use to show what they understand. By collaborating with more experienced teachers that utilize the DI process on a continuous basis, those teachers can offer ideas on what works and does not work while attempting to differentiate instruction on a weekly basis. Observe materials and the process of what other teachers are using. Also research how DI can be effectively utilized in the classroom.
I teach in the S3C Program where students work independently on a computer using an accerated program to help them move quickly into their correct grade level. There is no group work but, there is a lot of individual, one-on-one teacher/student interaction. I work with each student on their individual levels and provide many alternative learning techniques with each. Susan Castleman
The next step in making my classroom more academically responsive is to become more comfortable with DI. I plan to prepare and deliver my lessons carefully using a variety of learned techniques. I will to incorporate Low-Prep and High-Prep DI according to the students’ readiness, interest and learning profile. The ultimate plan is to get the students involved as they become engaged in the whole DI learning format. Pamela Robinson
The most important next steps to take in making the classroom more academically responsive for me are 1. Continue learning about differentiated instruction and fully implement it consistently 2. Begin differentiating within the intervention group at a pace that is comfortable for me 3. Figure out how to do this within the limited time frame I have Support from the reading teacher as well as administration would be helpful in this process. Communication with the teacher will be key because data can tell me a lot but many observed classroom behaviors are something I won’t see in the short time I have them. We can help students be more successful if we are all working together towards the same goal. My administrator needs to support the fact that while I am following mandated curriculum, I am meeting the individual needs of students that need that differentiation the most. Zina Berman
I would make my classroom more academically responsive by making sure that my students provide me feedback from what they have learned throughout the DI instruction. It is important that the teacher is always prepared before the DI. If the teacher has a comfortable tone the students will feel the same comfort. Aligning DI with the students academic needs is essential as well. If students do not understand what is being asked to do they will not want to do it. Showing positivity is great in a classroom setting.
Chapter 6 was of great relevance to the topic of D.I as it covered effective management. The chapter outlined 17 key strategies. One that I felt was important to mention was #2: Begin differentiating at a pace that is comfortable for you. I feel comfortable differentiating in my class, but this may not be the case for all teachers--some may feel intimidated or overwhelmed by the very thought of this practice. I particularly liked the chart on page 34 that gives teachers a starting place for ways to differentiate without it being labor intensive. Differentiated Instruction is doable and the benefit is the success of ALL learners.
After reading Chapter 6 I learned a lot of ideas as to how to manage a differentiated classroom. It is important to remember when you are beginning differentiated instruction in the classroom to begin at a pace that is comfortable. Students should have an "anchor activity" to do when they complete their assignment. It is also important for the teacher to give very clear instructions at the beginning so the students know exactly what they are expected to do. I will take back to my classroom many ideas for using differentiated instruction.
Chapter 6 was beneficial in outlining strategies for managing a differentiated classroom. This was very informative because teachers sometimes become discouraged when trying to manage the DI classroom. The most beneficial tip I found was having a plan for quick finishers since this is something that occurs in my class. Having something for those students to continue working on after they are done helps minimize distractions and boredom for those quick finishers. It is a great chapter to read as a how to manage the DI classroom and great tips to use.
To make differentiated instruction truly effective a clear system of classroom management must be in place. Chapter 6 provides useful tips, strategies, and skills that all facilitate classroom management and refine the differentiated instruction process. Some of these ideas that I am taking away with me include anchor activities, a plan for students to follow when they need help and I am with other students, a "how to turn in work at the end of a center" plan, and a "quick finisher" plan. Having students discuss class procedures and group processes is also very useful in class organization and maximum time utilization. If students can orally explain class procedures and engage in problem solving then it is like there are multiple teachers in the classroom armed with metacognition.
Chap. 6-This chapter's content regarding the 17 "megastrategies" is thoroughly written, and quite informative. If you want 1 quick and solid "reference chapter"...#6 is it!!
Chapter Six was my favorite chapter as I found it most beneficial to me. I extremely liked the chart that shows the different DI activities and the required time/preparation/effort it takes for teachers to create the DI activities. This is great information for new teachers. Also, the 17 steps are very beneficial to all teachers. My step to focus on would be to take my time, not to rush(differentiate at a comfortable pace). I sometimes get to many ideas going on at once. An idea alone might prove to be fabulous but if you put them with other ideas and requirements, you might just end up doing to much at once. This has happened to me plenty of times. This was a great read for me along with all of the other tips for DI.
Chapter 6 reviews the 17 key strategies you can use to successfully meet thechallenge of designing and managing differentiated instruction for your students.
One of the most important things I liked about this chapter is that it tells us something that we have known forever. Share your thinking not only with students but with parents. Anchor activities are to have on hand when students are finished with their work. Some anchor activities are: reading, journal writing, managing a portfolio and practicing spelling. computation, and voc.
Chapter 6 spelled out the basics of a differentiated classroom. I learned about anchor activities, as well as plans for quick finishers, turning in student work, and promoting on-task behavior. It was a helpful chapter, though I realized that my classed are differentiated in many ways.
Most likely to incorporate: Work better at differentiating the pace Pay more attention on students'attention spans Minimize stray movement & noise Bring in new activies for low prep/high prep like homework options,Independent Studies,etc
Ronnica Nix Chapter 6 This chapter described the skills mandatory to effectively help teachers succeed in their everyday classroom, which ultimately allows teachers to succeed within the differentiated classroom. It discusses the basics for managing a differentiated classroom, and being successful with the differentiated instruction implementations.
I have always had a negative feeling towards DI in the classroom. I've always felt that this is a waste of time as students are just moving from center to center. Having been in this class has taught me that if the child is engaged in an activity that is within their level, he/she will work diligently. Unfortunately, due to time constraints and lack of knowledge, teachers place students in groups that only do "busy" work. At the beginning, it will seem like a lot of work but if careful planning takes place, the work load will get less and less as students become more independent and the teacher becomes the facilitator. Chapter six certainly gives a very detailed path on how to get started without overwhelming oneself.
There are some DI strategies that I use very comfortably in my classroom and some that I shy away from trying. After reading this chapter, I realized there is much I already do that is both effective and engaging! My next step? Familiarize myself with new "tools" to put in my box and introduce them at a pace that feels comfortable. I believe one thing that is crucial is to allow time for students to practice new routines. We cannot expect them to get it the first time... I think the key is in having a clear plan, delivering clear instructions and practicing!
Sheila Hodges Chapter 7: Prepare students and parents for differentiated classroom by first modeling a differentiated lesson and ask students to be active partners. They could monitor the progress of their work and design minicontracts to work with an interesting activity or to extend one. Keep an open communication with parent and share differentiated instructional goals with them. Successful partnering between teachers and parents is based on proactive communication.
Sheila Hodges Chapter 8: The Equalizer is a tool for planning differentiated lessons. It is a comprehensive guide for planning and monitoring the effectivieness of differentiated curriculum. In differentiated classroom by making adjustments, appropriately for various students' needs equalizes their chances of being appropriately challenged by the materials, activities, and products in D.I. classroom. When students are not properly challenged they get off task.
Sheila Hodges Chapter 9: Engagement is a nonnegotiable of teaching and learning. Two related motivators for engagement are student interest and student choice. Interest-based differentiation can be combined with other type of differentiation. There are a number of strategies that support interest-based D.I. e.g. Interest Groups,etc.
The next step to take in making my classroom more academically responsive is to give my students much more responsibility for their learning. It is a difficult task for me to let the reigns go, to allow my students to take control. Figuring out the balance is a challenge for me. Developing check points along the way might be helpful. Also, to move away from teacher-control to student-center learning, individualized learning contracts that gear to needs of each learner is another step that will facilitate the differentiated classroom model. Differentiate at a pace that comfortable for me is another important step to consider.
Yunyan Chen Answers: After I have been reading and learning all the information for differentiated instruction, I understand the following things I have to follow: 1. First and foremost, as an educator I personally have to be good at preparing ahead of time how to differentiate the students. 2. After I make the plan to differentiate, I will have to persist in carrying out the plan. 3. Fully prepared and engage myself in applying in each group. Engage the students by trying all kinds of activities to promote the interests of learning. If all the groups do not go through too well, I will pick up a small group to practice until I am fully good at it, and then I will try all y groups. 4. Collaborating with my colleagues and exchange our opinions and steal each other's good ideas. 5. I will always keep my students informed of what we are doing and what will be done from time to time. 6. Getting feedback from students is extremely important as some unsuccessful practice would just preparing , making planning and teaching but never ask the students how they feel about it and how much they get it or if there is any improvement after differentiated instructions.
One of the steps I need to take personally is to get a clear direction in which I want to take my students. What I mean by that is, how do I thoroghly teach grammar, writing, reading skills/strategies, and how to take the test all in one day, week, or school year. I need a plan as to how to get all of that information across to my students and then see the results of what they have learned at the end. Although I have been teaching for manyyears, I think I need to see as many models as I can of those who have academically responsive classrooms. Who knows, maybe(actually hopefully) I have an academically responsive classroom and don't even know it!
The next steps in making a classroom more academically responsive are to have a discussion with students, letting them in on the characteristics of a “fair” classroom, and involving students in the process of creating a differentiated environment. This can be done by engaging students with developing common classroom routines such as what content is covered in the whole group, when to break off into groups, how to create a plan for completing and turning in work, and who is responsible for what by delegating responsibilities to students so that they take ownership of their learning.
The most important steps for me to take in making my classroom more academically responsive is the following:(1)Delivering clear instructions that all students understand,(2)allowing more student collaboration rather than providing answers myself, (3)allowing students to take more responsibility for their learning, (4)Listen to my students more in order to cater to peer teaching and allowing expert of the day(group leaders) to take more active rolls,(5)create more anchor activities,and lastly implement DI consistently and practicing to perfection.The support mostly needed is uninterruped planning time to develop activities.
As a new, second career teacher, I have been reluctant to take risks. Keeping good classroom management, posting grades, creating lessons, and keeping with all the paperwork has been plenty on my plate. This year, for the first time, I have classes with 20-30% ESE and ELL kids. If there was a time when I needed to have a differentiated, academically responsive classroom is now. My first steps were to give more assessments, more often, to determine where kids are. The problem I still have is that if most of my kids “didn’t get it” and I have to review the material, the other kids will need to do the work on their own. This last part is a challenge for me still. And, to me, lesson preparation would be the most important step in making my classroom more academically responsive. The kind of support available to me besides a good textbook series and my coworkers is classes like this. Francisco Castro
I mentioned in previous posts that I find that too many of the differentiated instruction discussions appear to be based on the premise of a perfect classroom with perfect students. It does not take too long for new teachers to realize that one or two students can determine the success or failure of a class. Too often I see suggestions for this or that approach to teaching some subject that fails entirely to take the human factor, and that of students in particular, into consideration. The other premise that we take for granted is that any class failure is really nothing more or less than the teacher’s failure. This could very well be the case very often, but since teachers have limited control of the students that are put in the class and almost no control over who stays in the class (despite excessive absences, excessive poor grades, excessive behavior problems), then the teacher is actually at the mercy of the administrators and their policies. At an “A school with which I am familiar, close to 200 of about 500 Ninth Graders failed the reading portion of the FCAT. That’s close to 40 percent. Very few of these students, I am confident, had any legitimate learning disability. Those that I know personally failed because they simply refused to make an honest effort to pass the course---for all sorts of reasons, most of them bad. How do we implement the recommendations presented in the chapter if close to forty percent of our students could not be bothered? We have lots of data about how high school students now spend their time. Hours and hours are spent watching TV, talking on the phone, texting. So the obvious answer to the question, “what support would be helpful to you” in making your classroom “more academically responsive,” I would have to say, screen my students better. Make sure that the students are prepared to learn and not just be housed while their parents pursue the American Dream. In the book Outliers, Malcolm Galdwell discusses many things that impact on a person’s success in life. Date of birth, family to whom one is born, cultural environment, all of these and more variables impact our lives, he argues. However, he still concludes that a willingness to work hard could possibly trump all the other factors. Speaking about education in general and math in particular, he asserts, “We should be able to predict which countries are best at math simply by looking at which national cultures place the highest emphasis on effort and hard word.” Too often, I would argue, we are ignoring the importance of hard work. Students want magic bullets and easy rewards. Maybe we need to be emphasizing that school was not designed to be entertainment for kids. Again, let me emphasize that I think that good teachers have always looked for ways to help students who seem to be struggling with the course materials. Good teachers can identify students who want to work hard but are having some trouble with the material, and they rightly make adjustments. But they seldom looked for ways to give students an easy grade. Too often, our classrooms are about the easy grade. I know of no job where there is differentiated production. Most jobs require strict adherence to guidelines, policies and protocol. Our students need to come to terms with what the world of earning an income will demand of them. Tony H.
The most important next steps for me to take in my classroom that will provide more of an academically response is enhance student’s vocabulary. By exploring different a wide range of genre and informational text assist student’s ability to communicate. Every moment in my classroom is an opportunity for the students to build on their prior knowledge. My goal in the beginning of the year is to have all students to learn and establish a foundation that will support them to soar. I constantly give ample opportunity of students to achieve academic success by utilizing technology. The support I will provide to the student to be helpful in the process is to give constant feedback to the students. In addition, I will continue to promote academic responsiveness by involving the parent’s in the learning progress.
Honestly speaking, I would only like to do some posting from a chapter I read from “Leading and Managing A Differentiated Classroom Book, which really help to consider what my forthcoming steps could be to have a more responsive classroom. 1- But my students are different: Though I really desire to give and provide my DI students with all opportunities to achieve excellence and maximize their capacities, I also have to take into account their fear, anger, discouragement, disillusionment, and alienation, as well as frustration. That’s why we have to ask ourselves. This could be wonderful, but I don’t think it is easy for me to face it. 2- Don’t lower your expectation for students. This is true in terms of behavior, classroom participation, and students self –awareness. In other words, we teachers can help to frustrate our students. 3- Move slowly, but be persistent towards helping them satisfy the same expectation. We have to introduce ideas and routines more slowly, we have to model and develop explicit instruction, communicate with students in a way they feel sure, reliable, and proud of what they are doing. 4- Lean from the” warm demanders” . It is often the case that students who are disruptive in one class work quite well in another one. In other words, teachers should communicate to students their unconditional acceptance of every student capacity to succeed and also teachers should send appropriate signals to those students whose feeling about school and learning is ambivalent and negative. 5- Forget never that young people will nearly always succeed neither if they can, nor if the like. Let’s say that we have to consider what academic and personal skills does one student needs to handle any situation in life? And what can I do to help the student to develop these skills? 6- Try to do your best and invest the most to know the reason(s) and cause of students’ misbehavior. 7- Be proactive: 8- Pick your battles: Don’t let smaller issues to become relevant and flash points: Keep the focus on learning and have a positive interaction, even in the most difficult climax. 9- Demonstrate empathy and respect to any student specific and personal needs.
I believe the most important steps to take in making a classroom more academically responsive is to create a safe learning environment and respect our classroom rules. I need to know my students backgrounds, their interests and reading levels. Once I know their learning styles and academic level, I can start getting different activities to address their needs.
It would seem that the most important next step for me would be to discern my point of readiness. My tendency is to jump in with both feet and guns loaded and I think that in this particular situation this would be a recipe for certain disaster... the possibility for success for teacher and students is greatly increased by step by step, slow progressive movement toward a classroom incorporating differentiated instruction. Based on the current design of the classroom, slow increments toward differentiated instruction appear to be the most beneficial for student, parents and teachers. Observing in a classroom that has implemented differentiated instruction would be helpful. Conferencing with teachers, parents and students could also provide invaluable information. trial and error within the classroom is also a great teacher, what works for some may or may not work for you. due to the great variety of students present in every class, some strategies will work great for one group and fail miserably with other groups. Providing opportunities for feedback from students and parents will also provide information that can be used when furthering the implementation of the differentiated classroom. Shifting the responsibility from teacher to students in regards to learning will also take some adjustment and lots of encouragement and realigning.
Chapter 6 Reflection: What do you see as the most important "next steps" for you to take in making your classroom more academically responsive? What support would be helpful to you in that process? 1. differentiated instruction based on student readiness, interest and learning profile. 2. differente by pacing yourself at a comfort level. 3. time differentiated activities like time alloted for task depending on students' attention span. 4. anchoring activities is to maintain productivity in the classroom environment. 5. creating instructions for individual student and groups. 6. assign your students into groups or seating arrangements. 7. assign "home base" seats which would be easier to take attendance. 8. teacher has a plan to give student assistance when teacher is busy. 9. keep noise level to a minimum. 10. schedule for students to turn in class assigned work. 11. develop different floor plan in order to assist to move quickly and quietly. 12. minimize unnecessary movement. 13. try to eliminate distractions in order to promote on task behavior. 14. have plan for students that finish quickly. 15. giving students ad vance warning of deadlines and work due. 16. give students responsibility for their own learning. 17. teacher's metacognition/thinking aloud helps students develop ownership of the classroom. These are some of effective ways to develop a differentiated strategies to develop a classroom.
The most important "next steps" for me will be to: 1. Give the students more responsibility for their learning. 2. Establish a plan for the "quick finishers". 3. Promote on-task behavior. I need to learn how to trust the students. This is something that I will be working on from the first day of school next year.
Chapter 6: Discuss with the students the changes that will be happening in the classroom and allow more student input as how they want the changes implemented. Also have parent meetings explaining the rationale for the changes and ultimately the benefits the changes will bring to the students. Deciding on the use of differing texts, multilevel supplementary materials, various computer programs, or peer tutors in small group tasks which allows the teacher to assign students by their readiness, interest or talents. Teacher will decide as to the length of the task and the allocation of time to complete the tasks either in small groups or individually. Teacher will create a communication system for designation of tasks and groups by using color, wall charts, delivery of completed work, evaluation of work quality, etc. The delivery of instructions will be done as a whole group, as well as individual students can listen to the instructions again with the use of a recorder. The seating chart for the day will assist with the organization and delivery of materials, while giving students independent group tasks such as expert of the day to control noise, tasks consultants, quality control among other duties. Eventually students will understand that they have the responsibility of managing the task, time in order to become independent learners
These steps were all so clear and practical! If only I had them years ago! I think the points about arranging seating and having procedures in place are key. But I think the most important are having Anchor Activities that tie into key traits and habits you want your students to have. I would need the most support in the plan for "quick finishers" because I tend to lean on those anchor activities, when the time could be used for valuable and individual enrichment.
I believe that the most important "next steps" for me to take in making my classroom more academically responsive are: Tailoring instruction that’s based on my student’s readiness, interest, and learning profile. As outlined in Chapter 6, it is also necessary for me to differentiate a pace that’s comfortable for me. That would include looking at the curriculum and making changes that will work best for students. Next steps would also include creating more diverse activities that meets the needs of my students, which may include integrating more technology into the lessons. Creating more group projects so that students can learn how to work together and become accountable. This would allow me to meet with each group periodically to monitor their progress or to meet with my struggling learners to try and assist them. I’m learning through this course that differentiated instruction is more than just grouping students and giving them different work, but it’s finding out their strengths and weaknesses and creating activities that will enhance their strengths and build on their weaknesses.
What do you see as the most important "next steps" for you to take in making your classroom more academically responsive? What support would be helpful to you in that process?
I definitely need to come up with a strategy for those that finish fast and have nothing to do while the others take longer. I have some that finish fast because they don't really care about the assignment and don't want to do a good job. Those students are lacking an interest. I think if I offered them material that speaks to their interest they would do a better job on the final product.
When planning I would make sure to provide multiple means for students to complete given assignments. For my cognitively impaired students, I would seek out free software and apps whereby I could incorporate speech to text, pictures, music and multiple ways to respond with immediate feedback.This software/apps would also be used to layer activities for more advanced learners. Technology makes it easier to individualize lessons, monitor as well as engage students My support would come from a coworker( that work at a different site) with whom I already consult with when planning lessons for the class. We are constantly seeking resources that will best benefit our students.
I recently watched How to Learn from Mistakes by Diana Laugenberg on the TedEd site, and must agree with Luagenberg’s discoveries. Just as Tomlinson describes in chapter six, Laugenberg finds that allowing for students to make mistakes fosters true learning through trial and error. And that making mistakes and learning from them, is an integral part of learning. Laugenberg describes her own experiences with student success through Experiential Learning, and that, as was mentioned in class: providing opportunities for “schematic” building, is vital to building associations, connections and relevance with topics at hand. I believe that the most important "next steps" for me to take in making my classroom more academically responsive are: 1) Finding out my students’ strengths and weaknesses 2) Dividing my classes based on their readiness, interests, learning styles, and attention spans. 3) Creating activities that will accommodate for, as well as enhance their strengths and build on their weaknesses. 4) Pacing myself and lessons that are both comfortable for me and my students. 5) Including input from my students 6) Creating lessons that have opportunities of: whole group discussions, paired activities, small-group, collaborative learning groups, individual contracts, self-paced learning centers, and literary circles. 7) Developing engaging, experiential, project-based venues for success.
My next steps: 1. Learn more about differentiated instructions, 2. identify individual student needs both from data and learning profiles 3.develop procedures for my class to successfully do differentiated instruction The best help is to better understand the differentiation process.
For me as a teacher will be very helpful to do a contract from the beginning of the school year being very specific by what do I expected and what do I want them to behave? I also think I need to start by focusing more on the data. Through the FAIR test because is the first one they take at the beginning of the school year to differentiate once I have that I think I will be able to analyze numerous variables and make a clear determination as to the strengths and weaknesses of my students. Also, I looked at the Interim Test, which focused more on areas covered by Language Arts. I will be explaining them the “Rotation Groups” and would explain how Exit slip has to be done. I will have extra activities for those students who finish faster than others. I will assign test bi-weekly in order to make sure that they are in right track
Despite the fact that we, the instructors panic when we are faced with attempting to provide instruction based on our student’s varied interests; taking the first steps towards the implementation of Differentiated Instruction in a complex classroom environment, eventually make us very knowledgeable and successful in this area. Getting familiar with the basics, according to Chapter 6 of Ms. Tomlinson’s book on how to differentiate instruction in a mixed-ability classroom, seems to be the key to achieving that ultimate objective. The author itemizes these steps in this chapter and explains them in a very clear, down to earth way. The first step that she mentions is to have a strong rationale for differentiating instruction. In second place she places to begin differentiating at a pace that is comfortable for us. In third place she has to time differentiated activities to support student success. In fourth place she refers to using an “anchor activity” to free you up to focus your attention on your students. Her fifth recommendation is to create and deliver instructions carefully. Number six idea is to assign students into groups or seating areas smoothly. The following steps involves having a plan for when you are busy with another student or group; another plan for “quick finishers”. She finally suggests involving the students on the classroom procedures and group processes.
At the present time I am not in the classroom setting, but when I was teaching the EBD population it was very important that students always has a clear understand that following classroom rules was very important. It creates a positive learning environment. Seating arrangements are important and they need to be clear to the students, Wall charts work well and using color helps as well. Directions always need to be clear and the teacher needs to assure that students understand the directions. It is very important that the teacher delivers instructions that the students are crystal clear of what is expected of them. Teachers need to also have a plan for those students that complete assigments early the (Quick Finishers). It is important that students assume responsibility for their behavior as well as for their learning.
Using Time task to be shorter so can capture the students attention with out losing them. give them a goal making everyone part of it and use group activities to get the focus and that they are more comfortable. make sue the instruction are deliver clear and precise to be carried out by the student. always have the extra activity for the those that finish quick.
What do you see as the most important "next steps" for you to take in making your classroom more academically responsive? Making my classroom academically responsive is very important. Some next steps I need to take are: Time differentiated activities to monitor student success - I need to plan other activities for students who finish quickly; as well as, consider the time and attention span of students when planning said activities. Create and deliver instructions carefully - tape recording instructions is a great idea that will allow me to focus on the group I'm working with and not have to repeat directions to other groups.
What would be my next step to take to make my classroom academically responsive.? This is a challenge that every teacher must meet every year. How will I make my classroom academically challenging depends on many things. The type of students I will meet, the number of subjects I would have to teach and my personal ambition to succeed professionally. I think I will make time to know each of my student 's background ,learning style and their view and ambition about their education. I would hope that our parents will have some time to meet me, so I can explain to them what I wish to accomplish with their sons or daughters. I would hope that my administrators will support as well when I need them.
Some of the most important next steps for me to take to make my classroom more academically responsive are:
1. Systems in place. At the beginning of the year it is imperative to establish a routine. The routine allows for students to become well oriented with the expectations of your classroom and the order of operations. This is most apparent when you miss a day of work and the students are still able to flow through work stations as if you never left.
2. Choice options. One way to get students to take ownership of their work and improve interest is to offer them a variety of choices when doing assignments. You can mix assignments to include various learning profiles options. This also helps you to avoid giving assignments that feel mundane and redundant.
3. Anchor Activities. When it comes to academically divers students it can be difficult to time assignments to allow students to get the most out of the assignment when you have students that can tackle the assignment quickly and others whom require extra time to complete. Anchor activities allow those students that can tackle an assignment in half the time as their counterparts to pick up meaningful activities tailored to their proficiency so they do not waste time. Some anchor activities are independent reading, journal writing, managing a portfolio, etc.
As soon as the school year begins the next steps I will be following are creating and developing lesson plans that have visible differentiated instruction and using some the strategies that I have read about in the book and in class. There are, however, routines and procedures that are already set in place that the students need to know that are used throughout the school year. As a result of this class, these routines will be tweaked to address the students learning needs. I will use a learning styles inventory. I have never given my students a learning styles inventory. It will be a good eye opener for them and me. This will become a next step that will provide support for my teaching and students learning, as well as guiding in grouping. Another next step will be the use and the implementation of differentiation menus and think tac toe boards along with anchor activities. These strategies will give the students options in their learning.
My next steps as a reading coach are to supply and familiarize my staff with ample amount of differentiated activities and corresponding materials to support student success. When designing the tasks, I will remind the teachers to think of two things: time allotted for a task should be a bit shorter than the attention span of student working on task and advanced learners often have extended attention spans. The goal is to have the students sustain tasks longer than initially comfortable. The question of time worries my staff, they believe students will begin to misbehavior because of early completion. I want to show them ways to avoid this situation. I have effectively run DI learning centers by allowing the students to move freely through tasks. For certain groups of students, they would show me their work to make sure the work is high quality and I will stamp their passport to move forward. The others would show me at the closing of center time. The motivation to finish center activities was the Friday incentive. During the week, if the students finish all their task with care and concentration, the students were called 'PICKLES' which meant on Friday they could pick the order of their centers or which activities to participate in. The others were called 'KETCHUPS' which meant Friday their job was to catch up on their work during the week.
The next step I see for better academic classroom is to get over the fear of differentiated approaches. I have the old school habit of teaching traditionally ( e g - whole group instruction/ lecture/ worksheets) . I need to retrain myself and think outside the box by basing my lessons on student readiness, interest, and learning profiles. I can begin by setting a pace that is comfortable for the students.. By moving in smaller increments, I'll invision resources such as differing texts, multilevel texts , computer programs, technology, and peer tutoring. Every so often , I can add a few other high - low approaches. Time allotment for a task should be shorter or more extended. Also by using an anchor activity will free me up to focus on delivering instructions carefully and assign groups into groups or seating will make class transition easily. There are many effective techniques and I will strive to change my approaches.
Charter 6 : Reflection : A better alternative is creating and giving task card or assigment sheet to individual or groups. Another option is going over an assigment with a few responsible students. While the other half engages in a different content-based activity designed specially for their needs. Part of direccion requiere students to move to another place in the classroom, specific a time limit for to movement to be complete with clear expectations.
The most important step for me as a teacher to take as soon as I enter in a classroom next august is to carefully plan my lesson in a way that I appropriately include differentiated instruction for the diversity of the students that I have in each classroom, to make it more academically responsive, I will be more flexible at the time to group the students based on readiness, interest, and learning profile to give my students the chance to choose, so they would not feel intimidated to be in a group where they don't feel comfortable with, and as a professional thanks to this class I bet that everyone is leaving with a clear idea of what differentiated instruction is.
I think the most important next step for me to take in making my classroom more academically responsive is for me to make my lesson plans more academically rigorous while also differentiating based on readiness. In the previous school year, we where constantly changing the D.I. plan, and really just focusing on how to do D.I. Now that I know exactly how I want to differentiate, I'd like to focus on using as many new strategies and activities as possible to help move and motivate my students. Especially my students that are in the "high" group. I felt like last year my activities for those students weren't as rigorous as I wanted them to be. I can use this class and the strategies and activities I've learned to support this process.
The most important "next steps" in order for me to make my classroom more academically responsive & manageable are to:
* create a mental image of the differentiated learning is going to flow * establish a protocol and expectations with students before beginning differentiated groups by going over procedures that will minimize noise, getting help when needed, moving around the room, or moving furniture, talking and wrapping up
* have a strong rationale for the instruction based on student needs, readiness, interest and learning profiles so I can communicate this to the students as well as to the parents
* set a pace that is comfortable for myself as a facilitator and the students as learners
* select activities that support student success based on student readiness, interest, profile, attentiveness and time on task
*use an "anchor activity" to free up time so I am able to focus more attention on my students
* Create and deliver explicit and clear instructions to students so as to not confuse or overwhelm students with the tasks and activities
* Organize students by specific groups by color, symbols, etc., with a home base that they can return to after completing their work
* Having a plan B for students who finish quickly so they do not disturb other groups
* Extending and facilitating responsibility to the students to take ownership of their learning goals as much as possible.
Based on what I have learned about D.I. I think that I would like to initiate the differentiated Instruction by using a learning styles inventory to group students. As the term progresses, In order to match content, process, and product to readiness, I would utilize the data to group students. I would also utilize the D.I. menu so that students would understand the D.I. process and have clarity of purpose. I believe that this would allow students to take ownership for their learning.
For me, the most important "next step" to take in the direction of academic response to my students is to implement the strategies that I have learned. D.I. must be effective for EVERY student and not just some (data will obviously show if this goal is met). There must be a clear-cut plan of action and end goal that is known to students and teacher. D.I. will require time and patience in planning and must have a systematic approach. The reading coach would probably be the best source of support in this process.
The 'next step' I need to take to make my classroom more academically responsive is having a strong rational of students readiness, interest, and learning profile. Communication between teacher to students and teacher to parents is essential to make them comprehend why the you are changing your method of traditional teaching. The 'next step' is to envision a differentiated classroom. I would envision new strategies, planning ahead for differentiation, working with varied resources that adjust to the learners need or another option might be using the same text and differentiating by activities. In my classroom, I differentiate in my small group activities but after taking this course I have realized that there is more I can do.
I think that the most logical next step for me to take in an effort to make my classroom more academically responsive, is to differentiate my instruction at a pace that is comfortable for me and the learners I am responsible for, plan more meaningful (not more labor intensive) DI activities, time differentiated activities to support student success, and come up with a more comprehensive plan for "early finishers" to keep them engaged. Keeping students accountable in their DI groups is a large part of making them feel invested in their learning.
The next steps in making a classroom more academically responsive are to have a discussion with students, letting them in on the characteristics of a “fair” classroom, and involving students in the process of creating a differentiated environment. A clear system of classroom management must be in place. Chapter 6 provides useful tips, strategies, and skills that all facilitate classroom management and refine the differentiated instruction process. The next step to take in making my classroom more academically responsive is to give my students much more responsibility for their learning. Having a contract where they understand where they are academically and what their weaknesses were and how I planned to help them improve. I believe that when they own their data and know what the plan is to help them improve they are motivated to do better. Communication between teacher to students and teacher to parents is essential to make them comprehend why the you are changing your method of traditional teaching.
The most important “next step” I need to implement in my classroom for my kids to become more academically responsive is the use of the anchor activity. This activity will have my students understand that when they complete a given assignment that they must automatically move to an anchor activity and work with that activity with care and concentration. To support me in this process I will provide interesting options for my students to select.
I’m glad that I have read that chapter. In chapter 6, the author mentioned that teachers need to start at their own pace. This gives me the confidence and ownership that I can start when I’m really ready. Therefore, I will start by gathering the activities at different levels. Then, I will have the students turn in their end products based on their interests and academic levels.
The next step in differentiating my class would be to promote on task behaviors. Sometimes a student finishes before others and they begin to do something else that may distract the class. There can also be the students who get bored or would rather talk than do work so by giving a positive reinforcement. If a student is on task they can get a check. These checks can add up to an extra credit grade, which kids love getting.
Ana M. Chapter 6 is like a checklist of what I do and need to do to improve my teaching style/classroom. From the 17 strategies presented, I can say that in order for my classroom to be more academically responsive and manageable, I should • Use “anchor activities” to free me up to focus my attention on my students. As we know, learners do not complete work at the same time. Some anchor activities I use in my classroom are 3 centers. 1. Solve computation problems using manipulatives and/or calculator 2. Lego center to create/build letters/numbers/figures 3. Computer center in which learners read/type These centers free me to teach small group of students a new skill. What I need to improve as an educator is to be better in preparing ahead of time and smoothing the transition from center to center.
• Give my students as much responsibility for their learning as possible. They know that it is not okay to just sit and wait for help to come. As a Special Education Teacher, one goal is to help students to be more independent academically and non-academically. It is a long process since students with disability have the tendency to wait for the approval/validation of parents/teachers. We have patronized them all their life, now it is time/necessary to change that behavior. We have underestimated their capacity to be self-sufficient.
• To make my classroom more academically responsive, I will follow the following guidelines: I will continue to plan my instruction in a way for all student needs are met. I will plan my differentiated instruction based on student interests, readiness and learning profile so that each student will receive instruction at the right level of difficulty. Mutual respect among teacher and student should be regarded as one of my best policies. Teach students to assume responsibility for their own learning. I need to understand them and allow time for socialization because they learn from each other. Group them so their group leaders can take an active roll in all activities. Teach students whether or not they finished, their works need to be put back in the DI folder and depending on the task a second day will be given to complete it. As long as all of these strategies and rules are established, students will know exactly what to do and DI will be ran successfully.
As I work with teachers, the major aspects for improvement to make the classrooms more academically responsive relate largely to handling behaviors through planning. The ability to measure the difference between movement and mindless roaming of the classroom by students is important. Students need to be be allowed flexible settings, yet keeping the instructional focus. Having set locations for groups to meet, yet allowing the students to move as they choose within the setting helps. Also, having explicit procedures and activities for 'quick finishers' allows students to continue their engagement with learning after the task at hand is complete and the teacher is not overwhelmed by bored behaviors. Transitions are a key piece to all of this which need to be explicit as well. I rarely used my voice to move groups or close a time of flexible study. I had a train whistle which I blew in different patterns for each stage of the framework. Overall, explicit procedures are key.
I also agree that using Differentiated Instruction (DI) during my core Reading instruction is a step in making my classroom more responsive. When students are exposed to different concepts in different ways, they have a better understanding and are able to apply those concepts when needed. Teachers always need to keep in mind that all learners grasp concepts differently. It is the job of a teacher to provide a variety of ways to support student's success. In addition, teachers need to prepare lessons ahead of time, and they have to understand the concepts they are teaching. Classroom environment and management is essential. For instance, when teachers are meeting with a particular group, the rest of the students should have a plan to complete their work. Also, teachers should have differentiated activities for those students completing the assignments earlier. Another support that would be helpful in this process is making sure the teachers have a plan for those students that become restless and noisy.It is important we take into account the diverse learners and their needs.
As a reading coach I do not have a classroom however one of my responsibilities is to give support to teachers. Thus my most important next step is to help teachers create DI in their classroom. First I would prioritized teachers in most need of Di and are uncertain about it. I would start with the basics, help them assign students into groups by abilities using their data analysis. I would advise them to start at a pace that's comfortable for them and have them time the activities to support students success. I would help them create a rotation work chart post it on the wall and train all students to comprehend the schedule . I would also stress to teachers that DI is effective when it is combined with the use of a high-quality curriculum, research-based instructional strategies, well-designed activities that address the needs and interests of students, active learning, and student satisfaction with the lesson. Schools and districts can support teachers in learning these new skills by designing professional development activities that provide clear models for differentiated instruction in action.
Chapter 6 Reflection: What do you see as the most important "next steps" for you to take in making your classroom more academically responsive? What support would be helpful to you in that process? The most important next steps for me to take in making my classroom more academically responsive are to use differentiating instruction in all my activities, to ensure that the needs of my students are being met on a day to day basis. Differentiating the activities will help support their level of learning and promote student achievement in the classroom, while creating and delivering instructions carefully. As a result, I will have a well organize classroom which will promote higher learning.
Up until now I have been a rotation that is reflected in my lesson plans, but I was doing basically the same thing with every group of students. Now that I have a better understanding of what DI truly is, I am starting by differentiating the activities in the teacher led group by skills-as needed, and by reading ability. I am also implementing different choices of activties for students in the independent part of the rotation. I was assigning the same thing to all the students, I now see that it is much more effective to give students choices of assignments that can lead them to accomplishing the final end product that will demonstrate the mastery of the focus standard.
I manage my classroom pretty good, because I use many effective management techniques that help me. Day to day I implement differentiated instructions in my lessons. However, I battle with the amount of time it takes to plan that my biggest challenge weekly. There is just not enough planning time giving to teachers to search for and to create materials for the diverse learners. I have to find a way to collaborate better with my colleagues through sharing of information or resources. I wish I can stay everyday after school and work at least an hour an half, but I have small children at home also that need me and my time as well. Vivian Marzall
As Piaget reflected "...the best methods are also the most difficult ones." It takes me time consuming to come up with an effective lesson plan in which I incorporate time differentiated activities, coming up with plans for those who finish early, and some other DI activities to address all students' needs. I am constantly making adjustments in my curriculums after each class is finished, for I consider that every time a class is delivered, I come up with a new way to explain a concept. Although it is exhausting, when you see positive feedbacks and students' outcomes, that is the moment in which this experience definitely turns in to a satisfying and rewarding one.
In chapter 6 to make my classroom more academically responsive is having student interest, readiness and learning profile on hand to be able to begin. As a teacher we pace ourselves in new strategies As we become more comfortable it will come naturally. Many factors come into play as time of task, distractibility of our children, interest and ability. Luckily due to my reading program I have many of the basics covered. The two areas that I need to address would be having a plan for “quick finishers” and students who stray from their assignment. I guess getting more materials prepared ahead of time on all the different levels I have within my class. There are so many factors and engaging activities that need to take place for this to be effective.
If I were back in the classroom today, my implementation of differentiated instruction would be completely different compared to the mandated ETO framework that I previously implemented. After reading chapter 6, I kept thinking to myself that many of the basics listed always fall back to planning. Planning is unfortunately the biggest struggle at my school because there truly is not enough time, especially when teachers currently have 2-3 different class preps. If I were to think of my personal weakness, and thinking of my "next steps" that would help be support the process, it would be strategy 16, "Give your students as much responsibility for their learning as possible." I tend to want to help all of my students because I want to help them achieve well academically. I find it difficult to release students because I want to be there for them right away to clear any misconceptions immediately. By releasing them, the students will be held accountable for their learning and I would need to serve more as a facilitator to their learning.
Some steps for me to take to make my classroom more academically responsive are: Strategy 3 While creating activities, keeping in mind that learners have their own pacing. Some are faster than others and attention spans can be longer than others, therefore its important to time my activities accordingly. Strategy 4 Eventhough my classroom does use anchor activities, I would like to have most of my class doing self-directed content based activites. Planning is essential in order to execute that effectively. Strategy 8 In order for my students to get "unstuck" and not interrupt me while I am with my group, I teach them to "Ask 3 Before Me" and I also wear a funny "Do Not Disturb" hat. Even with all of this my students prefer to come to me. I think I will try the "Expert of The Day". Elda
The next important steps for my classroom deals with successfully tracking how well I am meeting my students needs. I found that after I have grouped my students by their needs and provided them instruction at their level, it is important for me to track their progress. This is important for both my students and me because we need to see if differentiation is actually effective. In Chapter 6 it was mentioned that educators should differentiate at a pace that is comfortable for us. I wholeheartedly agree with this statement because the task of meeting the needs of all the students in the class is a massive task that must be addressed with fidelity. This cannot be accomplished if I feel uncomfortable with differentiating instruction.
We must have the task well layer out and students trained. Maintaining a productive work environment with anchor activities. That is great to maintain. Smooth transitions from activity to activity again having them well trained and concentrating. Minimize noise pg. 36. Promote on task behavior, and really important have a plan for quick finishers. Pg 37. This is crucial to develop the differentiated classroom as they are the more advance and need something to challenge them. Engage them in talking about process and procedure . This points really stuck out at me. These are really great strategies.
Tominlinson provides feasible suggestions for managing DI. In walking through many teachers’ classes, I notice that strategy 8 is one many lack. Making sure students have another means for getting help while teacher is leading a small group is extremely important in primary grades. This is often the reason why DI is chaotic in and teachers find it difficult to differentiate learning. The most important steps for me as a coach would be in helping teachers understand that a truly differentiated classroom will require them to relinquish “control.” Teaching kids, for example, how to rearrange the desks, assigning class experts to assist in directions, and providing clear directions on task cards not only helps minimize the chaos that often ensues during DI but also teaches students responsibility which, in turn, makes them more active in the learning process.
-Provide information to the students and to the parents about your strategies to meet students' needs. -Use resources to differentiate instruction that are comfortable for you as a teacher,in other words,prepare yourself first. -Time differentiated activities to model instruction. -Be precise and specific while delivering instruction in order to avoid confusions and build students' confidence. -Minimize noise and disruptive behavior. -Share your strategies with colleagues to analyze which of them works and which ones needs some improvement.
Many years ago, I took a classroom management. This class helped me how to implement differentiated instruction without difficulties. First, I modeled every activity for my students. Second, I explained what the role of every one in each center is and ask them to show me if they understand. Finally, they worked in each center and rotate timing. In addition, I put the clock on the board and they clean every center and move to the other center. Centers: - Phonics (matching letter with pictures, sound it out letters, words) - Fluency( read words and phrases ) - Computer ( I-ready) - Reading (books, rhymes, poems) - Writing (write their own story, summarize, details, compare and contrast, cause and effect, sequence of events). Note: If necessary to add, I have every center ready with every activity for students working independently without my help. They help each other and interact all of the time. These centers are so interesting, where the students will work with materials that match their readiness level. They can work in the same center, but they have choices to present the product of their work. They are going to address in different ways of patterns. This will allow them to develop social interaction skills that will benefit them in the future. Maria Gonzalez
After reading chapter 6 I realized that there are a lot of steps I need to take in order to make my classroom more academically responsive. Although I've never really had a problem with classroom management in whole group, when it comes to DI it's a little different. I realized that step 3, "plan time differentiated activities to support student success," would help with the classroom management during DI. When I provide students with instruction based on their readiness, interest and learning profile it will keep students on task therefore leaving them with no time to misbehave. I loved and related to each step in chapter 6. However the one that I related to the most was number 16, "give your students as much responsibility for their learning as possible." As a teacher I find it very hard to allow the students time to figure things out on their own. I constantly find myself giving them too much information or try to help them so much that I end up just doing all the thinking for them. After reading number 16, I realized that I need to just be the facilitator. Students should be held more responsible for their learning than the teacher. Therefore we need to be able to provide those opportunities for them in order to help them become our independent.
The most important “next step” I need to implement in my classroom for my students to become more academically responsive is the use of anchor activity. This activity will allow my students to understand that when they complete a given assignment they need to move on to an anchor activity and work with that activity quietly and independently. To support me with this process, I will be providing my students with a variety of activities that they may choose from. This will allow me to work with individual students to meet their needs.
One of the most important aspects of the implementation of Differentiated Instruction refers to classroom management. After assessing the students and offering instruction based on their readiness, interest and leaning profile it is imperative that one establishes rules related to how the students are going to be responsible for behaving in a respectful manner. The students need to be taught behavior that is appropriate when working in pair, in groups, own their own; they need to know what is expected of them when they need assistance or have completed their work. The students should be encouraged for having on task behavior.
To make my classroom more academically responsive is to promote on-task behavior. Ensuring that students have a clear understanding of what on-task behavior looks like or what is expected at the end of the differentiated session. I believe creating a visual representation of the patterns of behavior will be beneficial to the students and myself.
To make my classroom more academically responsive I would need more access to my students test scores on various exams to accurately group them. This would be best before the school year starts. I would then give them a test to determine their interests and combine the two to accurately group them. I would also explain in detail and make students practice what is expected of them when they go into these various groups.
The helpful support in making my classroom more academically responsive is how I manage my classroom. It is important for me to know and believe the reasons why I differentiate. I also believe that as a teacher, is important to find a comfortable pace. We might sometimes want to work with different resources while other times we might want to use the same text, but different activities and always keeping in mind the time allowed for the activities. Other steps I found interesting in this book into managing my classroom is to go over assignments with a responsible student, so he/she can share tomorrow. I actually use this strategy for my listening center and it works well. As suggested in this chapter, it is better to assign students ahead of time (chart for centers); also it is important to teach the students how to behave, what to expect during this DI time and what is expected of them since the beginning of the school year. In other words, set the tone of the classroom since the beginning and don't underestimate the capacity of your students. Give the students responsibility for their learning.
Jack Sague
ReplyDeleteI plan to take the following steps to make my classroom more academically responsive:
1. I will plan my differentiated instruction based on student interests, readiness and learning profile.
2.Get into the differentiated process at a pace that is both comfortable for me and my students.
3. I will differentiate taking into consideration how much time a student's attention span will sustain doing an assignment.
4.I will have extra activities for those students who finish faster than others.
5. Develop task cards or activity sheets for the separate groups.
6.Have a student in each group who can help those who don't understand so that I am free to help the other groups.
7.Manage behavior so that noise, roaming around and other distracting activities will not become a problem.
8.Give students as much responsibility for their learning as possible.
I believe that the most important "next steps" for me to take in making my classroom more academically responsive are:
ReplyDelete* to reinforce the importance of mutual respect among teacher and students, interchangeably. This way, students feel comfortable and free to try their best and truly be vulnerable in order to receive the corrective instruction that they need.
* allow for more technology use in the learning process in my classroom. This will involve creativity on my part and allowing suggestions from students as to how they would like to use technology in their classrooms.
* have the mind that differentiation is ongoing and always look for ways to make learning better for my students
* continue to improve classroom and time manaagement
* continue to improve my activity transition time with students
The support that would be helpful to me in this process include:
* parental support in reinforcing the character of mutual respect within their children at home, so that they will bring that character to school with them
* permission from administration to allow unconventional technology into the classroom for educational use
* continuing to be provided with professional development opportunities on the subject of differentiation
* modeling and observations from Reading Coach, followed by debreifings for positive feedback
* lots of practice!
As a teacher, I must first have a strong rationale for differentiating and find a comfortable pace that will allow me to teach my students properly. The time line in chapter 6 of Tomlinson’s “How to Differentiate Instruction in Mixed-Ability Classrooms” I found to be a great resource for approaching differentiation fittingly. Tomlinson gives an outline for both Low-Prep and High-Prep Differentiation that helps reduce preparation time for teachers which in turn can provide more attention toward understanding his/her students’ abilities. For example, a low-prep differentiation approach could be to give students homework options or flexible seating. For high-prep differentiation an example could be to have stations for students or tiered centers. Understanding student abilities will also allow a teacher to give his/her students more responsibility.
ReplyDelete-Jessica Collado
The most important steps for me to follow are:
ReplyDelete1.Make sure students understand that following the classroom rules will help create a good learning environment.
2.Have a clear picture of what students need to learn. Then, come up with the appropriate DI activities that will help students, at all levels, be successful.
3.Find an appropriate and clear way to communicate seating arrangements to students.
4.Deliver clear directions that all students understand .
5.Be clear as to what I expect from students regarding calling a halt, students that finish early, etc.
6.Allow students to provide feedback about classroom procedures.
7.Most importantly, teach students to assume responsibility for their own learning.
It would be very helpful to have supplemental materials that support D.I.
Claudia Ocampo
As people and more importantly as Teachers we grow and change constantly. I always tell my students "you are not the same person you are today as you were yesterday and will be tomorrow". So we are the same these PD's give us new vitality and motivation to become better as people and as teachers. Sometimes we also see that we are on the ball because we have been doing that right. For this coming year I plan on doing:
ReplyDelete1 To incorporate even more DI activities.
2 Listen to the students more and really cater to them more.
3 Do all the new incorporation of strategies at a pace that is good for both them and me.
4 Coordinate time allotment more effeciently.
5 Have more "anchor activities to free me up more to help the lower students.
6 Group the students so their group leader takes an active roll in help out.
7 Promote more on task behavior and ownership of responsibility.
I am sure that by the time we finish next week I will need to revise this list.
Efrem Figueredo
Last summer i did a stream makeover of my classroom by painting, buying new furniture and decorations. This year i will try to implement an academic responsive stream makeover trying to implement the things I learned in this class to make my classroom a differentiated classroom ready. Some of these aspects i will have into account are as i explained before to have identifiable work stations for my students with access to learning resources according to their readiness, interest, and learning profile. Provide for time differentiated activities, use anchor activies, create a 'home base" and specific rules so that the movement in the classroom is done in an organized manner. have a plan for "quick finishers" etc.
ReplyDeleteFirst and foremost I have to make sure I have strong classroom and time management. Realistically, I need to start small...a fully functional and effective DI class does not happen over night. Next, I need to think outside the box and provide students with varied differentiated activites that support student success. Also, in order to keep students engaged and active I need to promote on task behavior. With that said, I also need to understand and allow for student interaction because they learn from eachother. Lastly, students will need to be kept informed of their progress and be held more responsible/accountable for their learning progress. The support needed would be continued professional development, support in the classroom (paraprofessional), and most importantly parental support.
ReplyDeleteFirst step is to learn all that I can personally learn. Next I have to learn & understand my students. Once I understand my students, I will than plan to meet all their learning styles and levels. I will do this by setting up the learning environment. I will make sure it is comfortable and welcoming. I will than learn my student interest and have reading material that match their interest as well as their level & grade level. The reason I will have independent & grade level material is because I want the students to see personal growth. Once they have mastered their independent reading level, I have to build a bridge to get them to their grade level. I will also let the students teach the subject matter he/she is comfortable with. This helps builds the student’s confident and makes them what to achieve more. I will also use technology to provide visual and hands on experience.
ReplyDeleteI would like to have more support from my administrators in allowing more flexibility in how classrooms are run and for the district to offer more professional development courses. This is needed as times and students are changing. We need to come together more to share ideas.
Merrissa Bailey
In chapter 6 their were 17 key strategies listed to successfully meet the challenge of designing and managing differentiated instruction for learners, of the 17 the one that stood out in terms of what would be the most responsive academically; the most important key strategy to me, which I personally struggle with would be the third key strategy, time. Since taking this course on D.I. I realize why I struggled with time, I wasn't alway prepared or lacked knowledge on how to prepare or manage a D.I. The two things suggested in chapter 6 to remember are:(1) time allotted for a task should be a bit shorter than the attention span of the students who work on the task, and (2)advanced learners often have extended attention spans. So my new goal is to strive for , over time, is helping all students sustain group and independent task for longer than what was initially comfortable for them. The key to reaching that goal is their sense of success in those task. Karen Smith
ReplyDeleteThe most important steps for me to take in making my classroom more academically responsive are differentiating all activities to ensure that the needs of my students are met on a daily basis. Differentiating the activities will help support student success in the class. I will be creating interesting and engaging activities to free up the focus of my attention from my independent groups. I will be creating and delivering instructions carefully by ensuring my students understand the content prior to moving on to the next activity. One of my goals is to create a clear routing for my DI groups, to diminish the noise level. As a result, I will have a well organize classroom which will promote higher level of learning.
ReplyDeleteThe most important “next steps” is to prepare myself and the classroom. Develop a purposeful presentation to share with my students and parents. The presentation will inform both parties the purpose, importance, and outcome of differentiated instruction. I feel once they have a clear understanding of how and why we must utilized differentiated instruction in our classroom; it will become purposeful and more effective. Time management will play a vital role in me implementing effective differentiated instruction. Instead of a blocked schedule, my school is reverting to a modified block schedule. I will now see my students daily. A Low-Prep Differentiation will be the model I will follow. The support that would be helpful to me is having access and utilizing various activities to encourage student success. As the students progress, allow them to move to another group. I will keep progress monitoring folders that are accessible to my students.
ReplyDeletePatreece Perry-Pelt
1) Creat a reliable and broad, yet focused interest/learning style/product preference inventory for the students to fill out and keep in their D.I. folders.
ReplyDelete2) Create a reliable blueprint for the students to follow that explains how to transition to and from all learning situations (whole class/pair, trio, quartet)
3) Explain my choices, where appropriate, related to classroom set up, and explicitly tell them how their own individuality is informing the way they participate in learning. I hope that this will create a sense of ownership, as well as helping them become more aware of themselves as learners
4) Strive to ingrain procedures into the students to allow students to be on different timelines. Not everyone must be working on assignments for the same amount of time. I'll have to be ultra-observant and flexible so that my mangement choices aren't random.
5) Create, use, revise, and enforce groupwork rubrics.
6) Have individual or group INDEPENDENT work ready on the learning menu as "what to do when you're done" items. This allows me flexibility when supervising and facilitating other groups still working.
I’m already implementing differentiated instructions in my lessons. I also manage my classroom very well because I use many effective management techniques that help me. However, I battle with the amount of time it takes to plan. There is just not enough planning time giving to teachers to search for and to create materials for the diverse learners. I have to find a way to collaborate better with my colleagues through sharing of information or resources. Leaving the school at 6pm three or more times weekly is discouraging!
ReplyDeleteWhat do you see as the most important "next steps" for you to take in making your classroom more academically responsive? What support would be helpful to you in that process?
ReplyDeleteAs I mentioned in Reflection #5 having both me and my students set achievable goals and encouraging them to focus on long-term improvement, not just grades or on current assignments. Students learn to evaluate their progress, critique their own work, analyze their strengths, and address their weaknesses.
Chapter 6 provides us with strategies and classroom management tips for a successful DI experience.
Certain Steps and strategies can assist in differentiated instruction. These key strategies include and are not limited to a strong rationale and communication. Time plays a factor. I have to make sure that the time allotted for each task HAS to be shorter than the students' attention span. When tasks are too long, disruption occurs. Another great suggestion Chapter 6 suggest anchor activities. These activities will add to your academic planning and will assist in classroom management. Anchor activities are highly affective and can be completed after assigned DI work tasks . The aim is to move on to another activity with as much effort and concentration once the first task is completed.
Then book suggests task cards or assignment sheets when giving directions. I currently create a life size poster with all the possible centers and just have close pins labeled with the students' name, clipping them on their designated center for that given day. Then, in the centers I have pre-made DI folders with the given assignment and directions inside. A great way for students to ask for help is by asking three other classmates for assistance before asking the teacher or by skipping the question and posting it on the classroom parking lot. Work whether finished or not needs to be put back in the DI folder...depending on the task a second day will be given to complete it. I believe that once all these strategies and rules are established, students will know exactly what to do and DI will be successful!
-BLANCA GONZALEZ
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteTo make my classroom more academically responsive I will devise my classroom based on student’s readiness, interest and learning profile .Then share my ideas with the students in order to have them buy in. As new teacher to differentiating instruction,
ReplyDelete1. I will begin at a pace that is comfortable for me.
2. I will plan students’ activities according to their interest and attention span
3. Student will move from one activity when completing assigned
Task.
4. I will assign group leaders to assist in sharing directions and
delivering instructions
5. I will assign groups by listing their names on a chart.
To minimize noise, we will practice at the beginning of the year to
use hand signals to ask for help.
6. To promote on task behavior teacher will place a checklist on the wall to indicate the number of students that are on task each day.
Larry Williams
A differentiated classroom becomes alive when teachers and students take on active roles. You could compare or relate these roles to character profiles. Teachers use their observations to learn about students’ academic levels, and personal interest. Teachers use their knowledge to provide various learning options and experiences. Learning options are presented according to readiness of students. Students are knowledgeable of their expectation, and responsibilities. Instructions goals are clearly defined. Activities are presented to accommodate students learning styles. Students and teachers make a collaborative effort to fulfill course objectives related to content. Teachers act as facilitators. They orchestrate and monitor progress, for continuous programming.
ReplyDeleteBarbara harris
Students should be empowered toward high achievement and provided with multiple doorways into learning various materials. An academically responsive classroom approach creates an ideal environment for all learning activities. But, the most important “Next Step” for me to take in making my classroom more academically responsive, is to ensure that all students get what they need. I will modified activities for those students who are functioning at a lower level and constantly monitor them. In each center there will be hands on activities, visuals models, and other materials that students will be able to utilize. There will be color coded folders to indicate what activities they will be working on in a particular center. Additionally a differentiate classroom can be clearly identified by design when teachers and student s share mutual respect for each other.
ReplyDeleteTeachers should use the knowledge they acquired about students to structure learning task. Students are given choices acquired from survey or personal inventory. Teachers will use various modalities to tap into students learning styles. Students’ performance is measures according to ability levels, and not a standard code. Assessments are used with individual students in mind. Grades are used to measured growth, not a final sentence or threat that may cause a student to feel defeated, or incapable of achieving.
Carolyn Collins
I would make my classroom more academically responsive by taking the first step which is to teach the students to assume responsibility for their own learning. The ELL students are very dependent and they are always seeking reassurance, so I will follow the chapter suggestion of assigning “the expert of the day” to assist; in addition, I will show them how to keep records of their own work, use a chart to record their progress and have them design their own tasks and make suggestions. Another step would be to manage time more effectively because I get so involved that I’m non-stop, so maybe a stop watch will be useful or assign a student to remind us of the time. It’s sometimes difficult to predict which assignment will take more time than another or who will finish first because the assignment was not as complicated for that particular student as I thought it would be. I also need to create more centers. Maria Santiago-Parreno
ReplyDeleteThe next steps in making my classroom more academically responsive, is by recreating the way I think as a teacher. My teaching style has to change and how I manage the learning environment. By adjusting the material that is taught (content) encouraging critical thinking (process), and providing a variety opportunities for students to demonstrate what they have learned (product), more students including students with learning disabilities will have the chance to achieve academic success in the classroom. After teachers observe and interview their students to determine their interest (books, talking, and technology) learning styles (auditory, visual, tactile/kinesthetic) and learning preferences (large group, small group, individual), interest, experience, and prior knowledge. The information is valuable when developing unit plans, guidelines, determining the skills students need to acquire) and creating assessment criteria to determine the knowledge gained by each student. Teachers need to incorporate a variety of teaching techniques or pedagogical strategies that provide students with a variety of opportunities to engage in the learning process. A sample of pedagogical strategies include: whole group discussions, small, collaborative learning groups, individual contracts, self-paced learning centers, literature circles, or team technology projects. Providing numerous opportunities for students to engage in classroom activities, makes students less competitive with each other and helps to prevent underachievement among these students by giving them more choices in the way they process information and in the kinds of activities and materials they use to show what they understand. By collaborating with more experienced teachers that utilize the DI process on a continuous basis, those teachers can offer ideas on what works and does not work while attempting to differentiate instruction on a weekly basis. Observe materials and the process of what other teachers are using. Also research how DI can be effectively utilized in the classroom.
ReplyDeleteAudrey Bullock
I teach in the S3C Program where students work independently on a computer using an accerated program to help them move quickly into their correct grade level. There is no group work but, there is a lot of individual, one-on-one teacher/student interaction. I work with each student on their individual levels and provide many alternative learning techniques with each.
ReplyDeleteSusan Castleman
The next step in making my classroom more academically responsive is to become more comfortable with DI. I plan to prepare and deliver my lessons carefully using a variety of learned techniques. I will to incorporate Low-Prep and High-Prep DI according to the students’ readiness, interest and learning profile. The ultimate plan is to get the students involved as they become engaged in the whole DI learning format.
ReplyDeletePamela Robinson
The most important next steps to take in making the classroom more academically responsive for me are
ReplyDelete1. Continue learning about differentiated instruction and fully implement it consistently
2. Begin differentiating within the intervention group at a pace that is comfortable for me
3. Figure out how to do this within the limited time frame I have
Support from the reading teacher as well as administration would be helpful in this process. Communication with the teacher will be key because data can tell me a lot but many observed classroom behaviors are something I won’t see in the short time I have them. We can help students be more successful if we are all working together towards the same goal. My administrator needs to support the fact that while I am following mandated curriculum, I am meeting the individual needs of students that need that differentiation the most.
Zina Berman
I would make my classroom more academically responsive by making sure that my students provide me feedback from what they have learned throughout the DI instruction. It is important that the teacher is always prepared before the DI. If the teacher has a comfortable tone the students will feel the same comfort. Aligning DI with the students academic needs is essential as well. If students do not understand what is being asked to do they will not want to do it. Showing positivity is great in a classroom setting.
ReplyDeleteChapter 6 was of great relevance to the topic of D.I as it covered effective management. The chapter outlined 17 key strategies. One that I felt was important to mention was #2: Begin differentiating at a pace that is comfortable for you. I feel comfortable differentiating in my class, but this may not be the case for all teachers--some may feel intimidated or overwhelmed by the very thought of this practice. I particularly liked the chart on page 34 that gives teachers a starting place for ways to differentiate without it being labor intensive. Differentiated Instruction is doable and the benefit is the success of ALL learners.
ReplyDelete--Lindsey Chapman
After reading Chapter 6 I learned a lot of ideas as to how to manage a differentiated classroom. It is important to remember when you are beginning differentiated instruction in the classroom to begin at a pace that is comfortable. Students should have an "anchor activity" to do when they complete their assignment. It is also important for the teacher to give very clear instructions at the beginning so the students know exactly what they are expected to do. I will take back to my classroom many ideas for using differentiated instruction.
ReplyDeleteChapter 6 was beneficial in outlining strategies for managing a differentiated classroom. This was very informative because teachers sometimes become discouraged when trying to manage the DI classroom. The most beneficial tip I found was having a plan for quick finishers since this is something that occurs in my class. Having something for those students to continue working on after they are done helps minimize distractions and boredom for those quick finishers. It is a great chapter to read as a how to manage the DI classroom and great tips to use.
ReplyDeleteTo make differentiated instruction truly effective a clear system of classroom management must be in place. Chapter 6 provides useful tips, strategies, and skills that all facilitate classroom management and refine the differentiated instruction process. Some of these ideas that I am taking away with me include anchor activities, a plan for students to follow when they need help and I am with other students, a "how to turn in work at the end of a center" plan, and a "quick finisher" plan. Having students discuss class procedures and group processes is also very useful in class organization and maximum time utilization. If students can orally explain class procedures and engage in problem solving then it is like there are multiple teachers in the classroom armed with metacognition.
ReplyDeleteChap. 6-This chapter's content regarding the 17 "megastrategies" is thoroughly written, and quite informative. If you want 1 quick and solid "reference chapter"...#6 is it!!
ReplyDeleteChapter Six was my favorite chapter as I found it most beneficial to me. I extremely liked the chart that shows the different DI activities and the required time/preparation/effort it takes for teachers to create the DI activities. This is great information for new teachers. Also, the 17 steps are very beneficial to all teachers. My step to focus on would be to take my time, not to rush(differentiate at a comfortable pace). I sometimes get to many ideas going on at once. An idea alone might prove to be fabulous but if you put them with other ideas and requirements, you might just end up doing to much at once. This has happened to me plenty of times. This was a great read for me along with all of the other tips for DI.
ReplyDeleteChapter 6 reviews the 17 key strategies you can use to successfully meet thechallenge of designing and managing differentiated instruction for your students.
ReplyDeleteOne of the most important things I liked about this chapter is that it tells us something that we have known forever. Share your thinking not only with students but with parents. Anchor activities are to have on hand when students are finished with their work. Some anchor activities are: reading, journal writing, managing a portfolio and practicing spelling. computation, and voc.
ReplyDeleteChapter 5:
ReplyDeleteIt was very helpful because it provided five different views of Differentiated Instructional classroom. I enjoyed it.
by Sheila Hodges
Managing a differentiated classroom
ReplyDeleteChapter 6 spelled out the basics of a differentiated classroom. I learned about anchor activities, as well as plans for quick finishers, turning in student work, and promoting on-task behavior. It was a helpful chapter, though I realized that my classed are differentiated in many ways.
Gina Terry
Most likely to incorporate:
ReplyDeleteWork better at differentiating the pace
Pay more attention on students'attention spans
Minimize stray movement & noise
Bring in new activies for low prep/high prep like homework options,Independent Studies,etc
Guillermo Rodriguez
Chapter 6:
ReplyDeleteIt was very informative. This chapter provided 17 explanation about managing a differentiated classroom. It was very helpful.
by Sheila Hodges
Yolanda Contreras
ReplyDeletechapter 6:
It is imperative that teachers provide very specific instructions, succinct and simple in order to begin Differentiating Instruction successfully.
Chapter 6
ReplyDeleteThis chapter provides us with strategies for Managing a differentiated instruction classroom.
By: Alden Thompson
Ronnica Nix
ReplyDeleteChapter 6
This chapter described the skills mandatory to effectively help teachers succeed in their everyday classroom, which ultimately allows teachers to succeed within the differentiated classroom. It discusses the basics for managing a differentiated classroom, and being successful with the differentiated instruction implementations.
I have always had a negative feeling towards DI in the classroom. I've always felt that this is a waste of time as students are just moving from center to center. Having been in this class has taught me that if the child is engaged in an activity that is within their level, he/she will work diligently. Unfortunately, due to time constraints and lack of knowledge, teachers place students in groups that only do "busy" work.
ReplyDeleteAt the beginning, it will seem like a lot of work but if careful planning takes place, the work load will get less and less as students become more independent and the teacher becomes the facilitator. Chapter six certainly gives a very detailed path on how to get started without overwhelming oneself.
There are some DI strategies that I use very comfortably in my classroom and some that I shy away from trying. After reading this chapter, I realized there is much I already do that is both effective and engaging! My next step? Familiarize myself with new "tools" to put in my box and introduce them at a pace that feels comfortable. I believe one thing that is crucial is to allow time for students to practice new routines. We cannot expect them to get it the first time... I think the key is in having a clear plan, delivering clear instructions and practicing!
ReplyDeleteSheila Hodges
ReplyDeleteChapter 7:
Prepare students and parents for differentiated classroom by first modeling a differentiated lesson and ask students to be active partners. They could monitor the progress of their work and design minicontracts to work with an interesting activity or to extend one.
Keep an open communication with parent and share differentiated instructional goals with them. Successful partnering between teachers and parents is based on proactive communication.
Sheila Hodges
ReplyDeleteChapter 8:
The Equalizer is a tool for planning differentiated lessons. It is a comprehensive guide for planning and monitoring the effectivieness of differentiated curriculum. In differentiated classroom by making adjustments, appropriately for various students' needs equalizes their chances of being appropriately challenged by the materials, activities, and products in D.I. classroom. When students are not properly challenged they get off task.
Sheila Hodges
ReplyDeleteChapter 9:
Engagement is a nonnegotiable of teaching and learning. Two related motivators for engagement are student interest and student choice. Interest-based differentiation can be combined with other type of differentiation. There are a number of strategies that support interest-based D.I. e.g. Interest Groups,etc.
The next step to take in making my classroom more academically responsive is to give my students much more responsibility for their learning. It is a difficult task for me to let the reigns go, to allow my students to take control. Figuring out the balance is a challenge for me. Developing check points along the way might be helpful. Also, to move away from teacher-control to student-center learning, individualized learning contracts that gear to needs of each learner is another step that will facilitate the differentiated classroom model. Differentiate at a pace that comfortable for me is another important step to consider.
DeleteYunyan Chen
ReplyDeleteAnswers: After I have been reading and learning all the information for differentiated instruction, I understand the following things I have to follow:
1. First and foremost, as an educator I personally have to be good at preparing ahead of time how to differentiate the students.
2. After I make the plan to differentiate, I will have to persist in carrying out the plan.
3. Fully prepared and engage myself in applying in each group. Engage the students by trying all kinds of activities to promote the interests of learning. If all the groups do not go through too well, I will pick up a small group to practice until I am fully good at it, and then I will try all y groups.
4. Collaborating with my colleagues and exchange our opinions and steal each other's good ideas.
5. I will always keep my students informed of what we are doing and what will be done from time to time.
6. Getting feedback from students is extremely important as some unsuccessful practice would just preparing , making planning and teaching but never ask the students how they feel about it and how much they get it or if there is any improvement after differentiated instructions.
One of the steps I need to take personally is to get a clear direction in which I want to take my students. What I mean by that is, how do I thoroghly teach grammar, writing, reading skills/strategies, and how to take the test all in one day, week, or school year. I need a plan as to how to get all of that information across to my students and then see the results of what they have learned at the end.
ReplyDeleteAlthough I have been teaching for manyyears, I think I need to see as many models as I can of those who have academically responsive classrooms. Who knows, maybe(actually hopefully) I have an academically responsive classroom and don't even know it!
This was written by T. Junious
DeleteThe next steps in making a classroom more academically responsive are to have a discussion with students, letting them in on the characteristics of a “fair” classroom, and involving students in the process of creating a differentiated environment. This can be done by engaging students with developing common classroom routines such as what content is covered in the whole group, when to break off into groups, how to create a plan for completing and turning in work, and who is responsible for what by delegating responsibilities to students so that they take ownership of their learning.
ReplyDeleteThe most important steps for me to take in making my classroom more academically responsive is the following:(1)Delivering clear instructions that all students understand,(2)allowing more student
ReplyDeletecollaboration rather than providing answers myself, (3)allowing students to take more responsibility for their learning, (4)Listen to my students more in order to cater to peer teaching and allowing expert of the day(group leaders) to take more active rolls,(5)create more anchor activities,and lastly implement DI consistently and practicing to perfection.The support mostly needed is uninterruped planning time to develop activities.
As a new, second career teacher, I have been reluctant to take risks. Keeping good classroom management, posting grades, creating lessons, and keeping with all the paperwork has been plenty on my plate. This year, for the first time, I have classes with 20-30% ESE and ELL kids. If there was a time when I needed to have a differentiated, academically responsive classroom is now. My first steps were to give more assessments, more often, to determine where kids are. The problem I still have is that if most of my kids “didn’t get it” and I have to review the material, the other kids will need to do the work on their own. This last part is a challenge for me still. And, to me, lesson preparation would be the most important step in making my classroom more academically responsive. The kind of support available to me besides a good textbook series and my coworkers is classes like this.
ReplyDeleteFrancisco Castro
I mentioned in previous posts that I find that too many of the differentiated instruction discussions appear to be based on the premise of a perfect classroom with perfect students. It does not take too long for new teachers to realize that one or two students can determine the success or failure of a class. Too often I see suggestions for this or that approach to teaching some subject that fails entirely to take the human factor, and that of students in particular, into consideration. The other premise that we take for granted is that any class failure is really nothing more or less than the teacher’s failure. This could very well be the case very often, but since teachers have limited control of the students that are put in the class and almost no control over who stays in the class (despite excessive absences, excessive poor grades, excessive behavior problems), then the teacher is actually at the mercy of the administrators and their policies.
ReplyDeleteAt an “A school with which I am familiar, close to 200 of about 500 Ninth Graders failed the reading portion of the FCAT. That’s close to 40 percent. Very few of these students, I am confident, had any legitimate learning disability. Those that I know personally failed because they simply refused to make an honest effort to pass the course---for all sorts of reasons, most of them bad. How do we implement the recommendations presented in the chapter if close to forty percent of our students could not be bothered? We have lots of data about how high school students now spend their time. Hours and hours are spent watching TV, talking on the phone, texting. So the obvious answer to the question, “what support would be helpful to you” in making your classroom “more academically responsive,” I would have to say, screen my students better. Make sure that the students are prepared to learn and not just be housed while their parents pursue the American Dream.
In the book Outliers, Malcolm Galdwell discusses many things that impact on a person’s success in life. Date of birth, family to whom one is born, cultural environment, all of these and more variables impact our lives, he argues. However, he still concludes that a willingness to work hard could possibly trump all the other factors. Speaking about education in general and math in particular, he asserts, “We should be able to predict which countries are best at math simply by looking at which national cultures place the highest emphasis on effort and hard word.”
Too often, I would argue, we are ignoring the importance of hard work. Students want magic bullets and easy rewards. Maybe we need to be emphasizing that school was not designed to be entertainment for kids. Again, let me emphasize that I think that good teachers have always looked for ways to help students who seem to be struggling with the course materials. Good teachers can identify students who want to work hard but are having some trouble with the material, and they rightly make adjustments. But they seldom looked for ways to give students an easy grade. Too often, our classrooms are about the easy grade. I know of no job where there is differentiated production. Most jobs require strict adherence to guidelines, policies and protocol. Our students need to come to terms with what the world of earning an income will demand of them.
Tony H.
The most important next steps for me to take in my classroom that will provide more of an academically response is enhance student’s vocabulary. By exploring different a wide range of genre and informational text assist student’s ability to communicate. Every moment in my classroom is an opportunity for the students to build on their prior knowledge. My goal in the beginning of the year is to have all students to learn and establish a foundation that will support them to soar. I constantly give ample opportunity of students to achieve academic success by utilizing technology. The support I will provide to the student to be helpful in the process is to give constant feedback to the students. In addition, I will continue to promote academic responsiveness by involving the parent’s in the learning progress.
ReplyDeleteHonestly speaking, I would only like to do some posting from a chapter I read from “Leading and Managing A Differentiated Classroom Book, which really help to consider what my forthcoming steps could be to have a more responsive classroom.
ReplyDelete1- But my students are different: Though I really desire to give and provide my DI students with all opportunities to achieve excellence and maximize their capacities, I also have to take into account their fear, anger, discouragement, disillusionment, and alienation, as well as frustration. That’s why we have to ask ourselves. This could be wonderful, but I don’t think it is easy for me to face it.
2- Don’t lower your expectation for students. This is true in terms of behavior, classroom participation, and students self –awareness. In other words, we teachers can help to frustrate our students.
3- Move slowly, but be persistent towards helping them satisfy the same expectation. We have to introduce ideas and routines more slowly, we have to model and develop explicit instruction, communicate with students in a way they feel sure, reliable, and proud of what they are doing.
4- Lean from the” warm demanders” . It is often the case that students who are disruptive in one class work quite well in another one. In other words, teachers should communicate to students their unconditional acceptance of every student capacity to succeed and also teachers should send appropriate signals to those students whose feeling about school and learning is ambivalent and negative.
5- Forget never that young people will nearly always succeed neither if they can, nor if the like. Let’s say that we have to consider what academic and personal skills does one student needs to handle any situation in life? And what can I do to help the student to develop these skills?
6- Try to do your best and invest the most to know the reason(s) and cause of students’ misbehavior.
7- Be proactive:
8- Pick your battles: Don’t let smaller issues to become relevant and flash points: Keep the focus on learning and have a positive interaction, even in the most difficult climax.
9- Demonstrate empathy and respect to any student specific and personal needs.
By Mr. De La Paz
I believe the most important steps to take in making a classroom more academically responsive is to create a safe learning environment and respect our classroom rules. I need to know my students backgrounds, their interests and reading levels. Once I know their learning styles and academic level, I can start getting different activities to address their needs.
ReplyDeleteIt would seem that the most important next step for me would be to discern my point of readiness. My tendency is to jump in with both feet and guns loaded and I think that in this particular situation this would be a recipe for certain disaster... the possibility for success for teacher and students is greatly increased by step by step, slow progressive movement toward a classroom incorporating differentiated instruction. Based on the current design of the classroom, slow increments toward differentiated instruction appear to be the most beneficial for student, parents and teachers. Observing in a classroom that has implemented differentiated instruction would be helpful. Conferencing with teachers, parents and students could also provide invaluable information. trial and error within the classroom is also a great teacher, what works for some may or may not work for you. due to the great variety of students present in every class, some strategies will work great for one group and fail miserably with other groups. Providing opportunities for feedback from students and parents will also provide information that can be used when furthering the implementation of the differentiated classroom. Shifting the responsibility from teacher to students in regards to learning will also take some adjustment and lots of encouragement and realigning.
ReplyDeleteChapter 6 Reflection: What do you see as the most important "next steps" for you to take in making your classroom more academically responsive? What support would be helpful to you in that process? 1. differentiated instruction based on student readiness, interest and learning profile. 2. differente by pacing yourself at a comfort level. 3. time differentiated activities like time alloted for task depending on students' attention span. 4. anchoring activities is to maintain productivity in the classroom environment. 5. creating instructions for individual student and groups. 6. assign your students into groups or seating arrangements. 7. assign "home base" seats which would be easier to take attendance. 8. teacher has a plan to give student assistance when teacher is busy. 9. keep noise level to a minimum. 10. schedule for students to turn in class assigned work. 11. develop different floor plan in order to assist to move quickly and quietly. 12. minimize unnecessary movement. 13. try to eliminate distractions in order to promote on task behavior. 14. have plan for students that finish quickly. 15. giving students ad vance warning of deadlines and work due. 16. give students responsibility for their own learning. 17. teacher's metacognition/thinking aloud helps students develop ownership of the classroom. These are some of effective ways to develop a differentiated strategies to develop a classroom.
ReplyDeleteThe most important "next steps" for me will be to:
ReplyDelete1. Give the students more responsibility for their learning.
2. Establish a plan for the "quick finishers".
3. Promote on-task behavior.
I need to learn how to trust the students. This is something that I will be working on from the first day of school next year.
Chapter 6: Discuss with the students the changes that will be happening in the classroom and allow more student input as how they want the changes implemented. Also have parent meetings explaining the rationale for the changes and ultimately the benefits the changes will bring to the students. Deciding on the use of differing texts, multilevel supplementary materials, various computer programs, or peer tutors in small group tasks which allows the teacher to assign students by their readiness, interest or talents. Teacher will decide as to the length of the task and the allocation of time to complete the tasks either in small groups or individually. Teacher will create a communication system for designation of tasks and groups by using color, wall charts, delivery of completed work, evaluation of work quality, etc. The delivery of instructions will be done as a whole group, as well as individual students can listen to the instructions again with the use of a recorder. The seating chart for the day will assist with the organization and delivery of materials, while giving students independent group tasks such as expert of the day to control noise, tasks consultants, quality control among other duties. Eventually students will understand that they have the responsibility of managing the task, time in order to become independent learners
ReplyDeleteThese steps were all so clear and practical! If only I had them years ago! I think the points about arranging seating and having procedures in place are key. But I think the most important are having Anchor Activities that tie into key traits and habits you want your students to have. I would need the most support in the plan for "quick finishers" because I tend to lean on those anchor activities, when the time could be used for valuable and individual enrichment.
ReplyDeleteI believe that the most important "next steps" for me to take in making my classroom more academically responsive are: Tailoring instruction that’s based on my student’s readiness, interest, and learning profile. As outlined in Chapter 6, it is also necessary for me to differentiate a pace that’s comfortable for me. That would include looking at the curriculum and making changes that will work best for students. Next steps would also include creating more diverse activities that meets the needs of my students, which may include integrating more technology into the lessons. Creating more group projects so that students can learn how to work together and become accountable. This would allow me to meet with each group periodically to monitor their progress or to meet with my struggling learners to try and assist them. I’m learning through this course that differentiated instruction is more than just grouping students and giving them different work, but it’s finding out their strengths and weaknesses and creating activities that will enhance their strengths and build on their weaknesses.
ReplyDeleteWhat do you see as the most important "next steps" for you to take in making your classroom more academically responsive? What support would be helpful to you in that process?
ReplyDeleteI definitely need to come up with a strategy for those that finish fast and have nothing to do while the others take longer. I have some that finish fast because they don't really care about the assignment and don't want to do a good job. Those students are lacking an interest. I think if I offered them material that speaks to their interest they would do a better job on the final product.
When planning I would make sure to provide multiple means for students to complete given assignments. For my cognitively impaired students, I would seek out free software and apps whereby I could incorporate speech to text, pictures, music and multiple ways to respond with immediate feedback.This software/apps would also be used to layer activities for more advanced learners. Technology makes it easier to individualize lessons, monitor as well as engage students My support would come from a coworker( that work at a different site) with whom I already consult with when planning lessons for the class. We are constantly seeking resources that will best benefit our students.
ReplyDeleteI recently watched How to Learn from Mistakes by Diana Laugenberg on the TedEd site, and must agree with Luagenberg’s discoveries. Just as Tomlinson describes in chapter six, Laugenberg finds that allowing for students to make mistakes fosters true learning through trial and error. And that making mistakes and learning from them, is an integral part of learning. Laugenberg describes her own experiences with student success through Experiential Learning, and that, as was mentioned in class: providing opportunities for “schematic” building, is vital to building associations, connections and relevance with topics at hand.
ReplyDeleteI believe that the most important "next steps" for me to take in making my classroom more academically responsive are:
1) Finding out my students’ strengths and weaknesses
2) Dividing my classes based on their readiness, interests, learning styles, and attention spans.
3) Creating activities that will accommodate for, as well as enhance their strengths and build on their weaknesses.
4) Pacing myself and lessons that are both comfortable for me and my students.
5) Including input from my students
6) Creating lessons that have opportunities of: whole group discussions, paired activities, small-group, collaborative learning groups, individual contracts, self-paced learning centers, and literary circles.
7) Developing engaging, experiential, project-based venues for success.
My next steps: 1. Learn more about differentiated instructions, 2. identify individual student needs both from data and learning profiles 3.develop procedures for my class to successfully do differentiated instruction
ReplyDeleteThe best help is to better understand the differentiation process.
For me as a teacher will be very helpful to do a contract from the beginning of the school year being very specific by what do I expected and what do I want them to behave? I also think I need to start by focusing more on the data. Through the FAIR test because is the first one they take at the beginning of the school year to differentiate once I have that I think I will be able to analyze numerous variables and make a clear determination as to the strengths and weaknesses of my students. Also, I looked at the Interim Test, which focused more on areas covered by Language Arts. I will be explaining them the “Rotation Groups” and would explain how Exit slip has to be done. I will have extra activities for those students who finish faster than others. I will assign test bi-weekly in order to make sure that they are in right track
ReplyDeleteDespite the fact that we, the instructors panic when we are faced with attempting to provide instruction based on our student’s varied interests; taking the first steps towards the implementation of Differentiated Instruction in a complex classroom environment, eventually make us very knowledgeable and successful in this area. Getting familiar with the basics, according to Chapter 6 of Ms. Tomlinson’s book on how to differentiate instruction in a mixed-ability classroom, seems to be the key to achieving that ultimate objective. The author itemizes these steps in this chapter and explains them in a very clear, down to earth way. The first step that she mentions is to have a strong rationale for differentiating instruction. In second place she places to begin differentiating at a pace that is comfortable for us. In third place she has to time differentiated activities to support student success. In fourth place she refers to using an “anchor activity” to free you up to focus your attention on your students. Her fifth recommendation is to create and deliver instructions carefully. Number six idea is to assign students into groups or seating areas smoothly. The following steps involves having a plan for when you are busy with another student or group; another plan for “quick finishers”. She finally suggests involving the students on the classroom procedures and group processes.
ReplyDeleteAt the present time I am not in the classroom setting, but when I was teaching the EBD population it was very important that students always has a clear understand that following classroom rules was very important. It creates a positive learning environment. Seating arrangements are important and they need to be clear to the students, Wall charts work well and using color helps as well. Directions always need to be clear and the teacher needs to assure that students understand the directions. It is very important that the teacher delivers instructions that the students are crystal clear of what is expected of them. Teachers need to also have a plan for those students that complete assigments early the (Quick Finishers). It is important that students assume responsibility for their behavior as well as for their learning.
ReplyDeleteUsing Time task to be shorter so can capture the students attention with out losing them. give them a goal making everyone part of it and use group activities to get the focus and that they are more comfortable. make sue the instruction are deliver clear and precise to be carried out by the student. always have the extra activity for the those that finish quick.
ReplyDeleteWhat do you see as the most important "next steps" for you to take in making your classroom more academically responsive?
ReplyDeleteMaking my classroom academically responsive is very important. Some next steps I need to take are:
Time differentiated activities to monitor student success - I need to plan other activities for students who finish quickly; as well as, consider the time and attention span of students when planning said activities.
Create and deliver instructions carefully - tape recording instructions is a great idea that will allow me to focus on the group I'm working with and not have to repeat directions to other groups.
What would be my next step to take to make my classroom academically responsive.?
ReplyDeleteThis is a challenge that every teacher must meet every year. How will I make my classroom academically challenging depends on many things. The type of students I will meet, the number of subjects I would have to teach and my personal ambition to succeed professionally. I think I will make time to know each of my student 's background ,learning style and their view and ambition about their education. I would hope that our parents will have some time to meet me, so I can explain to them what I wish to accomplish with their sons or daughters. I would hope that my administrators will support as well when I need them.
Some of the most important next steps for me to take to make my classroom more academically responsive are:
ReplyDelete1. Systems in place. At the beginning of the year it is imperative to establish a routine. The routine allows for students to become well oriented with the expectations of your classroom and the order of operations. This is most apparent when you miss a day of work and the students are still able to flow through work stations as if you never left.
2. Choice options. One way to get students to take ownership of their work and improve interest is to offer them a variety of choices when doing assignments. You can mix assignments to include various learning profiles options. This also helps you to avoid giving assignments that feel mundane and redundant.
3. Anchor Activities. When it comes to academically divers students it can be difficult to time assignments to allow students to get the most out of the assignment when you have students that can tackle the assignment quickly and others whom require extra time to complete. Anchor activities allow those students that can tackle an assignment in half the time as their counterparts to pick up meaningful activities tailored to their proficiency so they do not waste time. Some anchor activities are independent reading, journal writing, managing a portfolio, etc.
As soon as the school year begins the next steps I will be following are creating and developing lesson plans that have visible differentiated instruction and using some the strategies that I have read about in the book and in class.
ReplyDeleteThere are, however, routines and procedures that are already set in place that the students need to know that are used throughout the school year. As a result of this class, these routines will be tweaked to address the students learning needs. I will use a learning styles inventory. I have never given my students a learning styles inventory. It will be a good eye opener for them and me. This will become a next step that will provide support for my teaching and students learning, as well as guiding in grouping.
Another next step will be the use and the implementation of differentiation menus and think tac toe boards along with anchor activities. These strategies will give the students options in their learning.
My next steps as a reading coach are to supply and familiarize my staff with ample amount of differentiated activities and corresponding materials to support student success. When designing the tasks, I will remind the teachers to think of two things: time allotted for a task should be a bit shorter than the attention span of student working on task and advanced learners often have extended attention spans. The goal is to have the students sustain tasks longer than initially comfortable. The question of time worries my staff, they believe students will begin to misbehavior because of early completion. I want to show them ways to avoid this situation. I have effectively run DI learning centers by allowing the students to move freely through tasks. For certain groups of students, they would show me their work to make sure the work is high quality and I will stamp their passport to move forward. The others would show me at the closing of center time. The motivation to finish center activities was the Friday incentive. During the week, if the students finish all their task with care and concentration, the students were called 'PICKLES' which meant on Friday they could pick the order of their centers or which activities to participate in. The others were called 'KETCHUPS' which meant Friday their job was to catch up on their work during the week.
ReplyDeleteThe next step I see for better academic classroom is to get over the fear of differentiated approaches. I have the old school habit of teaching traditionally ( e g - whole group instruction/ lecture/ worksheets) . I need to retrain myself and think outside the box by basing my lessons on student readiness, interest, and learning profiles. I can begin by setting a pace that is comfortable for the students.. By moving in smaller increments, I'll invision resources such as differing texts, multilevel texts , computer programs, technology, and peer tutoring. Every so often , I can add a few other high - low approaches. Time allotment for a task should be shorter or more extended. Also by using an anchor activity will free me up to focus on delivering instructions carefully and assign groups into groups or seating will make class transition easily. There are many effective techniques and I will strive to change my approaches.
ReplyDeleteCharter 6 : Reflection : A better alternative is creating and giving task card or assigment sheet to individual or groups. Another option is going over an assigment with a few responsible students. While the other half engages in a different content-based activity designed specially for their needs. Part of direccion requiere students to move to another place in the classroom, specific a time limit for to movement to be complete with clear expectations.
ReplyDeleteThe most important step for me as a teacher to take as soon as I enter in a classroom next august is to carefully plan my lesson in a way that I appropriately include differentiated instruction for the diversity of the students that I have in each classroom, to make it more academically responsive, I will be more flexible at the time to group the students based on readiness, interest, and learning profile to give my students the chance to choose, so they would not feel intimidated to be in a group where they don't feel comfortable with, and as a professional thanks to this class I bet that everyone is leaving with a clear idea of what differentiated instruction is.
ReplyDeleteI think the most important next step for me to take in making my classroom more academically responsive is for me to make my lesson plans more academically rigorous while also differentiating based on readiness. In the previous school year, we where constantly changing the D.I. plan, and really just focusing on how to do D.I. Now that I know exactly how I want to differentiate, I'd like to focus on using as many new strategies and activities as possible to help move and motivate my students. Especially my students that are in the "high" group. I felt like last year my activities for those students weren't as rigorous as I wanted them to be. I can use this class and the strategies and activities I've learned to support this process.
ReplyDeleteThe most important "next steps" in order for me to make my classroom more academically responsive & manageable are to:
ReplyDelete* create a mental image of the differentiated learning is going to flow
* establish a protocol and expectations with students before beginning differentiated groups by going over procedures that will minimize noise, getting help when needed, moving around the room, or moving furniture, talking and wrapping up
* have a strong rationale for the instruction based on student needs, readiness, interest and learning profiles so I can communicate this to the students as well as to the parents
* set a pace that is comfortable for myself as a facilitator and the students as learners
* select activities that support student success based on student readiness, interest, profile, attentiveness and time on task
*use an "anchor activity" to free up time so I am able to focus more attention on my students
* Create and deliver explicit and clear instructions to students so as to not confuse or overwhelm students with the tasks and activities
* Organize students by specific groups by color, symbols, etc., with a home base that they can return to after completing their work
* Having a plan B for students who finish quickly so they do not disturb other groups
* Extending and facilitating responsibility to the students to take ownership of their learning goals as much as possible.
Based on what I have learned about D.I. I think that I would like to initiate the differentiated Instruction by using a learning styles inventory to group students. As the term progresses, In order to match content, process, and product to readiness, I would utilize the data to group students. I would also utilize the D.I. menu so that students would understand the D.I. process and have clarity of purpose. I believe that this would allow students to take ownership for their learning.
ReplyDeletePlease disregard comment immediately above this one (Shauntelle). Not meant to respond to chapter 6.
DeleteFor me, the most important "next step" to take in the direction of academic response to my students is to implement the strategies that I have learned. D.I. must be effective for EVERY student and not just some (data will obviously show if this goal is met). There must be a clear-cut plan of action and end goal that is known to students and teacher. D.I. will require time and patience in planning and must have a systematic approach. The reading coach would probably be the best source of support in this process.
ReplyDeleteThe 'next step' I need to take to make my classroom more academically responsive is having a strong rational of students readiness, interest, and learning profile. Communication between teacher to students and teacher to parents is essential to make them comprehend why the you are changing your method of traditional teaching.
ReplyDeleteThe 'next step' is to envision a differentiated classroom. I would envision new strategies, planning ahead for differentiation, working with varied resources that adjust to the learners need or another option might be using the same text and differentiating by activities. In my classroom, I differentiate in my small group activities but after taking this course I have realized that there is more I can do.
I think that the most logical next step for me to take in an effort to make my classroom more academically responsive, is to differentiate my instruction at a pace that is comfortable for me and the learners I am responsible for, plan more meaningful (not more labor intensive) DI activities, time differentiated activities to support student success, and come up with a more comprehensive plan for "early finishers" to keep them engaged. Keeping students accountable in their DI groups is a large part of making them feel invested in their learning.
ReplyDeleteThe next steps in making a classroom more academically responsive are to have a discussion with students, letting them in on the characteristics of a “fair” classroom, and involving students in the process of creating a differentiated environment. A clear system of classroom management must be in place. Chapter 6 provides useful tips, strategies, and skills that all facilitate classroom management and refine the differentiated instruction process. The next step to take in making my classroom more academically responsive is to give my students much more responsibility for their learning. Having a contract where they understand where they are academically and what their weaknesses were and how I planned to help them improve. I believe that when they own their data and know what the plan is to help them improve they are motivated to do better. Communication between teacher to students and teacher to parents is essential to make them comprehend why the you are changing your method of traditional teaching.
ReplyDeleteThe most important “next step” I need to implement in my classroom for my kids to become more academically responsive is the use of the anchor activity. This activity will have my students understand that when they complete a given assignment that they must automatically move to an anchor activity and work with that activity with care and concentration. To support me in this process I will provide interesting options for my students to select.
ReplyDeleteI’m glad that I have read that chapter. In chapter 6, the author mentioned that teachers need to start at their own pace. This gives me the confidence and ownership that I can start when I’m really ready. Therefore, I will start by gathering the activities at different levels. Then, I will have the students turn in their end products based on their interests and academic levels.
ReplyDeleteThe next step in differentiating my class would be to promote on task behaviors. Sometimes a student finishes before others and they begin to do something else that may distract the class. There can also be the students who get bored or would rather talk than do work so by giving a positive reinforcement. If a student is on task they can get a check. These checks can add up to an extra credit grade, which kids love getting.
ReplyDeleteAna M.
ReplyDeleteChapter 6 is like a checklist of what I do and need to do to improve my teaching style/classroom. From the 17 strategies presented, I can say that in order for my classroom to be more academically responsive and manageable, I should
• Use “anchor activities” to free me up to focus my attention on my students.
As we know, learners do not complete work at the same time. Some anchor activities I use in my classroom are 3 centers.
1. Solve computation problems using manipulatives and/or calculator
2. Lego center to create/build letters/numbers/figures
3. Computer center in which learners read/type
These centers free me to teach small group of students a new skill. What I need to improve as an educator is to be better in preparing ahead of time and smoothing the transition from center to center.
• Give my students as much responsibility for their learning as possible.
They know that it is not okay to just sit and wait for help to come. As a Special Education Teacher, one goal is to help students to be more independent academically and non-academically. It is a long process since students with disability have the tendency to wait for the approval/validation of parents/teachers. We have patronized them all their life, now it is time/necessary to change that behavior. We have underestimated their capacity to be self-sufficient.
• To make my classroom more academically responsive, I will follow the following guidelines: I will continue to plan my instruction in a way for all student needs are met. I will plan my differentiated instruction based on student interests, readiness and learning profile so that each student will receive instruction at the right level of difficulty. Mutual respect among teacher and student should be regarded as one of my best policies. Teach students to assume responsibility for their own learning. I need to understand them and allow time for socialization because they learn from each other. Group them so their group leaders can take an active roll in all activities. Teach students whether or not they finished, their works need to be put back in the DI folder and depending on the task a second day will be given to complete it. As long as all of these strategies and rules are established, students will know exactly what to do and DI will be ran successfully.
ReplyDeleteAs I work with teachers, the major aspects for improvement to make the classrooms more academically responsive relate largely to handling behaviors through planning. The ability to measure the difference between movement and mindless roaming of the classroom by students is important. Students need to be be allowed flexible settings, yet keeping the instructional focus. Having set locations for groups to meet, yet allowing the students to move as they choose within the setting helps. Also, having explicit procedures and activities for 'quick finishers' allows students to continue their engagement with learning after the task at hand is complete and the teacher is not overwhelmed by bored behaviors. Transitions are a key piece to all of this which need to be explicit as well. I rarely used my voice to move groups or close a time of flexible study. I had a train whistle which I blew in different patterns for each stage of the framework. Overall, explicit procedures are key.
ReplyDeleteI also agree that using Differentiated Instruction (DI) during my core Reading instruction is a step in making my classroom more responsive. When students are exposed to different concepts in different ways, they have a better understanding and are able to apply those concepts when needed. Teachers always need to keep in mind that all learners grasp concepts differently. It is the job of a teacher to provide a variety of ways to support student's success. In addition, teachers need to prepare lessons ahead of time, and they have to understand the concepts they are teaching. Classroom environment and management is essential. For instance, when teachers are meeting with a particular group, the rest of the students should have a plan to complete their work. Also, teachers should have differentiated activities for those students completing the assignments earlier. Another support that would be helpful in this process is making sure the teachers have a plan for those students that become restless and noisy.It is important we take into account the diverse learners and their needs.
ReplyDeleteAs a reading coach I do not have a classroom however one of my responsibilities is to give support to teachers. Thus my most important next step is to help teachers create DI in their classroom. First I would prioritized teachers in most need of Di and are uncertain about it.
ReplyDeleteI would start with the basics, help them assign students into groups by abilities using their data analysis. I would advise them to start at a pace that's comfortable for them and have them time the activities to support students success. I would help them create a rotation work chart post it on the wall and train all students to comprehend the schedule . I would also stress to teachers that DI is effective when it is combined with the use of a high-quality curriculum, research-based instructional strategies, well-designed activities that address the needs and interests of students, active learning, and student satisfaction with the lesson. Schools and districts can support teachers in learning these new skills by designing professional development activities that provide clear models for differentiated instruction in action.
Chapter 6 Reflection: What do you see as the most important "next steps" for you to take in making your classroom more academically responsive? What support would be helpful to you in that process? The most important next steps for me to take in making my classroom more academically responsive are to use differentiating instruction in all my activities, to ensure that the needs of my students are being met on a day to day basis. Differentiating the activities will help support their level of learning and promote student achievement in the classroom, while creating and delivering instructions carefully. As a result, I will have a well organize classroom which will promote higher learning.
ReplyDeleteUp until now I have been a rotation that is reflected in my lesson plans, but I was doing basically the same thing with every group of students. Now that I have a better understanding of what DI truly is, I am starting by differentiating the activities in the teacher led group by skills-as needed, and by reading ability. I am also implementing different choices of activties for students in the independent part of the rotation. I was assigning the same thing to all the students, I now see that it is much more effective to give students choices of assignments that can lead them to accomplishing the final end product that will demonstrate the mastery of the focus standard.
ReplyDeleteI manage my classroom pretty good, because I use many effective management techniques that help me. Day to day I implement differentiated instructions in my lessons. However, I battle with the amount of time it takes to plan that my biggest challenge weekly. There is just not enough planning time giving to teachers to search for and to create materials for the diverse learners. I have to find a way to collaborate better with my colleagues through sharing of information or resources. I wish I can stay everyday after school and work at least an hour an half, but I have small children at home also that need me and my time as well.
ReplyDeleteVivian Marzall
As Piaget reflected "...the best methods are also the most difficult ones." It takes me time consuming to come up with an effective lesson plan in which I incorporate time differentiated activities, coming up with plans for those who finish early, and some other DI activities to address all students' needs. I am constantly making adjustments in my curriculums after each class is finished, for I consider that every time a class is delivered, I come up with a new way to explain a concept. Although it is exhausting, when you see positive feedbacks and students' outcomes, that is the moment in which this experience definitely turns in to a satisfying and rewarding one.
ReplyDeleteIn chapter 6 to make my classroom more academically responsive is having student interest, readiness and learning profile on hand to be able to begin. As a teacher we pace ourselves in new strategies As we become more comfortable it will come naturally. Many factors come into play as time of task, distractibility of our children, interest and ability. Luckily due to my reading program I have many of the basics covered. The two areas that I need to address would be having a plan for “quick finishers” and students who stray from their assignment. I guess getting more materials prepared ahead of time on all the different levels I have within my class. There are so many factors and engaging activities that need to take place for this to be effective.
ReplyDeleteIf I were back in the classroom today, my implementation of differentiated instruction would be completely different compared to the mandated ETO framework that I previously implemented. After reading chapter 6, I kept thinking to myself that many of the basics listed always fall back to planning. Planning is unfortunately the biggest struggle at my school because there truly is not enough time, especially when teachers currently have 2-3 different class preps. If I were to think of my personal weakness, and thinking of my "next steps" that would help be support the process, it would be strategy 16, "Give your students as much responsibility for their learning as possible." I tend to want to help all of my students because I want to help them achieve well academically. I find it difficult to release students because I want to be there for them right away to clear any misconceptions immediately. By releasing them, the students will be held accountable for their learning and I would need to serve more as a facilitator to their learning.
ReplyDeleteSome steps for me to take to make my classroom more academically responsive are: Strategy 3 While creating activities, keeping in mind that learners have their own pacing. Some are faster than others and attention spans can be longer than others, therefore its important to time my activities accordingly. Strategy 4 Eventhough my classroom does use anchor activities, I would like to have most of my class doing self-directed content based activites. Planning is essential in order to execute that effectively. Strategy 8 In order for my students to get "unstuck" and not interrupt me while I am with my group, I teach them to "Ask 3 Before Me" and I also wear a funny "Do Not Disturb" hat. Even with all of this my students prefer to come to me. I think I will try the "Expert of The Day".
ReplyDeleteElda
The next important steps for my classroom deals with successfully tracking how well I am meeting my students needs. I found that after I have grouped my students by their needs and provided them instruction at their level, it is important for me to track their progress. This is important for both my students and me because we need to see if differentiation is actually effective. In Chapter 6 it was mentioned that educators should differentiate at a pace that is comfortable for us. I wholeheartedly agree with this statement because the task of meeting the needs of all the students in the class is a massive task that must be addressed with fidelity. This cannot be accomplished if I feel uncomfortable with differentiating instruction.
ReplyDeleteWe must have the task well layer out and students trained. Maintaining a productive work environment with anchor activities. That is great to maintain. Smooth transitions from activity to activity again having them well trained and concentrating. Minimize noise pg. 36. Promote on task behavior, and really important have a plan for quick finishers. Pg 37. This is crucial to develop the differentiated classroom as they are the more advance and need something to challenge them. Engage them in talking about process and procedure . This points really stuck out at me. These are really great strategies.
ReplyDeleteTominlinson provides feasible suggestions for managing DI. In walking through many teachers’ classes, I notice that strategy 8 is one many lack. Making sure students have another means for getting help while teacher is leading a small group is extremely important in primary grades. This is often the reason why DI is chaotic in and teachers find it difficult to differentiate learning. The most important steps for me as a coach would be in helping teachers understand that a truly differentiated classroom will require them to relinquish “control.” Teaching kids, for example, how to rearrange the desks, assigning class experts to assist in directions, and providing clear directions on task cards not only helps minimize the chaos that often ensues during DI but also teaches students responsibility which, in turn, makes them more active in the learning process.
ReplyDelete-Provide information to the students and to the parents about your strategies to meet students' needs.
ReplyDelete-Use resources to differentiate instruction that are comfortable for you as a teacher,in other words,prepare yourself first.
-Time differentiated activities to model instruction.
-Be precise and specific while delivering instruction in order to avoid confusions and build students' confidence.
-Minimize noise and disruptive behavior.
-Share your strategies with colleagues to analyze which of them works and which ones needs some improvement.
Many years ago, I took a classroom management. This class helped me how to implement differentiated instruction without difficulties. First, I modeled every activity for my students. Second, I explained what the role of every one in each center is and ask them to show me if they understand. Finally, they worked in each center and rotate timing. In addition, I put the clock on the board and they clean every center and move to the other center.
ReplyDeleteCenters:
- Phonics (matching letter with pictures, sound it out letters, words)
- Fluency( read words and phrases )
- Computer ( I-ready)
- Reading (books, rhymes, poems)
- Writing (write their own story, summarize, details, compare and contrast, cause and effect, sequence of events).
Note: If necessary to add, I have every center ready with every activity for students working independently without my help. They help each other and interact all of the time.
These centers are so interesting, where the students will work with materials that match their readiness level. They can work in the same center, but they have choices to present the product of their work. They are going to address in different ways of patterns. This will allow them to develop social interaction skills that will benefit them in the future.
Maria Gonzalez
After reading chapter 6 I realized that there are a lot of steps I need to take in order to make my classroom more academically responsive. Although I've never really had a problem with classroom management in whole group, when it comes to DI it's a little different. I realized that step 3, "plan time differentiated activities to support student success," would help with the classroom management during DI. When I provide students with instruction based on their readiness, interest and learning profile it will keep students on task therefore leaving them with no time to misbehave. I loved and related to each step in chapter 6. However the one that I related to the most was number 16, "give your students as much responsibility for their learning as possible." As a teacher I find it very hard to allow the students time to figure things out on their own. I constantly find myself giving them too much information or try to help them so much that I end up just doing all the thinking for them. After reading number 16, I realized that I need to just be the facilitator. Students should be held more responsible for their learning than the teacher. Therefore we need to be able to provide those opportunities for them in order to help them become our independent.
ReplyDeleteThe most important “next step” I need to implement in my classroom for my students to become more academically responsive is the use of anchor activity. This activity will allow my students to understand that when they complete a given assignment they need to move on to an anchor activity and work with that activity quietly and independently. To support me with this process, I will be providing my students with a variety of activities that they may choose from. This will allow me to work with individual students to meet their needs.
ReplyDeleteOne of the most important aspects of the implementation of Differentiated Instruction refers to classroom management. After assessing the students and offering instruction based on their readiness, interest and leaning profile it is imperative that one establishes rules related to how the students are going to be responsible for behaving in a respectful manner. The students need to be taught behavior that is appropriate when working in pair, in groups, own their own; they need to know what is expected of them when they need assistance or have completed their work. The students should be encouraged for having on task behavior.
ReplyDeleteTo make my classroom more academically responsive is to promote on-task behavior. Ensuring that students have a clear understanding of what on-task behavior looks like or what is expected at the end of the differentiated session. I believe creating a visual representation of the patterns of behavior will be beneficial to the students and myself.
ReplyDeleteTo make my classroom more academically responsive I would need more access to my students test scores on various exams to accurately group them. This would be best before the school year starts. I would then give them a test to determine their interests and combine the two to accurately group them. I would also explain in detail and make students practice what is expected of them when they go into these various groups.
ReplyDeleteThe helpful support in making my classroom more academically responsive is how I manage my classroom. It is important for me to know and believe the reasons why I differentiate. I also believe that as a teacher, is important to find a comfortable pace. We might sometimes want to work with different resources while other times we might want to use the same text, but different activities and always keeping in mind the time allowed for the activities. Other steps I found interesting in this book into managing my classroom is to go over assignments with a responsible student, so he/she can share tomorrow. I actually use this strategy for my listening center and it works well. As suggested in this chapter, it is better to assign students ahead of time (chart for centers); also it is important to teach the students how to behave, what to expect during this DI time and what is expected of them since the beginning of the school year. In other words, set the tone of the classroom since the beginning and don't underestimate the capacity of your students. Give the students responsibility for their learning.
ReplyDelete