Nancy Heilbronner

University of Connecticut

Nancy.heilbronner@uconn.edu

With Thanks to

Sheelah Sweeny,

Rhode Island College

DifferentiationWebquestsPPA WebquestsWays to Differentiate PPA Webquests

Matching the given content with a student’s interests, abilities, and learning styles through various instructional strategies.

Sally Reis

From Get Off My Brain, by Randy McCutcheon, illustrated by Pete Wagner

MYTH! Busy work is a waste of students’ time. If students finish early, have them do something challenging and meaningful. However, with appropriate differentiation, down time should occur less frequently.

MYTH! Capable students should get work that is qualitatively different, not quantitatively more. Also, gifted students need only 1-2 repetitions on something that an average child needs 7-8 repetitions to learn.

Differentiation – Is It Effective?

http://www.gifted.uconn.edu/nrcgt/reports/rbdm9204/rbdm9204.pdf

An Analysis of the Research on Ability Grouping: Historical and Contemporary Perspectives

James A. Kulik, Ph.D.

• Meta-analysis– Differentiation is effective (learning gains) when you alter the curriculum for students to adjust for their previous knowledge and skills, and it’s ineffective when you don’t.

Multiple Approaches - differentiate through the content, process & product

Student Centered - engage all learners at their own level

Varied Groupings - whole group, small group & individualized instruction

Organic - teaching & learning evolves from needs of the students

Tomlinson, 2001

Interest

Readiness

Learning Style

ASSIGNMENT:

On a piece of paper rank from highest (1) to lowest (4) your preferred expression style Write Draw Act Sing

Activity

Create a representation that would explain the characteristics of gifted students to others.

You MUST use your LEAST favorite learning style. Find your group and begin.

1. How did you feel while doing this activity?

2. What is this like in our classrooms?

This simulation, however, is a bit like using remedial instruction. If we never let students do what they like and are good at, we never see their potential.

Is it fair?Addressing ConcernsSET THE EXPECTATION EARLY, SET IT OFTEN.

CONTENT

PROCESSPRODUCT

What should a student be

able to do as a result of this

study?

Activities designed to

help students

make sense of content?

How will student

demonstrate understandi

ng?

The content is what students are learning about. Differentiate by:

Providing a wide variety of learning materials;

Providing texts and trade-books with different levels of sophistication (e.g. viewpoint, technical language);

Requiring the use of primary source materials;

Requiring Interviews with individuals in the field.

The process is what students are doing - how they are using the information. Differentiate by:

Increasing the complexity of the task; Requiring higher-order thinking skills Requiring skills used by working professionals in the field.

The product is the final work product - it is how students demonstrate their learning. Differentiate by:

Making the product more complex; Assigning leadership and more complex roles during the webquest;

Use of higher-order thinking skills through debate and/or presentation by the identified students.

IntroductionTask ProcessEvaluationConclusionCredits

Webquest Page http://webquest.org/index.php

A Guide for Creating a Webquest

http://www.teachersfirst.com/summer/webquest/quest-a.shtml

Science Sites

Franklin Institute Museum of Science http://www2.fi.edu/

Keystone Science Network www.keystone.fi.edu/index.shtml

The Scientific Method http://teacher.nsrl.rochester.edu/phy_labs/AppendixE/AppendixE.html#Heading3

National Science Teachers Association http://www.nsta.org/

Social Studies Sites

American Memory http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/amhome.html

Library of Congress www.loc.gov

History Matters http://historymatters.gmu.edu/

National Council for the Social Studies http://www.ncss.org/

ASPCA http://www.aspca.org/site/PageServer?pagename=kids_ri_home

English/Language Arts Sites

The Write Site http://www.writesite.org/

Time for Kids http://www.timeforkids.com/TFK/

Research & Writing http://www.ipl.org/div/aplus/stepfirst.htm

Research Sites

The Research Process http://www.crlsresearchguide.org/

Thinkfinity http://www.thinkfinity.org/home.aspx

Rand Corporation http://www.rand.org/

Kaiser Family Foundation http://www.kff.org/

Math Sites

Math Forum• http://mathforum.org/

The World of Math Online • http://www.math.com/

Interactive Math Dictionary for Kids• www.amathsdictionaryforkids.com

NCES Kids Zone• http://nces.ed.gov/nceskids/index.asp

What is the problem?Where is the evidence?What are the causes?What is the existing policy?What policies can you create to correct the problem?

What is the best policy to correct the problem?

Use this description to hook students - get them excited and interested. Include questions, strong verbs and examples of higher order thinking to engage students at all ability levels.

When directing students to resources, make sure the resources are varied in type (web-based, books, reports, graphs, surveys, etc.), reading level and level of analysis.

Choose a topic that is multi-faceted, which will increase the complexity of the research and analysis. Give students opportunities to explore multiple causes.

Provide opportunities for students to utilize different formats as they evaluate causes.

Choose resources that are varied in form and reading level. Consider newspapers, news magazines, online news sources as well as books, websites and government reports.

Give students opportunities to explore why certain policies were put into place. What role does politics play in policy making?

Have students consider more than one solution/policy. The team can evaluate the choices to choose the best option.

Policies should consider multiple criteria and constituencies (social, economic, academic, political, emotional, etc.)

All students should be involved in higher-order thinking, including evaluation.

Provide structures to help students evaluate policy options.

Content &

Process

Consider multiple presentation options to pique student interest and take advantage of students’ strengths.

•Poverty•http://www.maxwell.syr.edu/plegal/crit7/donaldsonwq1.html

•English Suffragists•http://www.maxwell.syr.edu/plegal/crit7/chomawq3.html

•Industrial Revolution•http://www.maxwell.syr.edu/plegal/crit7/archerwq2.html

By ROLE Works well if roles are meaningful (e.g., researcher, project manager, editor, presentation manager)

Roles must be CONTRIBUTE TO LEARNING.

By TASK Each role is tiered by readiness.

Students select roles based on interest. Instructor selects tiered groups.

Make sure each role is meaningful, and contributes to the overall process and to student learning.

Example: Group manager – for student with strengths in people skills, conflict management, etc.;

Researcher – for student with strengths in reading, organization, note-taking, outlining, etc.;

Production – for students with strengths in writing, storyboarding, language, layout, etc.;

Technology – for students with strengths in computer software such as PowerPoint;

Artist – for students with strengths in the arts.

A word of warning: Each student should contribute to the knowledge-building process;

Each student should contribute to the overall presentation(s);

Roles are primarily for “who’s in charge” purposes.

Differentiation is by readiness. Form 2-3 groups for each role that are differentiated by complexity.

Knowledge:arrange, define, duplicate, label, list, memorize, name, order, recognize, relate, recall, repeat, reproduce, state

Comprehension:classify, describe, discuss, explain, express,

identify, indicate, locate, recognize, report, restate, review, select, translate

Application: apply, choose, demonstrate, dramatize, employ, illustrate, interpret, operate, practice, schedule,

sketch, solve, use, write

Analysis:analyze, appraise, calculate, categorize, compare, contrast, criticize, differentiate,

discriminate, distinguish, examine, experiment, question, test.

Synthesis: arrange, assemble, collect, compose,

construct, create, design, develop, formulate, manage, organize, plan,

prepare, propose, set up, write.

Evaluation: appraise, argue, assess, attach,

choose compare, defend estimate, judge, predict, rate, core, select,

support, value, evaluatehttp://chiron.valdosta.edu/whuitt/col/cogsys/bloom.html

Sentence Stems \http://www.teachers.ash.org.au/researchskills/dalton.htm

Knowledge - Content: What happened after…? Product: Make a timeline of events.

Comprehension - Content: Tell what happened in your own words. Product: Illustrate what you think the main idea is.

Application - Content: Group by characteristics… Product: Construct a model to show how it works.

Analysis - Content: How was this similar to… Product: Construct a graph to illustrate selected information.

Synthesis - Content: Devise your own solution… Product: Create your own product…

Evaluation - Content: Judge the value of… Product: Prepare a list of criteria to judge…

Determining reality & fantasy

Determining benefits & drawbacks

Identifying value statements

Identifying points of view

Determining bias

Identifying fact & opinion

Determining the accuracy of information

Inductive & Deductive thinkinghttp://www.socialresearchmethods.net/kb/dedind.php

http://www.gifted.uconn.edu/sem/typeiips.html

• Judging essential and incidental information Determining relevance

• Identifying missing information

• Judging the credibility of a source

• Determining warranted & unwarranted claims

Critical Thinking Skills

http://www.gifted.uconn.edu/sem/typeiips.html

Recognizing assumptions

Recognizing fallacies

Detecting inconsistencies in an argument

Identifying ambiguity

Identifying exaggeration

Determining the strength of an argument

-Albert Einstein

It’s time to get your ducks in a row…

www.gifted.uconn.eduwww.creativelearningpress.comHow to Differentiate Instruction in Mixed-Ability Classrooms, 2nd ed. By Carol Ann Tomlinson