Director, Design and Production Services - ASCD · him a thing during the year, but rather my curriculum and instruction had caused him to march in place academically, if not to backslide—and

This guide was developed by Carol Ann Tomlinson, Associate Professor of EducationalLeadership, Foundations, and Policy at The Curry School of Education, University ofVirginia; and Leslie J. Kiernan, Video Producer and Program Manager, ASCD.

The video program was produced by ASCD.We gratefully acknowledge the support and participation of the Fairfax County PublicSchools, Fairfax, Virginia; the Montgomery County Public Schools, Rockville,Maryland; and the Scottsdale Unified School District, Scottsdale, Arizona.

Leslie J. Kiernan, ProducerSally Chapman, Development Team MemberMarge Scherer, Development Team Member

Gary Bloom, Director, Design and Production ServicesTerrey Hatcher Quindlen, Manager, Editorial ServicesGeorgia McDonald, Senior Graphic DesignerValerie Sprague, Desktop Publishing SpecialistVivian Coss, Production Coordinator

ASCD, a community of educators, advocating sound policies and sharing best practicesto achieve the success of each learner.ASCD publications present a variety of viewpoints. The views expressed or implied inthe video program and manual should not be interpreted as official positions of theAssociation.

Copyright © 2001 by the Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development,1703 North Beauregard Street, Alexandria, VA 22311-1714 USA. All rights reserved.Materials in the “Handouts and Overheads” and “Resources and Readings” sections ofthis manual are intended for use in face-to-face workshops designed as part of thisvideo staff development program. For this purpose, materials in these sections of theguide may be reproduced. Any other use of these materials is prohibited, unless writtenpermission is granted by ASCD.

Association for Supervision and Curriculum DevelopmentTelephone: 800-933-2723, or 703-578-9600Fax: 703-575-5871E-mail: [email protected]: www.ascd.org

ASCD Stock Nos.: Entire Series, 401071; Facilitator’s Guide, 401071LG; Tape 1,401072; Tape 2, 401073; Tape 3, 401074; DVD, 601071

ISBN 0-87120-459-2, At Work in the Differentiated Classroom Series; ISBN0-87120-487-8, Facilitator’s Guide; ISBN 0-87120-460-6, Tape 1: PlanningCurriculum and Instruction; ISBN 0-87120-461-4, Tape 2: Managing the Classroom;ISBN 0-87120-462-2, Tape 3: Teaching for Learner Success; ISBN 1-4166-0209-7,At Work in the Differentiated Classroom Series DVD

07 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2

Differentiation as a Journey Toward Professional Expertise . . . . . . . . . 3

Assumptions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5

Purpose of the Series . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6

About the Series . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7

Series Objectives . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8

Role of the Workshop Facilitator . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8

Preface to Workshops . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13

Self-Study . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13

Special Note About Differentiation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14

Workshop 1: Planning Curriculum and Instruction (Overview) . . . . . . . 15

Workshop 2: Planning Curriculum and Instruction(Interactive Workshop) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18

Workshop 3: Managing the Classroom (Overview) . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25

Workshop 4: Managing the Classroom (Interactive Workshop) . . . . . . . 28

Workshop 5: Teaching for Learner Success (Overview) . . . . . . . . . . . 37

Workshop 6: Teaching for Learner Success (Interactive Workshop) . . . . 40

Handout 1 Top Three . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51

Handout 2 What Is Differentiation? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55

Handout 3 Some Underlying Assumptions ofDifferentiated Instruction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57

Handout 4 Challenges and Suggestions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59

Handout 5 Jigsaw Base Group Instructions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61

Handout 6 Jigsaw Specialty Group Instructions . . . . . . . . . . . . 63

Handout 7 Can It Be Done? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65

Handout 8 Goal Setting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67

Handout 9 Management Hot Spots . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69

Handout 10 Plus—Minus—Questions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71

Handout 11 RAFT Activity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73

Handout 12 Self-Assessment on ClassroomManagement for Differentiation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75

Handout 13 Getting Started: A Scenario . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77

Handout 14 Specialty Groups. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79

Handout 15 Ideas for Future Reference. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81

Handout 16 Goal Setting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83

Handout 17 Role of the Teacher in aDifferentiated Classroom (Part I) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85

Handout 18 Reflecting on the Video . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 87

Handout 19 Analyzing the Role of the Teacherin a Differentiated Classroom . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89

Handout 20 Thinking About the Deep Structures of School . . . . . . . 91

Handout 21 Double-Entry Journal . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 93

Handout 22 A Cooperative Controversy on Grading . . . . . . . . . . . 95

Handout 23 Guidelines Groups . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97

Handout 24 Role of the Teacher in a DifferentiatedClassroom (Part 2) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 99

Overhead 1 Objectives of the Workshop . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101

Overhead 2 What Is Differentiation? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103

Overhead 3 Some Categories of Interest in aDifferentiated Classroom. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 105

Overhead 4 Ideas for Effective Differentiation . . . . . . . . . . . . . 107

Overhead 5 Objectives of Today’s Workshop . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 109

Overhead 6 What Is Differentiation? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 111

Overhead 7 One More Way of Thinking About Differentiation . . . . 113

Overhead 8 Challenges and Suggestions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 115

Overhead 9 3-Minute Buzz . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 117

Overhead 10 Ahas and Affirmations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 119

Overhead 11 Works/Quirks/Questions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 121

Overhead 12 Jigsaw . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 123

Overhead 13 One-Liners . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 125


Overhead 15 Plus—Minus—Questions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 129


Overhead 17 From the Mouths of . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 133

Overhead 18 Learning with Forced Analogies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 135

Overhead 19 RAFT Activity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 137


Overhead 21 Selecting Specialty Groups. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 141

Overhead 22 Learning from Extended Metaphors . . . . . . . . . . . . 143



Overhead 25 Analyzing the Role of the Teacherin a Differentiated Classroom . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 149

Overhead 26 Growing as a Teacher . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 151


Overhead 28 The Need for Continual Growth . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 155

Overhead 29 A Mobile of Elements in a Differentiated Classroom . . . 157

Overhead 30 A Cooperative Controversy on Gradingin a Differentiated Classroom . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 159

Overhead 31 One-Sentence Recap . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 161

Overhead 32 Guideline Groups. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 163

Overhead 33 Teacher Role . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 165

Overhead 34 Short-Term Goal Setting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 167

Resources . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 171

Reading 1 “Teach Me, Teach My Brain: A Call for DifferentiatedClassrooms,” by Carol Ann Tomlinson andM. Layne Kalbfleisch . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 173

Reading 2 “Mapping a Route Toward Differentiated Instruction,”by Carol Ann Tomlinson . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 176

Reading 3 “On the Road to Differentiated Practice,”by Kim L. Pettig . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 180

Reading 4 “Reconcilable Differences? Standards-Based Teachingand Differentiation,” by Carol Ann Tomlinson. . . . . . . 183

Reading 5 “Grading for Success,” by Carol Ann Tomlinson . . . . . 187

Reading 6 “How Reggio Emelia Encourages Inclusion,”by Rebecca K. Edmiaston and Linda May Fitzgerald . . . 190

Reading 7 “Shifting into High Gear,” by Evelyn Schneider . . . . . . 193

Differentiationas a JourneyTowardProfessionalExpertise

In my first year as a teacher, I came to understand that there were strug-gling kids in my class, and I felt badly for them. I also realized there

were smart kids in my class. I liked that. It made me feel successful. Myfirst year of teaching coincided with the desegregation of schools in thestate where I taught, and I was introduced for the first time in a personalway to educational inequities. I also realized in an undefined sort of waythat culture plays a role in shaping who we are. I learned similar lessonsfrom students whose lives were sculpted, in part, by poverty. I felt theimpact of those insights deeply but had little sense of what to do withthem. In that year, in fact, it really didn’t occur to me that my actionsaffected my students’ learning. It certainly didn’t occur to me that I mightsee them as individuals who needed me to teach them in different ways.

That lesson first became clear in my third year of teaching when I metGolden, a 15-year-old 7th grader who did not know the whole alphabet.Unseasoned as I still was in teaching, I did at least know that my teach-the-whole-class approach was unsatisfactory for him. In April, I realizedthat Jonathan, who sat at the table with Golden, was in trouble too. I haddeemed him a success in my class because he made As and laughed atmy attempts at subtle humor. In the spring, I realized I had not taughthim a thing during the year, but rather my curriculum and instruction hadcaused him to march in place academically, if not to backslide—and Icelebrated that with As. I had no idea what to do about Jonathan andGolden (and other students who, I began to realize, had similar needs).I just knew I had to try to learn to teach in a different way.

In time, kids like Repp and David helped me understand what it meantto have a learning disability and how, together, we could make the class-room work for them. Kids like Michelle and Donna and Jason taught meabout cultural similarities and differences and how I could be a partner inhelping them chart a journey toward dreams that seemed out of reachwhen they stood alone. Kids like Tevin and Micah taught me about dis-abilities, coping, and how to acknowledge challenges without succumb-ing to them. Susan taught me about a world filled with ghosts and thedesire to emerge from it. Lisa taught me about living in a home that nochild should ever have to suffer. Even as I began to teach adults, Loritaught me about entering with her into a world without sound; Miriamand Yu Chu taught me of the courage it takes to speak up in a languagenot one’s own.

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With the help of these students and legions like them, I came to under-stand that a teacher’s job is to teach individual human beings who shareremarkable similarities and are profoundly different. I want each of thosestudents to achieve a sense of immense possibility unfolding beforethem. I want each of them to earn a sense of self-efficacy with the sub-jects I teach—and to get a kick out of them as well. It was clear to me afew years into teaching that I could not accomplish those things for themenagerie of learners who came my way daily by teaching in a uniformway. Developing a philosophy that supports attending to learner variancewasn’t so hard. It has taken me a career to figure out routines, processes,and strategies to translate that philosophy into action. (In the process, ofcourse, the philosophy has matured as well.)

What I know now, 30-plus years into an educational career, is that if Itaught for another 30 years, I would still have more to learn about how todevelop a classroom where everyone belongs, where everyone isexpected to work like crazy and has the right to expect support for suc-cess on her own terms, where there’s always another way to approachteaching if I just keep searching a bit longer. What I know now is thatteaching effectively in academically diverse classrooms is a career-longprocess. I can chart my growth as an educator with milestones along thatjourney. And the road has no end.

Teaching well is about teaching everyone well, and I cannot do that bytreating all learners as though they are essentially alike. Teaching every-body well requires an openness that is discomforting and a humilityacquired through uncertainty. The mass nature of schooling responds tothe idea of teaching individuals as a body responds to a germ.

Nonetheless, Golden and Jonathan and Tevin and Repp and Yu Chu andMichelle and all the others continue to come to school in greater numbersthan ever before. There are more of them to fail if we persist in lookingpast what learners bring to school with them as though it were of littlesignificance in the classroom. For that reason, many teachers are willingto fight the bondage of old habits and think about new ways to acknowl-edge and address human variance in the classroom. We hope this set ofvideos, the facilitator’s guide, and especially the conversation they gener-ate among professional educators assist with that quest.

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This program is based on the following assumptions:

1. Students differ as learners. Most contemporary classrooms—eventhose designated as more homogeneous in nature—are composed ofstudents who bring to school differences shaped by experience, ability,interest, mode of learning, expectations about themselves as learners,culture, language, and gender.

2. To learn well, each student needs appropriate challenge, success,and learning experiences. We learn best when tasks are just a little toohard for us and when someone supports us in bridging that “difficultygap.” Our learning is also more successful if we are interested in what welearn and see a purpose for it, and if learning conditions match our learn-ing needs.

3. It’s unlikely that we will achieve challenge, success, and instruc-tional fit for each learner by ignoring student differences. To achieveappropriate challenge for a full range of learners in a classroom, materi-als and tasks cannot always be at the same level of difficulty and pacingcannot always be uniform. To construct learning experiences that tap andextend interests of all learners, tasks will have to allow exploration of arange of interests. To ensure the best results, classrooms will need tooffer multiple ways of learning and expressing learning.

4. Effective attention to academic diversity needs to take place in anenvironment of mutual respect and safety with emphasis on growthand shared responsibility for learning. A sense of community within aclassroom occurs when a teacher actively helps students recognize thevalue in both the commonalities and the differences in its members. Fur-ther, the classroom must be a place where students feel safe being whothey are—whether that means having unusual ideas, being extra smart,struggling to read, battling emotions, speaking a language other thanEnglish, having a physical disability, being tall or short, and so on. Thatsort of community and safety, in many ways, runs counter to humannature and therefore requires a teacher with the desire and determinationto be a leader in achieving it. The classroom also needs to be a placewhere the emphasis is more on individual growth than on competitivestanding. Finally, settings in which individual needs are met will be onesin which students and teachers share responsibility for a classroom thatworks effectively and efficiently for everyone.

5. Attending to student differences requires a flexible approach toteaching. For many of us as teachers, the greatest challenge to address-ing academic diversity is coming to understand how to lead a classroom

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that is flexible in its orientation to teaching and learning. To achieve thatflexibility we must craft routines that enhance student independence andfree us as teachers to work some of the time with individuals and smallgroups. The routines must become comfortable and familiar to studentsand teacher alike.

6. Successful attention to student differences must be rooted in solidcurriculum and instruction. A classroom where students are active,involved learners and where curriculum is based on important ideas thatare organized to be meaningful, memorable, and useful is not only thebest environment for differentiation; it’s also a better classroom overall.Differentiation takes work, so it makes sense to be sure that we are dif-ferentiating powerful curriculum and effective instruction.

7. There are many routes to achieving high-quality curriculumtaught in ways that attend to student differences and build commu-nity. Although there are certainly principles that govern effective differ-entiation, there’s no single “recipe” for achieving it. Teachers withdiffering personalities, teaching at different grade levels, and teachingdifferent subjects can find many ways to meet students where they areand move them along, providing a sense of personal achievement andsatisfaction for teacher and students alike.

8. Developing differentiated classrooms calls on us not so much todevelop a bag of tricks as to rethink teaching and learning. Differen-tiation isn’t a strategy to use occasionally but rather is a way of thinkingabout teaching and learning. It’s not just a matter of teachers learningwhat to do in the classroom to effectively teach the maximum number oflearners, but also of coming to understand why it matters to do thosethings.

At Work in the Differentiated Classroom is designed to help teachers(1) develop additional images of how classrooms function when they

have a goal of flexible teaching and learning with the purpose of reachingevery learner, (2) reflect on the “big picture” of differentiation in order todevelop a sharper sense of how teachers plan for academic diversity overtime and how students work in a differentiated classroom over time,(3) develop a broader repertoire of management strategies for guiding aflexible and differentiated classroom, (4) reflect on the role of the teacherin a student-centered and differentiated classroom, and (5) reflect on theirown beliefs and practices related to academically diverse learners.

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The workshops are designed to stimulate thought and provide an oppor-tunity for shared reflection among educators. They also include opportu-nities for teachers to set personal goals for classroom implementation ofideas and insights that prompt continued growth in teaching learners forwhom one-size-fits-all curriculum and instruction are a misfit.

T his video-based professional development series consists of threevideotapes and a facilitator’s guide. Tape 1 examines planning

curriculum and instruction in a differentiated classroom. Tape 2 providesinformation on managing a differentiated classroom. Tape 3 focuses onthe teacher in a differentiated classroom. This guide includes detailedagendas and activities for workshops, as well as handouts, overheads,and additional readings and resources.

Two workshop formats are provided for each videotape. The first work-shop format is a short session designed to give participants an opportu-nity to view the video program in its entirety and to reflect on and sharebroad reactions to and perspectives about the issues addressed. The sec-ond workshop format is a full-day session with activities designed todeepen participants’ understanding of specific issues and strategiesrelated to differentiation and how to apply them in the classroom.

The facilitator’s guide is designed to help you get the greatest possiblebenefits from this video series. The workshop activities and discussionquestions included here can serve as a starting point. However, the facili-tator’s choices of activities and questions should certainly not be limitedto those contained in this guide. Indeed, the facilitator should encourageparticipants to raise their own questions based on the particular needs orconcerns of their school, district, or community.

This guide is organized in four sections:

� Introduction. This section presents an overview of the philosophy,principles, and research findings pertaining to teaching in a differen-tiated classroom, as well as a description of the video programs andworkshop formats.

� Workshops. This section provides agendas, materials, and informa-tion needed for the facilitator to plan and conduct two different work-shops for each videotape in the series.

� Handouts and Overheads. This section consists of the materials tobe duplicated and distributed to participants in each workshop. The

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materials include camera-ready masters for overhead transparenciesthat are incorporated within the various workshop sessions.

� Resources and Readings. This section includes a list of resourceson differentiating instruction and managing the differentiated class-room. It also contains a select collection of readings that may beduplicated and distributed to workshop participants. Readings 1–5are incorporated into the workshop formats. Although Readings 6and 7 are not specifically referenced in the workshops, they may bedistributed as useful supplementary materials.

A fter viewing the three videotapes and participating in the workshops,participants should be able to

� Articulate and discuss key elements in a teacher’s planning for differ-entiation over time.

� Analyze and pose solutions to problems and issues inherent in differ-entiated classrooms.

� Describe and develop routines and procedures for effective leader-ship in a flexible classroom.

� Describe roles of a teacher in a differentiated classroom.

� Reflect on their own growth in addressing academic diversity in theclassroom.

� Generate goals and plans for professional growth and leadership indifferentiating curriculum and instruction in their classrooms.

Whether you decide to simply show the videotapes to a group or toconduct the workshops outlined in the next section, your prepara-

tion for the sessions and your openness to discussion will enable you tohelp your group benefit from this program. It is important that you viewthe videotapes and read through this manual before the workshops. Yourbackground, knowledge, and outside reading will provide you with astrong base for discussion. As a facilitator, you have several majorresponsibilities:

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Read and View the Materials

� Read the facilitator’s guide and other reference materials.

� View the videotapes. As you preview the tapes, you may want torecord the tape counter numbers for the beginning of each section orexample to use as a reference during the workshops.

Prepare the Program Activities

� Select the workshop format that is most appropriate for youraudience.

� Select the workshop activities you will use and modify them, if nec-essary, to meet the needs of your audience.

� Plan agendas for your workshops, including workshop objectives.Note specific allotments of time, including time for breaks. (Sug-gested agendas and objectives are included in this guide.)

� Arrange for refreshments.

Check the Room and the Seating

� Reserve a room large enough to arrange seats in a way that is condu-cive to group discussion and watching the video.

� Arrange for an adequate number of comfortable seats.

Arrange for Equipment

� Arrange for the use of a VCR and monitor. (A 23- or 25-inch moni-tor will suffice for up to 25 participants.) Check the video equipmentto ensure that it is in good working condition. Check the electricaloutlets in the room to make sure they are in working order. Be sureyou have any necessary extension cords or adapters.

� Arrange for the use of an overhead projector, a screen, and a writingsurface (e.g., blank transparencies, flip chart, or chalkboard). Makesure you have the right kind of pens or markers for the surfaces youchoose.

Prepare Materials

� Duplicate any handouts and readings from this guide that you intendto distribute to participants. If you plan to distribute other materials,make sure you comply with all copyright policies.

9

� Make transparencies from the overhead masters and copy them ifyou want to use them as additional handouts.

� Gather chart paper, masking tape for posting chart paper on thewalls, and several felt-tip markers.

Announce the Workshops

� Publish a flyer that specifies the time, day, date, and location for theworkshop.

� Contact everyone who will be involved in the workshop. If appropri-ate to your situation, invite parents, community leaders, andbusinesspeople.

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Each of the three videotapes in this series is accompanied by twoworkshops—a short session lasting 80 to 90 minutes and a long ses-

sion lasting 6½ to 7 hours. The short sessions (Workshops 1, 3, and 5)are designed for viewing an entire videotape and considering a few gen-eral questions to guide reflection on the tape and to elicit reactions andresponses. These sessions may be useful in providing an overview of thetopics for a group of educators. The long sessions (Workshops 2, 4, and6) are intended for more in-depth exploration of topics. They are moreinteractive in nature and are well suited to being presented in full-daysessions or two half-day sessions. It is also possible to develop a full-dayworkshop that uses two of the videotapes and a portion of the materialsin the facilitator’s guide related to each of the tapes. This might be par-ticularly helpful if you have limited staff development time and needparticipants to see both the larger picture of differentiation presented inTape 1 and some of the easily applicable suggestions presented in Tapes2 and 3. The sequence of videotapes and workshops is as follows.

Workshop 1: (85–90 minutes) An overview of Tape 1: Planning Curricu-lum and Instruction

Workshop 2: (6½–7 hours) An interactive workshop on PlanningCurriculum and Instruction

Workshop 3: (85–90 minutes) An overview of Tape 2: Managing theClassroom

Workshop 4: (6½–7 hours) An interactive workshop on Managing theClassroom

Workshop 5: (80–85 minutes) An overview of Tape 3: Teaching forLearner Success

Workshop 6: (6½–7 hours) An interactive workshop on Teaching forLearner Success

This series may also be used for self-study. If you use the materials inthis way, follow the same sequence of activities and reference the

same materials used in the workshops. Substitute journal entries for thegroup discussions and activities; take some time to reflect on the questionor issue that is raised and record your thoughts. Conclude each workshopwith an entry on any new insights you have gained or questions you haveon teaching in a differentiated classroom.

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T he workshops are designed to have participants work on activities ina variety of groupings. At times the groups are based on like teaching

assignments, at other times on varied teaching assignments; sometimesthe groups are random. The workshops also provide opportunities towork alone. In the longer workshops, tasks draw on varied approaches tolearning. It is important, however, for you as the workshop facilitator toinvite participants to let you know when alternatives would be moreeffective for them and for you to anticipate and plan for such alternativeswhen possible. For example, if you know you have teachers in a work-shop who already practice differentiation effectively, you might want togroup them together at some points to share ideas at a more advancedlevel or to provide more advanced readings on topics in the workshops.You can offer participants the chance to work alone at any point ratherthan with a group if that’s more effective for them. Be sure to let partici-pants know that the sessions are designed to accommodate their variousneeds and to invite them to help you do that even more effectively.

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This session explores how teachers plan curriculum and instruction overtime in differentiated classrooms. It invites participants to consider issuesand develop insights about five key elements of most classrooms thatsuccessfully address varied learner needs. Use the following agenda forthis session, or vary it to suit your specific needs.

Activity Minutes

Introduction 25

View Tape 1: Planning Curriculum and Instruction 40

Reflection 15

Wrap-Up 5–10

Total Approximate Workshop Time: 85–90 minutes

For this workshop, you will need copies of Handout 1 and Overheads 1and 2 for each participant. You will also need Overheads 1–4 for yourown use. You will find these in the Handouts and Overheads section ofthis guide. You may also wish to provide copies of some of the readingssuggested in the Resources and Readings section. Although the readingsare intended for the longer workshops, they can be used as follow-upmaterial for this workshop. Other materials needed for this workshopinclude chart paper, masking tape, and markers to record participantobservations—or you may prefer to use marking pens to record observa-tions on an overhead.

1. Welcome all participants. Introduce yourself and explain your role asworkshop facilitator. As the facilitator, you guide the group throughthe workshop to help them meet the workshop objectives.

2. Depending on the size of the group and whether the participantsknow each other, you may want to include time for participants tointroduce themselves individually.

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Providing folders with all mate-rials inside is an efficient way todistribute handouts and other re-sources. You may also wish toprovide name tags. Before par-ticipants arrive, write the objec-tives for the session on flip chartpaper, or use Overhead 1, Ob-jectives of the Workshop.

3. Present the objectives for this overview workshop as written on theflip chart or on Overhead 1.

4. Depending on the group’s level of experience with the concept ofdifferentiation, you may wish to provide them with some definitionsof differentiation (Overhead 2, What Is Differentiation?) or yourschool/district rationale for encouraging teachers to become moreskilled and comfortable in working with academically diverselearners.

5. Ask participants to use Handout 1, Top Three, to help them draw ontheir own ideas and experiences about teaching in academicallydiverse classrooms in order to establish a context for viewing thevideo. Begin the Top Three exercise by asking each participant to usethe first matrix on the handout to list three key challenges related toeach of five elements, or categories, that are generally important indifferentiated classrooms. Allow about 10 minutes for participants towork alone on Part 1 of the Top Three activity.

6. Next, ask participants to form groups of three or four to discuss theirideas. It would be useful to have the groups include representativesof differing grade levels, subjects, and lengths of teaching experi-ence, rather than, for example, having a group composed of all mathteachers or all 7th grade teachers or all beginning teachers. Ask par-ticipants to use the second matrix on Handout 1 to add to or revisetheir top three questions or issues as they talk with colleagues. Allowabout 10 minutes for Part 2 of the Top Three activity.

Planning Curriculum and Instruction

1. Suggest that participants view the video with the categories (effectivecurriculum, flexible teaching, shared responsibility, building commu-nity, and emphasis on individual growth) in mind, as well as theirown questions and issues. You may want to use Overhead 3, SomeCategories of Interest in a Differentiated Classroom, to remind themof the categories. Suggest that it should be interesting to see whetherthe teachers in the video seem to consider these categories in theirwork and to see how the thinking of the teachers in the video is simi-lar to and different from that of the participants.

2. Note that the video shows teachers thinking about differentiatingcurriculum and instruction over an extended period of time in theirclassrooms. This gives viewers a chance to see how teachers plan for

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differentiation as well as how students experience differentiationthroughout a unit.

3. Show Tape 1, Planning Curriculum and Instruction.

1. Ask participants to use the third matrix on Handout 1, Top Three, toreflect on the video. It asks them to note insights they had or beliefsthey had affirmed related to the categories as a result of watching thevideo. Ask participants to work alone on the matrix and to be pre-pared to share with colleagues one idea they could apply in theirteaching to respond more effectively to a variety of learner needs.Allow 10 minutes for completing the matrix.

2. Ask participants to share one idea they could apply in their teachingto more effectively respond to a variety of learner needs and howthey would use that idea. Ask participants to share with the wholegroup so that you can list their ideas on chart paper or on Overhead4, Ideas for Effective Differentiation.

3. Return to Overhead 1, Objectives of the Workshop. Ask participantsif they feel the objectives were addressed.

4. Thank participants for their attendance and contributions to theworkshop.

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This workshop is designed for use with Tape 1, to guide participants in

� Reviewing or establishing an overview of what differentiated instruc-tion is.

� Examining assumptions related to differentiation.

� Identifying issues or challenges related to teaching in a differentiatedclassroom.

� Proposing solutions to those challenges.

� Reflecting on their own practice and goals related to teaching aca-demically diverse students.

The following agenda includes the times required for viewing the videoand completing the workshop activities. You may wish to adjust the timeschedule, modify some activities, or delete an activity to meet the needsand interests of your group.

Activity Minutes

Introduction 15

What Is Differentiation? 25

Assumptions About Differentiation 40

Wrap-Up 5

Break 15

Challenges and Suggestions (Part 1) 25

View Tape 1: Planning Curriculum and Instruction 50

Challenges and Suggestions (Part 2) 20

Lunch 60

Article Jigsaw 75

Break 15

Can We Meet the Needs? 20

Wrap-Up 25

Total Approximate Workshop Time: 6 hours, 30 minutes

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For this workshop, you will need copies of Handouts 2–8 and Readings1–4 for each participant. You will also need Overheads 5–13. Masters forthese materials are in the Handouts and Overheads and the Resources andReadings sections of this guide. If you wish to substitute or add readings,you will need copies for each participant. You will also need chart paper,markers, and masking tape for participants to use in the Article Jigsawactivity, marking pens for you to use in recording participant observa-tions during wrap-ups, and marking pens for participants to use in theWhat Is Differentiation? activity.

1. At the door, have a sign-in sheet for participants to record theirnames, addresses, and phone numbers.


3. Depending on the size of the group and whether the participantsknow each other, you may want to include time for participants tointroduce themselves individually or in small groups. You may alsoask them to state why they are interested in learning about teachingin a differentiated classroom and to describe briefly the extent towhich they are familiar with differentiation as a result of their ownpractice, reading, learning from colleagues, or some other way.

4. Briefly review the objectives of the workshop as listed on Overhead5, Objectives of Today’s Workshop, or on flip chart paper.

1. Tell participants it is helpful for the group to have a shared sense ofwhat differentiation means as they begin the workshop. For that rea-son, you will ask them to work in groups of three or four to generateideas, examples, and a definition of differentiation. Ask participantsto try to work with colleagues who teach in similar grades (for exam-ple, all primary, elementary, middle school, or high school). Distrib-ute Handout 2, What Is Differentiation? Remind participants tocomplete the handout with their best insights, not necessarily theirfirst responses. You may want to have several copies of the handouton overhead transparencies (Overhead 6, What Is Differentiation?)that you can distribute with marking pens to a few of the groups so

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Providing folders with all mate-rials inside is an efficient way todistribute handouts and otherresources. You may also wish toprovide name tags. Before par-ticipants arrive, write the objec-tives for the workshop on the flipchart or use Overhead 5, Objec-tives of Today’s Workshop.

that they can share their responses with the whole group on theoverhead projector. Allow about 15 minutes for this portion ofthe activity.

2. Have representatives of a few groups share their thinking with thewhole group. You may then want to use Overhead 7, One More Wayof Thinking About Differentiation, to show the group an additionalway of thinking about what differentiation is. Remind the group thatthere are many appropriate ways of completing the organizer. Thepurpose of the task is not to narrow thinking but to establish somecommon ground before you proceed. Allow about 10 minutes for thisportion of the activity.

1. Remind participants that differentiation is more a philosophy ofteaching than a set of strategies or a bag of tricks. For that reason, it’simportant to consider beliefs as well as actions related to teaching inacademically diverse classrooms. Ask participants to again formgroups of three or four, but this time the groups should be composedof people from varied grade levels (for example, a mix of primary,middle, and high school teachers). Distribute Handout 3, SomeUnderlying Assumptions of Differentiated Instruction. The handoutlists 12 assumptions. Ask each group to appoint a discussion leaderand a timekeeper to help them stay focused as they discuss theassumptions. They should be able to discuss their views on mostof the assumptions before you call time. Allow 35 minutes for thediscussions.

2. Ask participants to share with the group assumptions about whichthey had strong agreements or disagreements. Remind the group thatteachers vary as much in their experiences and perspectives as stu-dents do. The goal of the discussions has been to evoke varied view-points on a complex topic. The workshop is not designed to provide“right answers” but to encourage thinking. Allow 5 minutes for thisportion of the activity.

1. Share with the group some interesting observations you’ve made asyou’ve listened to them during the session so far, some insights theyhave prompted you to have, or some questions they have raised inyour mind. Remind participants that examination of definitions andassumptions about complex teaching practices provides an important

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foundation for thinking about why we do what we do in theclassroom.

2. Tell participants that after a break, they will begin to examine spe-cific elements of teaching in a differentiated classroom.

1. Remind participants that virtually every element of classroom prac-tice is challenged when we begin to think about doing what it takesto help every student grow as much as possible. Curriculum can nolonger be exactly the same for everyone all the time. Instruction hasto become more flexible. “Fair” can no longer mean treating every-one exactly alike.

2. Distribute Handout 4, Challenges and Suggestions. Ask participantsto work in pairs with partners whose teaching assignments are simi-lar to theirs to complete the first two columns in the Challenges andSuggestions handout. The task calls on them to note some challengesthat a differentiated classroom might present in six categories ofclassroom elements and then to propose their own suggestions forhow these challenges might be addressed in a differentiated class-room. You may wish to use Overhead 8, Challenges and Suggestions,to model an example or two of what you mean by challenges andsuggestions.

1. Tell participants the following:

◆ The video you’ll be watching shows teachers at work in dif-ferentiated classrooms. It is designed to help you see howsome teachers deal with curriculum, assessment, buildingcommunity while honoring individuality, the need for flexi-bility, establishing shared responsibility for the classroom,grouping students, and other elements. I’ll stop the videoabout halfway through to give you time to share your re-sponses with your partners.

2. Show Tape 1, Planning Curriculum and Instruction, stopping atabout the halfway point.

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3. Use Overhead 9, 3-Minute Buzz, to give directions to participants fordiscussing their reactions thus far. Allow 3 minutes for this portion ofthe activity.

4. Use Overhead 10, Ahas and Affirmations, to record a few observa-tions from the group. Ahas are things participants didn’t expect tosee in these classrooms but that seem interesting. Affirmations arethings they’ve seen that affirm their thinking and suggestions. Allow3 minutes for this portion of the activity.

5. Show the remainder of Tape 1.

1. Ask participants to continue working with their partners to completethe Challenges and Suggestions activity. This time, they should writein the third column of the matrix ways in which teachers in the videoseemed to handle challenges in the six categories. Allow 15 minutesfor this portion of the activity.

2. Ask participants to share with the whole group positive practicesfrom the video or their own experience that seem helpful in address-ing academic diversity, practices from the video or their own experi-ence they feel uncertain or negative about, and questions aboutaddressing academic diversity that they still have. Use Overhead 11,Works/Quirks/Questions, to record responses. Allow 5 minutes forthis portion of the activity.

3. Thank participants for their contributions to the activities to thispoint and tell them that after lunch, they will deal in greater depthwith some areas that provide particular challenges in creating a dif-ferentiated classroom.

1. Welcome participants back from lunch and tell them the afternoonwill begin with an opportunity to focus a bit more in depth on somechallenging areas of creating a differentiated curriculum.

2. Ask participants to work on a Jigsaw activity to reflect on the topicsof why the human brain needs differentiation, curriculum in a differ-entiated classroom, getting started with differentiation, andstandards-based instruction and differentiation.

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Depending on the size andnature of your group, you maywish to substitute topics andarticles or add topics and arti-cles to the ones suggested here.Feel free to make substitutions oradditions using materials par-ticularly relevant to your work-shop participants. Some of thematerials listed in the Resourcesand Readings section of thefacilitator’s guide are excellentsources for additional materialson differentiation.

3. Use Overhead 12, Jigsaw, to give the group directions for the activity.Uncover the steps on the overhead only as you are ready for partici-pants to follow them. First have participants select one of the fourtopics (The Brain and Differentiation, Curriculum and Differentia-tion, Getting Started in a Differentiated Classroom, Standards andDifferentiation) of interest to them. As participants select a topic,have them gather in an area of the room you designate for the topic.These specialty groups should be roughly equal in size.

4. Now form base groups by having one person from each of the fourtopics sit together. Distribute Handout 5, Jigsaw Base Group Instruc-tions, to each participant. Allow 10 minutes for base groups to meetand complete Part 1 of the instructions.

5. Ask participants to reconfigure themselves in their specialty groups,where they will read materials on the topic of their choice, discussthe reading with other group members, and complete specialty groupinstructions. Specialty groups can consist of three to six members.Distribute Readings 1–4 (and/or others of your choice) by topic tothe specialty groups. Also distribute Handout 6, Jigsaw SpecialtyGroup Instructions, to each participant. Allow 30 minutes for partici-pants to read articles and work in the specialty groups.

6. Ask participants to return to their base groups and complete Part 2 oftheir instructions. Allow 30 minutes for this portion of the activity.

7. Thank participants for their work and invite them to take a break.

1. Tell participants that it is no doubt clear to them that addressing theneeds of academically diverse student populations is both importantand difficult.

2. Ask participants to complete a Think-Pair-Share-Square activity thatinvites them to look at both the necessity and the complexity ofbecoming more effective in teaching a range of learners. DistributeHandout 7, Can It Be Done?

3. To guide participants in this activity, first ask them to work by them-selves and jot down in the left-hand column reasons they believe it’sfeasible and important to address the varied needs of learners in regu-lar education classrooms, and in the right-hand column reasons they

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feel it is unlikely we can do so. Allow about 3 minutes for this por-tion of the activity. Then ask each person to partner with another todiscuss their responses. Allow about 5 minutes for this portion of theactivity. Next, ask each pair to join another pair to examine both setsof responses. Allow about 5 minutes for this portion of the activity.Finally, pose the following question to the whole group and recordsome of their ideas on flipchart paper.

� Is it realistic to think we can successfully teach the range of stu-dents in today’s academically diverse classrooms?

Allow about 5 minutes for this exchange.

1. Ask participants to work with you on a One-Liner statement thatreflects their insights from the workshop. Use Overhead 13, One-Liners, for directions. Allow about 12 minutes for this portion of thewrap-up.

2. Remind participants that one of the day’s goals is having them reflecton steps they may take in their own classrooms to become moreskilled and comfortable in working with academically diverse learn-ers. Ask participants to generate one or two professional goalsrelated to differentiation. Tell them you would like them to writedown these goals and leave them with you to help you understandwhat participants are reflecting on in their growth toward differentia-tion. Distribute Handout 8, Goal Setting. Allow about 8 minutes forgoal setting.

3. Show participants Overhead 5, Objectives of Today’s Workshops.Ask them to tell you whether they feel the objectives were addressedby the workshop. Thank participants for their cooperation and col-laboration during the workshop. Encourage them to continue toreflect on their own practices that are most effective in teaching aca-demically diverse populations and to continue learning about otherways they can develop the skills needed to work effectively with alltheir students.

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This session explores how teachers manage differentiated classrooms.It is designed to help participants reflect as they respond to varied learnerneeds and to add to their strategies for effective management of differen-tiated classrooms. Use the following agenda for this session or vary it tosuit your specific needs.

Activity Minutes

Introduction 25

View Tape 2: Managing the Classroom 35

Reflection 20

Wrap-Up 5–10


For this workshop, you will need copies of Handouts 9 and 10 for partici-pants and Overheads 2, 14, and 15 for your own use. You will find thesein the Handouts and Overheads section of this guide. You may also wishto provide copies of some of the readings suggested in the Resources andReadings section. Although the readings are intended for the longerworkshops, they can be used as follow-up material for this workshop.Other materials needed for this session include chart paper, maskingtape, and markers to record participant observations—or you may preferto use marking pens to record observations on an overhead.


2. Depending on the size of the group and whether the participantsknow each other, you may want to include time for participants tointroduce themselves individually.

3. Present the workshop objectives as listed on the flip chart or onOverhead 14.

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Providing folders with all mate-rials inside is an efficient way todistribute handouts and otherresources. You may also wish toprovide name tags. Before theworkshop begins, write objec-tives for the workshop on flipchart paper, or use Overhead 14,

4. Depending on the group’s level of experience with the concept of dif-ferentiation, you may wish to provide them with a definition (Over-head 2, What Is Differentiation) or your school/district rationale forencouraging teachers to become more skilled and comfortable inworking with academically diverse learners.

5. Distribute Handout 9, Management Hot Spots. Ask participants towork alone to list in the first column some of the “hot spot” areasthey encounter in managing a classroom where students are engagedin multiple activities or groups. Allow 5 minutes for this portion ofthe activity.

6. Now ask participants to partner with one or two other teachers tocompare their lists and to share suggestions about how they havetried to handle these management challenges in their teaching. (Itmay be useful to have teachers of varying grade levels and subjectswork together for this portion of the activity.) Ask participants to usecolumn 2 of Handout 9 to jot down ideas they would like to keep.Allow 10 minutes for this portion of the activity.

7. Thank participants for their work.

1. Suggest that participants continue to use Handout 9 to guide theirthinking as they view the video. They may wish to add additionalmanagement issues that occur to them in the left-hand column of thehandout and continue to gather ideas for dealing with the variousmanagement issues in the right-hand column.

2. Show Tape 2, Managing the Classroom.

1. Ask participants to work with two or three colleagues who teachsimilar grade levels or subjects to complete a Plus—Minus—Ques-tions reflection on the videotape. Tell them you will ask them toshare some of their thinking with the whole group as the workshopends. Distribute Handout 10, Plus—Minus—Questions. Allow 10minutes for this activity.

2. Ask participants to share a few items they placed in each of the threecolumns of Handout 10. You can record these on chart paper or onOverhead 15, Plus-Minus-Questions. Allow 5 minutes for this por-tion of the activity.

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3. Ask participants to look at the right-hand column on Handout 9 andto star strategies they feel they can use in their classrooms. Ask a fewparticipants to tell the group about ideas they plan to take back totheir classrooms. Allow 5 minutes for this portion of the activity.

1. Review the workshop objectives listed on Overhead 14 or the chartpaper. Ask participants if they feel the objectives were addressed.

2. Thank participants for their attendance and contributions to theworkshop. Encourage them to use some of the ideas they’ve gener-ated today.

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This workshop is designed to guide participants in

� Establishing or extending an understanding of what differentiatedinstruction is.

� Identifying specific challenges in effective management of a differen-tiated classroom.

� Developing practical approaches to those challenges.

� Reflecting on their own practice and goals related to teaching aca-demically diverse students.

The following agenda includes the times required for viewing the videoand suggested times for completing the workshop activities. You maywant to adjust the time schedule, modify some activities, or delete anactivity to meet the needs and interests of your group.

Activity Minutes

Introduction 10

Quotations Warm-Up 15

Definition Review 10

Forced Analogy 10

RAFT Exercise 40

Self-Assessment 10

Break 15

Scenario Analysis 30

View Tape 2: Managing the Classroom 40

Group Response 20

Lunch 60

Specialty Groups 60

Break 15

Learning from Metaphors 30

Goal Setting 15

Wrap-Up 10


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For this workshop, you will need copies of Handouts 11–16 for eachparticipant. You will also need Overheads 2, 10, and 16–22 for your ownuse. Masters for these are in the Handouts and Overheads section of thisguide. You may also wish to provide copies of some of the readings sug-gested in the Readings and Resources section or copies of overheadsfrom the Handouts and Overheads section. Other materials needed forthis workshop include chart paper, markers, and masking tape for partici-pants to use in the Definition Review and the specialty groups activity,marking pens for you to use in recording participant observations duringwrap-ups, and a blank transparency for you to use in the DefinitionReview.



3. Depending on the size of the group and whether the participantsknow each other, you may want to include time for them to introducethemselves individually or in small groups. You might also ask theparticipants to state why they are interested in learning about teach-ing in a differentiated classroom and to describe briefly the extent towhich they are familiar with differentiation as a result of their ownpractice, reading, learning from colleagues, or some other way.

4. Briefly review the objectives of the workshop as listed on flip chartpaper or on Overhead 16.

1. Remind participants that trying to differentiate instruction or attendto the diverse needs of learners in a single classroom challenges bothour thinking and our practice. Tell them that during today’s work-shop, you hope to extend both their thinking about academic diver-sity in the classroom and their repertoire of practical ideas formanaging a multitask classroom.

2. Display Overhead 17, From the Mouths of . . . . Tell participants thatthese are quotes from practitioners who respond in very different

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Providing folders with all mate-rials inside is an efficient way todistribute handouts and otherresources. You may also wish toprovide name tags. Before par-ticipants arrive, write the objec-tives for the workshop on chartpaper, or use Overhead 16,Objectives of the Workshop.

ways to the idea of teaching with learner variability in mind. Leavethe overhead up and ask participants to arrange themselves in groupsof four to discuss their own responses to the words of these teachers.If feasible, have participants organize themselves so that each groupincludes teachers from a wide range of grade levels. Allow 8–10minutes for this part of the activity.

3. Ask the whole group to share with you a couple of responses to eachof the quotes. Note again that if we all agreed on the importance ofteaching with needs of different learners in mind or on how toaccomplish it, we’d probably all be a lot better in differentiatinginstruction than we are now. Invite participants to continue reflectingon their own beliefs and practices throughout the workshop.

1. Remind participants that it is helpful to make sure we all have similardefinitions of differentiation if we are going to invest a day in think-ing about how to improve it in our classrooms. Ask participants to jotdown their own working definition of differentiation on a piece ofscratch paper or on chart paper that you’ve previously placed on theirtables. Allow 5 minutes for this portion of the activity.

2. As participants work, walk around the room and record a few of theirdefinitions on a blank overhead transparency.

3. Share the participant definitions you recorded and/or definitions fromOverhead 2, What Is Differentiation? Point out some common ele-ments in the definitions. Remind the group that there are multipleways to express what differentiation means.

1. Tell participants that when we try to rethink how we do things, animportant habit is to prompt ourselves to look at familiar things innew ways. It helps us think outside the box. One strategy that helpsus do this is making analogies and metaphors. Tell participants thatyou’ll be asking them to work with analogies and metaphors twicetoday.

2. With Column A covered up, display Overhead 18, Learning withForced Analogies. Explain that the idea behind forced analogies isnot to find a right answer, but rather to make some unexpected con-nections. Ask participants to identify for you some things they enjoydoing outside of work. (You might get responses such as cooking,

30

listening to music, sleeping, rock climbing, shopping, traveling,and so on.) List about 10 responses in Column B of the overhead.

3. Uncover Column A. Ask participants to make analogies as you callout an item in Column A and one in Column B. (For example, youmight ask, “How is managing time in a differentiated classroom likerock climbing?” or “How is giving directions in a differentiatedclassroom like listening to music?”)

4. Encourage participants to try forced analogies with their studentswhen they want students to think more flexibly about ideas for writ-ing, solving problems, interpreting events, and so on.

1. Tell participants you’d now like them to continue thinking aboutmanaging a differentiated classroom from various perspectives. Todo that, you’re going to ask them to engage in a RAFT activity. Dis-play Overhead 19, RAFT Activity, and distribute Handout 11, RAFTActivity. A RAFT asks learners to play a particular Role, with a par-ticular Audience in mind, to work in a specified Format, on a particu-lar Topic.

2. Tell participants you’d like each of them to select one of the rows inthe matrix that’s interesting to them and to do what that row asksthem to do. Let them know they’ll be sharing their work in about 15minutes. Get a show of hands of who is going to do each row, withthe goal of trying to get about the same number of participants work-ing on each row. Allow 15 minutes for this portion of the activity.

3. Ask participants to group themselves in clusters of four, with each ofthe four RAFT rows represented in the cluster. Ask each person inthe cluster to share what he or she created with the cluster. In addi-tion, ask the group to generate a list of insights or conclusions theyderive from the work and the sharing. Allow about 15 minutes forthis portion of the activity.

4. Ask each cluster to share with the whole group one or two of theinsights or conclusions they generated, trying not to repeat whatother groups have said. You may wish to record these on chart paperthat you keep on display for the rest of the day.

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1. Tell participants they will shortly be viewing a videotape in whichteachers share their strategies for managing a differentiated class-room. Before that, it would be helpful for each participant to thinkabout degrees of comfort they experience in the classroom when try-ing to make sure that activities proceed smoothly and students workeffectively.

2. Distribute Handout 12, Self-Assessment on Classroom Manage-ment for Differentiation. Ask each participant to complete the self-assessment and to list on the bottom of the handout the areas inwhich they feel the greatest comfort and greatest discomfort fromamong the categories in the assessment. Tell them the assessmentsare only for their own reflection. They won’t be shared or collected.

3. Thank participants for their work and contributions and invite themto take a break.

1. Distribute Handout 13, Getting Started: A Scenario. Ask participantsto silently read the directions and the scenario.

2. Ask participants to group themselves in clusters of four to six, thistime trying to work with partners whose teaching assignments aresimilar in grade level (primary, elementary, middle, high). Their taskis to give the teacher in the scenario their best practical advice forhow to handle her management problems. Allow 20 minutes for thisactivity.

3. As participants work on this activity, walk among the groups and lis-ten to their ideas. Select and jot down some of their ideas on chartpaper. When you stop the activity, share with the whole group a fewof the ideas you gleaned from listening to their work.

1. Show Tape 2: Managing the Classroom, stopping at about the half-way point.

2. Use Overhead 20, 3-Minute Buzz, to give directions to participantsfor discussing their reactions thus far. Allow 3 minutes for this por-tion of the activity.

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3. Use Overhead 10, Ahas and Affirmations, to record some reactionsfrom the group to the first part of the video. Ahas are things partici-pants didn’t expect to see in the classrooms shown in the video.Affirmations are things they’ve seen that affirm their thinking andsuggestions. Use 2 minutes for this portion of the activity.

4. Show the remainder of Tape 2.

Group Response (20 Minutes)

1. Lead the whole group in a discussion of the video. Some questionsyou may wish to ask include the following:

� What are some of the strategies used or discussed by teachers inthe video that you found helpful (and explain why)?

� Do you find these classrooms more flexible or less flexible thanthe ones you’re most accustomed to (and in what ways)?

� What insights from the RAFT activity seem to be affirmed orcontradicted by the video? (You’ll need to have the RAFT activitychart paper with participant responses visible to the group.)

� How do you think teachers in the video would describe their rolein the classroom? In what ways is that similar to and differentfrom the way most of us would describe the role of the teacher?

� At what points do you think the job of the teacher in this sort offlexible or student-centered classroom is easier than in a moretraditional classroom? At what points does it appear to beharder? (In both instances, why do you say so?)

� What specific responses do you think the students in Ms. Creigh-ton’s class would have to the classes in the video?

� What sorts of opportunities do the classes in the video giveteachers to know students better than might be the case in moretraditional classes?

� How do you think the teachers in these classes developed the de-gree of management skill they seem to have? How long do yousuppose it takes to develop this sort of proficiency of manage-ment?

� Why do you think the teachers in the video go to the trouble ofdoing battle with management dilemmas?

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2. Thank participants for their contributions and dismiss them for lunch.

1. Remind participants that a goal for today’s workshop is developingstrategies for more comfortable and effective management of differ-entiated classrooms. To that end, you are going to ask participants towork on topics of interest to them related to managing a differenti-ated classroom. Their goal will be to generate a list of practical sug-gestions for success in orchestrating a differentiated classroom in thetopic area they select. Use Overhead 21, Selecting Specialty Groups,to introduce the topic groups. Ask participants to select a topic ofinterest and then to gather in a specified part of the room with otherswho share the same interest. Ask everyone to give you their attentionagain as soon as they assemble in their designated spot.

2. Ask participants to divide themselves into working groups of four orfive who selected the same topic and who teach at a similar gradelevel (for example, four or five primary teachers working together,four or five elementary teachers working together, and so on).

3. Once the working groups have formed, distribute Handout 14, Spe-cialty Groups, and ask participants to use the instructions on thehandout as their work plan. Tell them they will have about 25 min-utes to work together.

4. At the end of 25 minutes, ask two groups who worked on the sametopic to join and share their suggestions, compiling them into one liston an overhead or chart paper. Allow 20 minutes for this portion ofthe activity.

5. Have each combined specialty group share with the whole grouptheir topic and suggestions. Encourage participants to jot down ideasthat might be helpful to them. Distribute Handout 15, Ideas forFuture Reference, for participant note taking. If you have a few ideasto add to the lists, feel free to do so. You might also want to play therole of noting particular kinds of students who would be served wellby specific suggestions (for example, “The use of icons you’ve sug-gested for a primary class could also be useful to visual learners whoare older, or to students for whom English is a second language.”)Allow about 10 minutes for this portion of the activity.

6. Thank participants for their work and invite them to take a break.

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1. Remind participants that you told them earlier in the workshop you’dask them twice today to develop analogies or metaphors for differen-tiated classrooms. Earlier, the group worked with forced analogies.Now that they’ve thought more deeply about what it means to man-age a differentiated classroom, you’re going to ask them to developextended metaphors for managing a differentiated classroom. UseOverhead 22, Learning from Extended Metaphors, to introduce theidea.

2. Ask each participant to develop an extended metaphor for effectiveand comfortable management of a differentiated classroom and onefor their own stage of development. If a participant is comfortablewith managing a differentiated classroom, he or she should use thetime to develop one extended metaphor. Tell participants that it’s fineto write their metaphors (like the one shown on Overhead 22). On theother hand, if some participants are more comfortable with develop-ing visual metaphors or even kinesthetic ones (through movement orbody sculpture), that’s great too. Tell participants you’ll ask them toshare their metaphors. Allow 15 minutes for this portion of theactivity.

3. Develop metaphors of your own while participants are working ontheirs.

4. Invite participants to share their metaphors. If they are reluctant tostart, begin by sharing your metaphors. As participants share theirideas, reflect on insights or ideas they evoke in you. Invite the groupto respond as well. Allow 10 minutes for this portion of the activity.

1. Remind participants that an objective of the workshop is to assistthem in developing additional approaches to managing a differenti-ated classroom so that they can, in turn, apply those in their workwith students.

2. Distribute Handout 16, Goal Setting. Ask participants to jot downmanagement strategies they plan to use in their classrooms to helpthem teach students whose learning needs differ. They do not need toplace something in every box on the handout, but rather shouldrecord strategies they actually plan to use. There is also a box where

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they can note areas in which they still feel the need for assistance.(You may tell participants you’ll collect the handouts to help youknow which strategies are proving most useful to them and to helpyou with further staff development planning. If you do collect thesheets, remind participants that they do not need to put their nameson the papers.) Allow about 10 minutes for this portion ofthe activity.

3. Ask a few participants to share with you the most useful idea they’veencountered today. You may want to share new ideas you’ve gainedas well.

1. Review the workshop objectives listed on Overhead 16. Ask partici-pants if they feel the objectives were addressed.

2. Encourage participants to use the ideas they have gained today and tocontinue to think about other ways they can make their classroomsboth more flexible and more comfortable for themselves and theirstudents. Also encourage them to share ideas with one another.


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This session explores the role of the teacher in differentiated classrooms.It is designed to help participants reflect on their own responses to variedlearner needs and to add to their strategies for effective instruction in dif-ferentiated classrooms. Use the following agenda for this session or varyit to suit your specific needs.

Activity Minutes

Introduction 20

View Tape 3: Teaching for Learner Success 35

Reflection 20

Wrap-Up 5–10


For this workshop, you will need copies of Handouts 17 and 18 for par-ticipants and Overheads 2 and 23 for your own use. You will find these inthe Handouts and Overheads section of this guide. You may also wish toprovide copies of some of the readings suggested in the Resources andReadings section. Although the readings are intended for the longerworkshops, they can be used as follow-up material for this workshop.Other materials needed for this session include chart paper, maskingtape, and markers to record participant observations—or you may preferto use marking pens to record observations on an overhead.


2. Depending on the size of the group and whether the participantsknow each other, you may want to set aside time for participants tointroduce themselves individually.

3. Present the objectives for this overview workshop as listed on the flipchart or on Overhead 23.

37

Providing folders with all mate-rials inside is an efficient way todistribute handouts and otherresources. You may also wish toprovide name tags. Before par-ticipants arrive, write the objec-tives for the workshop on flipchart paper, or use Overhead 23,Objectives of the Workshop.

4. Depending on the group’s level of experience with the concept of dif-ferentiation, you may wish to provide them with a definition of dif-ferentiation (Overhead 2, What Is Differentiation?) or your school/district rationale for encouraging teachers to become more skilledand comfortable in working with academically diverse learners.

5. Distribute Handout 17, Role of the Teacher in a Differentiated Class-room (Part 1). Tell participants the following:

◆ You’ll be viewing a video that examines the role of theteacher in a differentiated classroom. Because differentiatedclassrooms put a strong focus on a variety of student learningneeds, the primary role of the teacher shifts from the pur-veyor of information to something more like that of a coachor orchestra conductor.

Ask participants to work alone or in pairs to complete the organizer.It’s designed to introduce them to topics in the video and to helpthem link their own ideas and experiences with those they’ll see inthe video. Allow 10 minutes for this portion of the activity.

6. Ask participants to join with one or two other individuals or groupsto compare their responses. Allow 5 minutes for this portion of theactivity.

7. Thank participants for their work.

1. Suggest that as participants watch the video they look for ways inwhich the teachers’ roles match, expand, or challenge the principlesand practices they predicted. Suggest that they jot down on Handout17 practices and principles from the video that add to their ideas.

2. Show Tape 3, Teaching for Learner Success.

1. Distribute Handout 18, Reflection on the Video. Ask participants towork in groups of three or four to discuss the questions posed in thehandout. Allow about 15 minutes for this portion of the activity.

2. Invite participants to raise additional questions that they would likethe whole group to respond to. Have participants offer their ideasabout these topics. You may want to have in mind a couple of ques-tions you’d like to hear responses to as well—for example:

38

� What are some factors in your classrooms that you could changeto give you more freedom to work with individuals and smallgroups?

� What are some features of schooling outside your control thatyou’d like to see changed so that you could work more effec-tively with individuals and small groups?

� To what degree are the external factors roadblocks to us as teach-ers, and to what degree can we work around those constraints?

Allow about 5 minutes for this portion of the activity.

1. Review the workshop objectives listed on the flip chart or on Over-head 23. Ask participants if they feel the objectives were addressed.

2. Thank participants for their attendance and contributions to theworkshop. Encourage them to use some of the ideas they’ve gener-ated today and to continue to reflect on possible roles teachers canplay to ensure success for each learner.

39

This workshop is designed to guide participants in

� Establishing or extending an understanding of what differentiatedinstruction is.

� Analyzing the role of the teacher in a differentiated classroom.

� Developing practical strategies for making their role in the classroommore student-focused.

� Reflecting on the implications of differentiation for gradingpractices.

The following agenda includes the times required for viewing Tape 3 andsuggested times for completing the workshop activities. You may want toadjust the time schedule, modify some activities, or delete an activity tomeet the needs and interests of your group.

Activity Minutes

Introduction 10

Role of the Teacher: Part 1 25

Deep Structures of Schooling 30

Double-Entry Journal: Part 1 20

Break 15

View Tape 3: Teaching for Learner Success 40

Double-Entry Journal: Part 2 20

Mobile Analysis 20

Lunch 60

Cooperative Controversy on Grading 60

Break 15

Guidelines Groups 35

Role of the Teacher: Part 2 20

Goal Setting and Wrap-Up 15


40

For this workshop, you will need copies of Handouts 19–24 for eachparticipant and Overheads 2, 10, and 24–33 for your own use. You willalso need copies of Reading 5 for each participant. Masters for these arein the Handouts and Overheads and Readings and Resources sections ofthis guide. You may also wish to provide copies of some of the otherreadings suggested in the Readings and Resources section or copies ofoverheads from the Handouts and Overheads section. Other materialsneeded for this workshop include marking pens for you to use in record-ing participant observations during the Mobile Analysis; chart paper,markers, and masking tape for participants to use in the GuidelinesGroups activity; and an index card for each participant to use at the endof Part 2 of the Role of the Teacher activity.



3. Depending on the size of the group and whether the participants ofthe workshop know each other, you may want to include time forthem to introduce themselves individually or in small groups. Youmay also ask the participants to state why they are interested in learn-ing about teaching in a differentiated classroom and to describebriefly the extent to which they are familiar with differentiation as aresult of their own practice, reading, learning from colleagues, orsome other way.

4. Briefly review the objectives of the workshop as listed on Overhead24 or on the flip chart.

5. Depending on the group’s level of experience with the concept ofdifferentiation, you may wish to provide them with a definitionof differentiation. Use Overhead 2, What Is Differentiation? oryour school/district rationale for encouraging teachers to becomemore skilled and comfortable in working with academically diverselearners.

41

Providing folders with all mate-rials inside is an efficient way todistribute handouts and otherresources. You may also wish toprovide name tags. Before par-ticipants arrive, write the objec-tives for the workshop on flipchart paper, or use Overhead 24,Objectives of the Workshop.

1. Tell participants that today’s workshop focuses on the way a differ-entiated classroom shapes the role of the teacher. Note that some ofthem will find the teacher’s role in this sort of classroom more famil-iar than others will. Distribute Handout 19, Analyzing the Role of theTeacher in a Differentiated Curriculum. Ask participants to beginthinking about teachers’ roles by working alone to complete thehandout based on their current experiences. Allow 10 minutes forthis part of the activity.

2. Ask participants to form groups of four, with members from varyinggrade levels (for example, one primary teacher, one elementaryteacher, and two middle school teachers), to share their responses onthe Role of a Teacher handout. Allow 10 minutes for this part of theactivity.

3. Ask participants to quickly share with you key descriptors for eachof the categories they addressed in their analysis of the role of theteacher. Record a few of the responses on Overhead 25, Analyzingthe Role of the Teacher in a Differentiated Classroom. (As an alter-native, you may walk among participants while they are sharing theirwork and record some responses on the overhead based on what youhear. You can then share those with the group to bring closure to thispart of the activity.)

4. Note that images of the role of a teacher vary in the group, based per-haps on length of teaching experience, grade or subject taught, andphilosophy of teaching. The goal of the workshop today is not to finda single set of descriptors of the role of a teacher, but to help partici-pants examine their own images and practices. Tell participants theywill return to this activity later in the day.

1. Tell participants that our lives as teachers are often so full of “doing”that we find little time to examine what we do. As a result, we candevelop habits of teaching that may not really reflect what we believeabout teaching. As the group prepares to look at a video that exam-ines the reflections and roles of teachers in differentiated classrooms,it would be useful to examine some ways we often “do school” to seewhat beliefs they reflect.

2. Distribute Handout 20, Thinking About the Deep Structures ofSchool. Ask participants to remain in the same multilevel groups

42

they formed for the previous exercise and to discuss with the groupthe points raised in the Deep Structures handout. Allow 20 minutesfor this portion of the activity.

3. Lead the group in a brief discussion of the activity, using questionsof your own or ones like these:

� To what degree do you think the descriptors of schools in thisactivity are accurate?

� To what degree do you think the descriptors are inevitable (orcan we change our practice so that they would no longer beaccurate)?

� In what ways are the descriptors interconnected? (In other words,do they predict one another?)

� When the descriptors are accurate, how well are schools likely toserve a wide range of learners?

Allow 10 minutes for this part of the activity.

4. Thank participants for their contributions.

1. Tell participants you’d now like them to move from thinking aboutteaching in general to their own teaching. Distribute Handout 21,Double-Entry Journal. Ask participants to work alone to completePart 1. Allow 15 minutes for this portion of the activity.

2. Display Overhead 26, Growing as a Teacher. Ask participants to readit and give you a response. Remind the group that great teachersstruggle with the role of teaching virtually every day of their careers.It is the struggle that encourages us to reinvent ourselves. Thankthem for their willingness to be reflective about their work. Allow 5minutes for this portion of the activity. Invite the group to take abreak.

1. Play Tape 3: Teaching for Learner Success, stopping at about thehalfway point.

43

2. Use Overhead 27, 3-Minute Buzz, to give directions to participantsfor a discussion of their reactions thus far. Allow 3 minutes for thisportion of the activity.

3. Use Overhead 10, Ahas and Affirmations, to record a few ahas andaffirmations from the group. Ahas are things participants didn’texpect to see in the classrooms in the video. Affirmations are thingsthey’ve seen that affirm their thinking and suggestions. Allow 2 min-utes for this portion of the activity.

4. Play the remainder of Tape 3.

1. Ask participants to follow the directions for Part 2 of Handout 21,Double-Entry Journal. Allow 15 minutes for this portion of theactivity.

2. Display Overhead 28, The Need for Continual Growth. Tell partici-pants that one of the challenges of teaching is seeking growth in ourimages of ourselves and our classrooms. It seems safer to find some-thing that works and to cling to it. When we do that, however, we tryto celebrate yesterday’s successes, and that seldom leads to realgrowth.

1. Display Overhead 29, A Mobile of Elements in a DifferentiatedClassroom. Tell participants that this graphic represents a mobile likethe kind we might hang in classrooms. Its elements are some of thethings teachers must grapple with as they develop and refine theirroles as teachers. Ask participants to work with you to describe howa teacher could achieve these elements in a differentiated classroom.Some possible descriptors are evident in the video, and some willcome from teachers’ own experiences. Record their descriptors onthe overhead. Among descriptors participants might use are thefollowing:

Flexibility

� Altering plans as needed.

� Following student interests and questions.

� Providing different lengths of time for task completion.

44

� Using varied approaches to teaching and learning.

� Providing a range of resources for students.

� Allowing flexible room arrangement.

Effective Curriculum and Instruction

� Developing tasks and products focused on essential ideas and skills.

� Ensuring that all students work with important ideas and skills.

� Developing tasks and products based on different student interests.

� Developing tasks and products at different levels of complexity.

� Providing different ways of learning.

� Providing different ways of assessing learning.

Sense of Community

� Respecting individual differences.

� Developing classroom rules and procedures that support respect.

� Understanding ways we’re all alike.

� Balancing whole-class and small-group and individual time.

� Developing tasks that draw on everyone’s strengths.

Shared Responsibility for Learning

� Ensuring a shared vision for the classroom.

� Teaching routines that promote student independence.

� Helping students learn to collaborate effectively.

� Developing roles for everyone to play in keeping the classroomorganized.

� Encouraging students to keep track of their own learning progress.

� Engaging in shared problem solving.

45

A Growth Orientation

� Emphasizing individual growth rather than competition.

� Celebrating everyone’s successes.

� Developing both common and individual goals.

� Charting each student’s growth toward common and individual goals.

� Working to have materials, tasks, and products at appropriate chal-lenge levels.

� Giving clear feedback on work.

2. Thank participants for their contributions. Dismiss them for lunch.

1. Tell participants that a big dilemma for many teachers in differenti-ated classrooms is how to grade students. Part of the reason for thedilemma goes back to the earlier discussion of habitual ways we “doschool.” It’s likely that we spend far more time in faculty meetingstalking about how to keep computer grade books, when report cardsare due, and how they will be distributed than about why we grade aswe do. Tell participants the next activity is designed to give themtime to reflect on the meaning and messages of grading—especiallyin light of learner variance in our schools and in light of the philoso-phy of differentiating instruction.

2. Distribute Handout 22, A Cooperative Controversy on Grading, andReading 5, “Grading for Success.” Ask participants to arrange them-selves in groups of eight, preferably including teachers from variousgrade levels (primary, elementary, middle, and high school). Oncethe groups are formed, go over the directions for the CooperativeControversy and make certain participants understand how the activ-ity works. Use Overhead 30 to review directions for the CooperativeControversy. Allow 5 minutes to form groups and go over instruc-tions.

3. Ask participants to silently read Reading 5. Allow 15 minutes for thereading. Remind participants to move quickly into groups of three orfour, as indicated in the directions for the Cooperative Controversy.

46

4. Allow 15 minutes for the groups of three or four to develop argu-ments for or against competitive grading. Then remind them to moveinto the debate phase of the activity.

5. Allow 10 minutes for the first debate cycle, and then give a signal forparticipants to move to the second debate cycle.

6. Allow 10 minutes for the second debate cycle.

7. Ask participants in their groups of eight to do a one-sentence recap,in which each member of the group states one sentence that reflects athought on grading and student diversity. Use Overhead 31, One-Sentence Recap, to give directions.

8. Thank participants for their work. Encourage them to look for waysto use grading to enhance the learning of the students in their class-rooms. Invite participants to take a break.

1. Display Overhead 32, Guidelines Groups, and ask participants toselect a topic that should bring together their own teaching strengthswith ideas from the video and the workshop. Then ask participantswho have selected the same topic to form groups of five or six.

2. When the groups have formed, distribute Handout 23, GuidelinesGroups, and ask participants to follow the instructions for the topicgroup they have selected. Allow 10 minutes for this portion of thetask.

3. Ask groups that worked on the same topic to meet together andmerge their guidelines lists into one list that reflects all the ideas oftheir groups. They should write their guidelines lists on chart paperand be prepared to share them with the whole group. Allow 10 min-utes for this portion of the task.

4. Ask a spokesperson for each topic to share the list of guidelines theirgroups generated. Encourage participants to note ideas that theycould potentially use in their classrooms. Allow 15 minutes for thisportion of the activity.

47

1. Remind participants that earlier in the day, you told them you’d askthem to reanalyze the role of the teacher. Distribute Handout 24,Role of the Teacher in a Differentiated Classroom (Part 2). Ask par-ticipants to work alone on the task, following the directions on thehandout. While participants are working, distribute an index card toeach person. Allow 10–12 minutes for this portion of the activity.

2. Now ask participants to compare their two descriptions on Handouts17 and 24 and to write a statement on the index card, following theformat on Overhead 33, Teacher Role. Tell them you will collect thecards to get a sense of their thinking. Tell them they do not need toput their names on the cards. Allow 5 minutes for this portion of theactivity. Collect the cards.

1. Ask participants to select a partner with whom they have not workedtoday. Display Overhead 34, Short-Term Goal Setting. Ask partici-pants to tell their partners ideas in one or more of the categories onthe overhead that they plan to try in their classrooms that should helpthem continue their growth in effectively teaching academicallydiverse student populations.

2. Review the workshop objectives listed on Overhead 24 or on the flipchart. Ask participants if they feel the objectives were addressed.

3. Encourage participants to use the ideas they have gained today andto continue to think about ways in which their role as teacher canevolve to make their classrooms both more flexible and more effec-tive for a wide range of learners.


48

Under each category in the matrix below, write what you consider to bethe top three challenges confronted by a teacher in a differentiated class-room. An example is provided to jump-start your thinking.

EffectiveCurriculum

FlexibleTeaching

SharedResponsibilityfor Learningand Teaching

BuildingCommunity

An Emphasison Individual

Growth

Example

How do I decidewhat’s most essentialfor all to learn?

What do I do whenstudents finish workat different times?

How do I make surestudents are on task?

How do I make sureeveryone feelsvalued?

What if some stu-dents feel theirwork is harder oreasier than the otherstudents?

1

2

3

51

HANDOUT 1

Association for Supervision

and Curriculum Development

After you share your thinking with other colleagues, revise or add to yourtop three challenges.

EffectiveCurriculum

FlexibleTeaching

SharedResponsibility for

Learning andTeaching

BuildingCommunity


Growth

1

2

3

52

Handout 1—Continued

Now that you’ve viewed the video, use the matrix below to note someinsights you’ve had (or beliefs you’ve had affirmed) related to thesecategories in a differentiated classroom. Again, an example is providedto jump-start your thinking.

EffectiveCurriculum

FlexibleTeaching

SharedResponsibility for

Learning andTeaching

BuildingCommunity


Growth

Example

I have to be reallyclear about learninggoals.

I need to find timeto teach or reteach insmall groups.

I have to teachroutines that helpstudents be moreindependent.

I need to talk withstudents aboutreasons fordifferentiation.

It helps to have stu-dents set and chartsome of their owngoals.

1

2

3

Be prepared to share with colleagues one of these ideas you could applyin your teaching and illustrate how you would use it.

53


Definition:

Group Members:

55



HANDOUT 2

Below are some assumptions that some may consider underpinnings ofthe approach to teaching we call “differentiation.” With your group,

discuss your responses to these assertions. Your goal is not completeagreement but rather exploration of a range of thoughts on these assump-tions. Appointing a discussion leader and timekeeper should help youexplore most of the assumptions in the time allotted for your discussion.

1. Differentiation is planning to accommodate multiple and varied learn-ing needs (social as well as cognitive) within regular units of instruction,rather than primarily attempting to accommodate those needs apart fromthe regular curriculum or attempting to accommodate them after studentfrustration or failure.

2. Effective differentiation requires creation and maintenance of a class-room community where students feel safe and valued as they are; at thesame time each student is supported in maximizing his or her potential.

3. In an effectively differentiated classroom, the teacher interacts witheach student with positive regard and positive expectations.

4. Teachers successful with differentiation see the whole learner andemphasize the student’s strengths rather than accentuating labels, defi-cits, or differences.

5. Teachers effective with differentiation do not call attention to the dif-ferentiation, but rather help students appreciate varied ways in which allof them can find personal success with important goals.

6. Differentiation requires use of multiple and alternative forms of assess-ment at all stages of student learning in order to uncover and address afull range of learning needs and strengths.

57

HANDOUT 3



7. Differentiation calls on teachers to develop knowledge about humanlearning so that they can know their students well enough to identify andaddress varied readiness levels, interests, and learning profiles.

8. A central goal of differentiation is successful student achievement ofmeaningful and powerful ideas, information, and skills—not reduction instandards, watered-down curriculum, or busy work.

9. Differentiation calls on teachers to use multiple methods to engagestudents in active learning. Although whole-class instruction is a compo-nent of differentiation, differentiation does not take place during whole-class instruction.

10. Effective differentiation calls on a teacher to develop complex man-agement skills that allow (1) multiple tasks to proceed smoothly in theclassroom, (2) students to take increasing responsibility for their learn-ing, and (3) the teacher to monitor student activity and coach for studentgrowth and quality work.

11. A teacher skilled in differentiation does not expect students to assumethe major responsibility for differentiating their own work or makingtasks a good fit for other students.

12. To differentiate successfully, teachers must accept responsibility forsuccessful teaching and learning of each student in the class while work-ing collaboratively with specialists to ensure success of individuals andthe class as a whole.

—Based on the work of Stephanie Corrigan, Utah Valley State College;used with permission

58


Complete this task in two parts. Complete Columns 1 and 2 before youwatch the videotape on planning curriculum and instruction for a dif-

ferentiated classroom. In Column 1, note some challenges teachers mightface in a differentiated classroom in each of the six categories on thematrix. In Column 2, suggest approaches you feel would help teacherssuccessfully address the challenges. After you watch the videotape, com-plete Column 3 with approaches presented in the video (or approachesthat occurred to you as you watched the video).

Category Challenges Our Suggestions Insights from theVideo

Curriculum

Assessment

Flexible Teaching

59

HANDOUT 4



Category Challenges Our Suggestions Insights from theVideo

Grouping ofStudents

Shared Responsibilityfor Learning andTeaching

EstablishingCommunity

60


For the next 10 minutes, generate questions you would like more infor-mation about in each of the specialty areas selected by participants. Yourgoal is to send each base group participant to a specialty group with asense of information about the specialty topic that would be useful tobase group members. The workshop facilitator will tell you when it’stime to go to your specialty group.

You have about 25 minutes for each member of your group to report tothe base group. The goal of presentations is to provide information,insights, and suggestions related to the specialty topics represented inyour base group. Jot down ideas you find interesting, so you can refer tothem after the workshop ends. Also be sure to ask questions and addadditional suggestions as each base group member presents. Appoint atimekeeper who will ensure that all members have about the sameamount of time to share their work.

61

HANDOUT 5



Everyone in your specialty group is working with the same topic. Yourjob in the next 25 minutes is to generate practical suggestions on your

specialty topic that you will take back to your base group.

To begin, silently read the material on your topic provided by the work-shop facilitator. If you finish reading before others in your group, beginto jot down ideas related to your topic that you think might be helpful toother educators.

Once everyone in your group has finished reading the materials, worktogether to develop ideas on your topic that might be of use to you andmembers of your base group in developing classrooms that are respon-sive to academically diverse student populations.

You may want to work in the following way:

1. Identify issues or questions related to your topic that come fromworkshop interactions up to this point, the video, your own experi-ences, and questions from your base group.

2. Brainstorm classroom ideas related to your specialty topic. At thispoint, they do not have to be direct responses to the questions in Step1. The idea of brainstorming is to be fluent, not organized.

3. Now look back at the questions in Step 1 and see if your Step 2responses address most of them. If not, you may want to add ideasthat address those questions.

4. Think about ways to organize your ideas so that they will be accessi-ble and memorable to your base group.

5. Develop a way to express your points to the base group. It is not nec-essary that every specialty group member do this in the same way.Some of you may prefer to diagram, chart, or draw your ideas. Oth-ers may prefer to make notes for oral summary. Others may developa scenario or story that makes the points. At this juncture, decidewhether to work alone, in smaller subsets of the specialty group, oras a whole.

6. As you prepare to present to your base group, make sure your infor-mation provides practical suggestions based on your topic for how toteach academically diverse learners effectively.

The workshop facilitator will tell you when it’s time to return to yourbase group.

63

HANDOUT 6

JigsawSpecialtyGroupInstructions



The workshop facilitator will lead you in a Think-Pair-Share-Squaresequence for this activity.

65

HANDOUT 7



Reasons Reasons

Question

Conclusions

Can we meet the needsof academically diverselearners in today'sclassrooms?

Yesbecause

Nobecause

Please remember these two difficult truths of teaching.1) No matter how much you do, you’ll feel it’s not enough.2) Just because you can only do a little is not excuse to do nothing.

—Susan Ohanian (1999)

A goal of today’s workshop is to help you reflect on actions you can takein your classroom to become more skilled and comfortable in workingwith academically diverse learners. It’s not an easy goal, nor one that’sachieved quickly. Nonetheless, it is achievable if we consistently reflecton our practice and use what we learn to grow professionally.

Please write below one action (or more) you plan to take in your class-room as part of your professional growth in working with a range oflearners. The group facilitator may collect your ideas to get a sense of thethinking of the group and for use in planning additional staff develop-ment. If so, you do not need to put your name on the paper.

Reference: Ohanian, S. (1999). One size fits few: The folly of educational standards. Portsmouth,NH: Heinemann.

67

HANDOUT 8



Step 1Working alone, in Column 1 list some problematic areas you think aboutwhen you plan for multiple tasks in the classroom.

Working with colleagues, in Column 2 pose solutions or strategies toaddress the Hot Spots you listed in Column 1.

As you view the video, jot down additional ideas in Columns 1 or 2.

Hot Spot Possible Solutions

69

HANDOUT 9



ManagementHot Spots

In the first column of the matrix, list ideas or approaches you saw in thevideo that seemed positive or promising to you. In the second column,

list ideas or approaches that seemed negative to you. In the third column,list questions you still have about managing a differentiated classroom.

+ – ?

71

HANDOUT 10



Select one of the Roles below to portray; then write to the Audiencespecified, in the Format provided, and on the Topic in that row.

You’ll be asked to share your work with colleagues.

Role Audience Format Topic

Hard-to-reachstudent

Teachers Advice column How to reachme

Parent of astrugglinglearner

My child’steacher

Note Here’s what Iwant for mychild

Teacher whoworks to createa differentiatedclassroom

Administratorsandpolicymakers

Formal request Is anybody outthere listening?

Parent of anadvancedlearner

Teacherseverywhere

Letter What I wantfor my child

New teacher Peers andadministrators

Plea Help me getto know mystudents

73

HANDOUT 11



As you reflect on your own growth as a teacher in managingor leading students in the classroom, assess your comfort

with the skills below.

Seldomor neverdo this

Sometimesdo this but

not smoothly

Do thisoften and

oftensmoothly

Absolutelycomfortable

with this

Giving directions for multiple tasks

Explaining/teaching classroomroutines

Assigning students to work groups

Ensuring smooth work of smallgroups

Helping students understandand appreciate their differences

Helping students understandand appreciate their similarities

Keeping track of student workand progress with multiple tasksongoing

Handling classroom noise

Using classroom space in a flexibleway

Using varied materials for differentgroups

75

HANDOUT 12



Self-Assessmenton ClassroomManagement forDifferentiation

Please read the scenario below and then work with colleagues whoteach at a similar grade level to yours to give the teacher in the sce-

nario some advice.

Ms. Creighton likes teaching, likes her students, and isn’t afraid of modi-fying what she does in the classroom when she believes the changes willmake her teaching more effective for more of her learners. However, it’soften hard for her to know just what will work in her classroom and whatwon’t. It’s like that with a lesson she’s planning for next week. Shehasn’t tried giving different tasks to different groups before, but she hassuch a wide variety of readiness levels in her class that it seems like agood idea.

When her students come to class on Monday, she’s going to tell themthey’ll be working on several different activities. Right now, Ms. Creigh-ton is not quite sure who will be in which group. Maybe she’ll let the stu-dents make the choice.

She’s going to describe all of the activities to the whole class so they willunderstand the directions and what’s going on in other groups. At thatpoint, she’s planning to call out names of students to let them know whatgroup to work with so they can find one another and find a place to worktogether. Every student has to complete the group’s assigned task, but shewants the students to collaborate on the work.

She’ll ask the group to send someone to pick up the written directions fortheir work. The directions tell them to be sure to get materials that willhelp them with their learning goals. If students need her, they can comeask her for help. When students finish their work, they will bring it toher. She will grade it overnight so they can see how they did. If a studentor group doesn’t finish the work, they will have to turn it in unfinished.

As a group, analyze Ms. Creighton’s plans step-by-step. On the reverseside of this sheet, jot down advice you think will facilitate her manage-ment of the class she’s planning. Think about various needs of studentswho may be in her class, as well as needs of the class as a whole.

77

HANDOUT 13



1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

7.

8.

9.

10.

11.

12.

78


Y ou will be working on a topic of your choice with colleagues whohave selected the same topic.

Your goal is to develop practical strategies related to your topic thatshould be of help to other teachers in effectively managing a differenti-ated classroom.

Work with a small group of colleagues to develop specific, clear, andpractical ideas for effective classroom management that relate to thetopic area you have selected. Base your ideas on your own experience,exchanges with colleagues during the workshop today, and what you sawin the video. Once you have a useful list of suggestions, review it to makesure it is well organized and clearly expressed. The workshop facilitatorwill give you a signal when this portion of the activity should end.

Your specialty group should now combine with one or two other spe-cialty groups that worked on the same topic. Have someone from eachgroup review the group’s list of suggestions. Discuss any suggestions thatseem to be in conflict. Ultimately you should merge the sets of ideas sothat you have one representative set to report out to the whole group. Theworkshop facilitator will give you chart paper or overhead transparencies.

79

HANDOUT 14



Use the grid below to note ideas that might be of help in effectivemanagement of a differentiated classroom.

Assessing Learning Helping Students MasterClassroom Routines

Giving Directions for Tasks

Managing Materials,Noise, and Space

Assigning Studentsto Groups

Using Time Flexibly

81

HANDOUT 15



In one or more of the boxes below, write strategies you plan to use tosupport differentiated instruction. In the box at the bottom of the page,

note areas related to managing a differentiated classroom in which you’dlike more information. The workshop facilitator may collect this sheet asa way of understanding group thinking and to plan additional staff devel-opment. If so, you need not put your name on the paper.

Assessing Learning Helping Students MasterClassroom Routines

Giving Directions for Tasks

Managing Materials, Noise,and Space

Assigning Students to Groups Using Time Flexibly

I’d like more information or ideas about—

83

HANDOUT 16



Use the analysis map below to help you think about the role of ateacher in a differentiated classroom. Each spoke is labeled with a

teacher role. At the end of the spoke, write phrases you feel accuratelydescribe the role. In some instances, an example is listed to start yourthinking. On the blank spoke, add a role you feel has been omitted anddescriptors to go with that role. Remember, your focus is the teacher’srole in a classroom with a goal of addressing varied learner needs.

85

HANDOUT 17

The Role of the Teacher in aDifferentiated Classroom

Providingcleardirections

Teac

hing

for

indi

vidu

algr

owth

Helping groups workBalancing whole-class andsmall-group instruction

Must be clearabout learning goals

Charting

individual growth

Coa

chin

gfo

r ind

ivid

ual g

row

th

Grading for excellence and equity

Preparing students for differentiation

Communicating with parents about

differentiation



Use the questions below to guide your discussion of the video and therole of the teacher in a differentiated classroom.

1. What are some ways in which the video confirmed the ideas you hadin the analysis exercise before viewing the video? What are someways in which the video differed from your analysis?

2. What do you think are some basic principles that underlie the workof the teachers in the video?

3. In what ways are those principles similar to and different from prin-ciples that support teaching in a classroom that does not activelyaddress learner variance?

4. How do you see assessment shaping the role of the teacher in a dif-ferentiated classroom?

5. What do you believe are the greatest challenges of effective small-group functioning in a differentiated classroom? What solutionswould you offer to address those challenges?

6. What specific strategies have members of your group used to helpstudents accept more responsibility for their own learning?

7. How do the following elements interrelate in a differentiated class-room?

• Assessment• Coaching for individual success• Patterns of teaching• Communicating with students and parents• Helping groups work effectively

8. In what ways do you suppose grading is handled in a differentiatedclassroom?

87

HANDOUT 18



Use the grid below to help you reflect on your thoughts about andexperience with the role of the teacher in a classroom where teaching

in response to learner needs is key.

89

HANDOUT 19

Association for Supervisionand Curriculum Development

General Purpose and Guiding Principlesof the Role

Examples of Things a TeacherWould Do in a DifferentiatedClassroom

Characteristics of a Teacher in aDifferentiated Classroom

Examples of Things a TeacherWould Not Do in a DifferentiatedClassroom

Role of the Teacher in aDifferentiated Classroom

Most of us who are teachers have been a part of schools for so longthat we take for granted the way we “do school.” But those quiet

assumptions can powerfully affect our classroom practice—and notalways in ways that benefit the full range of learners. Below are some“deep structures” of schooling. We may not articulate these images asour beliefs. In fact, we may even disavow them. Our classroom practice,however, may make it appear as though we believe them. With yourgroup, discuss (1) the degree to which you believe these images and(2) the degree to which our practice suggests we believe them.

1. Teacher as teller

2. Teaching as telling

3. Student as absorber

4. Curriculum as coverage of facts and skills

5. Students as dependent

6. Lessons loosely linked with learning goals

7. Instructional strategies as a “bag of tricks”

8. Assessment as what comes at the end to “see who got it”

9. Classroom management as a synonym for control

10. Fair as treating everyone alike

91



HANDOUT 20

Double-EntryJournal

Part 1In Column 1 and on the back of the page ifnecessary, write your reflections on the questionsbelow.

Part 2After viewing the video, use Column 2 andthe back of the page if necessary to write yourreflections on the questions below.

Column 1 Column 2

• In what ways are you best at building a sense ofcommunity among your students?

• What is your “compass” as a teacher to ensurethat your curriculum and instruction are of veryhigh quality?

• What are your strongest points in helpingstudents assume responsibility for effectiveteaching and learning in the classroom?

• How do you help students gain a clear senseof and responsibility for their own growth?

• In what ways are you most flexible in yourteaching?

• In which of these areas would you like tocontinue your professional growth? Why?

• What ideas does the video give you about build-ing community?

• In what ways is your sense of quality curriculumand instruction like or different from what you sawin the video?

• What suggestions from the video might you useto build shared responsibility in the classroom?

• In what ways might you make your classroommore growth centered?

• What’s your response to the level of flexibility inteaching shown in the video?

• When you look at your classroom in light of thevideo, what do you like best about it? What mightyou want to modify? Why?

93


HANDOUT 21

Column 1 Column 2

94


T he purpose of this debate-like activity is to help you reflect on yourposition on grading in academically diverse classrooms. Please fol-

low the format below.

1. Form groups of 6–8 members.

2. Individually, read material on grading in a differentiated classroom.The workshop facilitator will tell you when it’s time to wrap up the read-ing. If you finish reading early, begin making notes of your own thoughtsabout the purpose of grading.

3. Divide the groups in half, with half the members preparing an argu-ment in favor of more traditional, norm-centered grading practices in dif-ferentiated classrooms and half preparing an argument in favor of moregrowth-centered or individual-centered grading practices in differentiatedclassrooms.

4. Work in the smaller groups to prepare your arguments. The workshopfacilitator will give you a signal at the end of this preparation period.

5. Have each side present its arguments to the other half of the group.Everyone in the presentation group should contribute.

6. Listeners should take notes while the other side presents.

7. When both sides have presented their arguments, divide into the twogroups again, and this time prepare arguments for the position you didnot support in the first round. Be sure to add your own insights andbeliefs to the new argument rather than only repeating what the first pre-senters said. The workshop facilitator will give you a signal at the end ofthis part of your work.

8. Present both positions again, with everyone taking part.

9. Take a few minutes in the group of 6–8 to review the pros and cons ofthe two positions. Be sure to highlight any new perspectives you mayhave gained.

95

HANDOUT 22

A CooperativeControversyon Grading



Y our job is to work with colleagues to develop a list of what youconsider to be important and practical guidelines for teachers in a

differentiated classroom related to the topics you selected.

Working with a small group of teachers who selected the same topic youdid, generate a list of guidelines. When you have developed a substantiallist, pare it down to those guidelines you feel are most important and use-ful. Appoint a spokesperson who will represent your group in Step 2.You will have about 10 minutes for this portion of your work. The work-shop facilitator will let you know when to move to Step 2.

Meet with other groups who developed guidelines on the same topic asyour group. Review the lists from each group. Condense the lists so theyreflect the most important and useful ideas from each group. Try to limityour lists to five or six guidelines. Put your new list on chart paper andbe prepared to share the list with the whole workshop group. You willhave about 10 minutes for this portion of your work. The workshopfacilitator will let you know when to move to Step 3.

A spokesperson from each Step 2 group should share guidelines on yourtopic with the whole workshop group. Jot down ideas on other topics thatyou feel may be of use to you in your classroom.

97

HANDOUT 23



As you return to this analysis task, complete it this time with descrip-tors of what you would like your own teaching to become in each

category. Remember the focus of the analysis is describing your practicein response to the needs of varied learners.

99



HANDOUT 24

The Role of the Teacher in aDifferentiated Classroom

Providingcleardirections

Teac

hing

for

indi

vidu

algr

owth

Helping groups workBalancing whole-class andsmall-group instruction

Must be clearabout learning goals

Charting

individual growth

Coa

chin

gfo

r ind

ivid

ual g

row

th

Grading for excellence and equity

Preparing students for differentiation

Communicating with parents about

differentiation

By the end of today’s session you should be betterable to

1. Articulate and discuss key elements in ateacher’s planning for differentiation over time.

2. Analyze and pose solutions to problems andissues inherent in differentiated classrooms.

3. Reflect on your own growth in addressingacademic diversity in the classroom.

4. Generate goals and plans for professionalgrowth and leadership in differentiatingcurriculum and instruction in your classroom.

101

OVERHEAD 1



1. Differentiation can be defined as a way ofteaching in which teachers proactively modifycurriculum, teaching methods, resources, learningactivities, and student products to address theneeds of individual students and/or small groupsof students to maximize the learning opportunityfor each student in the classroom.

—Tomlinson, et al., (in press)

2. Differentiation is a way of thinking about teachingand learning that seeks to recognize, learn about,and address the particular learning needs of eachstudent. To that end, teachers use varied approachesto curriculum, instruction, and assessment.

3. Differentiation adapts what we teach, how weteach and how students learn, and how studentsshow what they have learned based on thereadiness levels, interests, and preferred learningmodes of students.

4. Differentiation means starting where the kids are!

Reference: Tomlinson, C., Brighton, C., Brimijoin, K., Callahan, C., Hertberg, H., Moon, T., Conover,L., and Reynolds, T. (submitted for review). Differentiating instruction in academically diverseclassrooms: A literature review of definitions, rationales, and underpinnings.

103

OVERHEAD 2



1. What constitutes effective curriculum?

2. How do we teach flexibly?

3. How do we promote shared responsibility forlearning?

4. How do we build a sense of community in whichindividual differences are honored?

5. How do we emphasize individual growth ratherthan competition only?

105

OVERHEAD 3



For Ensuring Effective Curriculum as a Basefor Differentiation

For Flexible Teaching

For Promoting Shared Responsibility for Learningand Teaching

For Building a Sense of Community Where IndividualDifferences Are Honored

For Emphasizing Individual Growth Rather ThanCompetition Only

107



OVERHEAD 4

By the end of today’s session, you should be able to

1. Articulate and discuss key elements in a teacher’splanning for differentiation over time.

2. Analyze and pose solutions to problems and issuesinherent in differentiated classrooms.


4. Generate goals and plans for professional growthand leadership in differentiating curriculum andinstruction in your classroom.

109



OVERHEAD 5

Definition:

Group Members:

111



OVERHEAD 6

Differentiation is classroom practice that looks

eyeball to eyeball with the reality that kids differ,

and the most effective teachers do whatever it

takes to hook the whole range of kids on learning.

113



OVERHEAD 7

Category ChallengesOur

SuggestionsInsights from

the Video

Curriculum • How do I work withpoor readers?••

• We could use booksat different levels.••

Assessment • How do I know whatto assess?••

• Important to specifylearning goals.••

FlexibleTeaching

• How do I know whateveryone is doing?•••

• Could use learningcontracts to keeptrack.••

Grouping ofStudents

• How do I know thebest group for astudent?••

• Important to linkwith assessmentsome of the time.••

SharedResponsibilityfor Learningand Teaching

• How do I keep theroom from being amess?••

• Might havedesignated timeto straighten up.••

EstablishingCommunity

• How do I keep fromhaving winners andlosers?•

• Can emphasizepersonal goals.••

115



OVERHEAD 8

With your partners—

• Discuss what you have seen in the video so far.

• How does what you have seen what youhad predicted in the challenges and suggestionscategories?

• How does it differ from what you expected?

• What will you be looking for as the videocontinues?

117



OVERHEAD 9

Ahas Affirmations

Interesting points from the videothat we hadn’t anticipated

What we saw in the video thataffirmed our beliefs or approaches

119


OVERHEAD 10

Works Quirks Questions

Positive practices inaddressing academicdiversity—your own orfrom the video

Practices in addressingacademic diversity aboutwhich you have doubts

Questions you stillhave about teaching in adifferentiated classroom

121


OVERHEAD 11

1. Select one of the following topics related toeffective differentiation:

• The Brain and Differentiation• Curriculum and Differentiation• Getting Started in a Differentiated Classroom• Standards and Differentiation

2. Go to the area of the room designated for thattopic.

3. Form four-person base groups, consisting ofrepresentatives from all four topics.

4. Work with Part 1 of the printed instructions forbase groups.

5. Move to specialty groups of three to six peoplewho selected the same topic.

6. Work with the printed instructions and materialsfor specialty groups.

7. Return to your base groups and work with Part 2of the printed instructions for base groups.

123



OVERHEAD 12

1. Take a minute and reflect on some ideas you’vegathered or insights you’ve developed today.

2. Develop a one-sentence statement thatencapsulates an idea or insight you feel isimportant.

3. Share your one-liner with the group.

125



OVERHEAD 13

As a result of today’s workshop, you should be betterable to

1. Describe and develop routines and procedures foreffective leadership in a flexible classroom.


3. Generate goals and plans for your own professionalgrowth and leadership in managing a differentiatedclassroom.

127



OVERHEAD 14

+ – ?

129



OVERHEAD 15

As a result of the workshop today, you should bebetter able to

1. Identify and analyze problems inherent inmanaging a differentiated classroom.

2. Pose solutions to management dilemmas in adifferentiated classroom.

3. Describe and develop routines and procedures foreffective leadership in a differentiated classroom.


5. Generate goals and plans for professional growthand leadership in managing a differentiatedclassroom.

131



OVERHEAD 16

These are comments about differentiation made by teachers ofdifferent grades and subjects, with different lengths of classroomexperience, and from different parts of the country.

I couldn’t go back to the old way I taught any more. I feel much morecreative as a teacher now, more energized, and I know my studentsare learning better. I can’t exactly remember a day when I decided tostop covering curriculum and start helping kids learn. I guess it wasevolutionary in my teaching instead of revolutionary. I just know it’sbetter teaching.

I was hired to teach 7th grade math. Nobody told me to teachdifferent things to different kids. They certainly didn’t give medifferent textbooks that would match everybody. And what gooddoes it do to cater to kids? The world isn’t like that. I was hired toteach 7th grade math, and that’s what I’m going to do.

I go home at night worried about kids I’ve lost because they’reconfused or they’ve given up. I worry, too, about kids I know I’mboring. I don’t know what to do to make school better for everyone.If somebody could show me, I’d be happy to try almost anything.

When I plan the differentiated lessons with my colleagues, I getreally excited about the possibilities. I really can see why this wayof teaching would be a lot better for a lot more students. But I haveto tell you that after 25 years of teaching, the management issuesstill scare me to death and make me feel like a beginner all overagain.

133



OVERHEAD 17

Column A Column B

Managing time

Getting students in and outof groups

Giving directions

Controlling noise

Using space flexibly

Getting the right materialsto the right students

Organizing materials

Monitoring student work

135



OVERHEAD 18

Role Audience Format Topic

Hard-to-reachstudent

Teachers Advice column How to reach me

Parent of astrugglinglearner

My child’steacher

Note Here’s what Iwant for mychild

Teacher whoworks to createa differentiatedclassroom

Administratorsand policymakers

Formal request Is anybody outthere listening?

Parent of anadvancedlearner

Teacherseverywhere

Letter What I wantfor my child

New teacher Peers andadministrators

Plea Help me getto know mystudents

137



OVERHEAD 19

With some colleagues, spend the next 3 minutesnoting the following:

1. Something you’ve seen in the first part of thevideo that affirms your thinking.

2. An idea that’s new to you.

3. Something you’re uncertain about.

4. Something you’re hoping to see in the remainderof the video.

139



OVERHEAD 20

Below are some categories useful for thinking aboutmanaging a differentiated classroom. Select one inwhich you have some experience and interest. You’llwork with that category to generate practicalclassroom management ideas to share withcolleagues.

1. Using varied means of assessing student learning.

2. Helping students learn and use classroom routines.

3. Giving directions for multiple tasks to studentswith varying needs.

4. Managing materials, noise, and space in adifferentiated classroom.

5. Assigning students to work groups in varied waysand for varied purposes.

6. Using time flexibly in a differentiated classroom.

141



OVERHEAD 21

Metaphors compare two things that, at first, don’t seem alike, butactually have interesting things in common. Thinking metaphoricallyis a great way to get fresh images of something familiar or tosharpen thinking. Below is an extended metaphor for adifferentiated classroom.

Being a teacher in an effective differentiated classroom is a lot likebeing a conductor of an orchestra. You have to—

• Know the music well.• Help others interpret (find meaning) in the score.• Keep time so that people playing different instruments stay

together.• Hear many parts at once.• Build on individual strengths, tastes, and preferences.• Help individuals refine their skills, understandings, and

techniques.• Challenge individuals of varied levels of proficiency to grow.• Work with individuals, parts, and the whole toward common

and personal goals.• Prepare for real events.• Energize and lead.• Build a group endeavor from individual contributions.• Build a sense of community among very different people.• Have both individual and group goals for quality.••

Try writing your own extended metaphor for a differentiatedclassroom.

143



OVERHEAD 22


1. Analyze the role of a teacher in a differentiatedclassroom.




145



OVERHEAD 23


1. Analyze the role of a teacher in a differentiatedclassroom.

2. Articulate and support rationales for adifferentiated classroom.




147



OVERHEAD 24

149


OVERHEAD 25

General Purpose and GuidingPrinciples of the Role

Examples of Thingsa Teacher Would Do in aDifferentiated Classroom

Characteristics of a Teacherin a Differentiated Classroom

Examples of Things aTeacher Would Not Doin a DifferentiatedClassroom

Role of the Teacherin a Differentiated

Classroom

Teaching is first and foremost learning, andegocentric as it may sound, the teacher’s chiefarea of study is herself or himself.

Only as I discover my own prejudices, face myown fears, give play to my own strengths, andcompensate for my deficits rather than denyingthem can I help my students do the same.

It is both the blessing and the curse of teachingthat the learning never ends.

Every day, I must confront what I am as a teacherand what I hope to be.

To do less is to be less of a teacher.

151



OVERHEAD 26

With some colleagues, spend the next 3 minutesnoting the following:

1. Something you’ve seen in the first part of thevideo that affirms your thinking about the roleof the teacher in a differentiated classroom.

2. An idea that’s new to you.

3. Something you’re uncertain about.

4. Something you’re hoping to have clarifiedor expanded in the remainder of the video.

153



OVERHEAD 27

The Need for Continual Growth

The process of growth is the very definition of lifeitself.

The mandate of nature as we observe it is the sameon every hand,

Grow or die!

Growth, after all, is an irreversible phenomenon—andundeniable.

Dangerous is our attempt to repeat our successes.

Today’s successes become tomorrow’s failures.

Not to grow is to die.

—Edwin Herbert Land, physicist, inventor,and founder of Polaroid Corporation

155



OVERHEAD 28

157



OVERHEAD 29

Sense ofCommunity

EffectiveCurriculum

andInstruction

SharedResponsibility

forLearning

A GrowthOrientationF

lexibility

The purpose of this debate-like activity is to help you reflect on yourposition on grading in academically diverse classrooms.

1. Form groups of 6–8 members.

2. Read materials on grading in a differentiated classroom.

3. Divide the group in half, with half of the members preparing anargument in favor of more traditional, norm-centered gradingpractices in differentiated classrooms and half preparing anargument in favor of more growth-centered or individual-centeredgrading practices in differentiated classrooms.

4. Work as a group of 3–4 to prepare your arguments.

5. Have each side present its arguments to the other half of thegroup. Everyone in the presentation group should contribute tothe presentation.

6. Listeners should take notes while the other side presents.

7. When both sides have presented their arguments, separate againinto the two smaller groups, this time to prepare an argument forthe position you did not support in the first round of presentations.

8. Present both positions again.

9. Take a few minutes in the group of 6–8 to review the pros andcons of the two positions. Highlight any new perspectives youmay have gained.

159



OVERHEAD 30

Spend about 1 minute to develop a one-sentencestatement that reflects one of your key thoughts ongrading and academically diverse school populations.The workshop facilitator will give you a signal at theend of the allotted time.

Have each person in your working group share his orher one-sentence recap with the group.

161



OVERHEAD 31

Select one of the following groups that allows youto bring together your own teaching interests andstrengths with ideas you have gained from the videoand workshop today. You will work to createguidelines for teachers who want to become moreeffective in differentiating curriculum andinstruction.

• Varying patterns of teaching.

• Assessing student growth.

• Coaching an advanced learner for growth andsuccess.

• Coaching a struggling learner for growth andsuccess.

• Helping groups work effectively.

• Communicating with students and parents.

163



OVERHEAD 32

Please complete these statements on the index cardyou received. The workshop facilitator will collect thecards to get a sense of your thinking and to help withplanning additional staff development. You do notneed to put your name on the card.

In my teaching of academically diverse learners

My role as a teacher is

I’d like my role to be

165



OVERHEAD 33

Tell a partner one or two ideas you plan to use inyour classroom in the near future to continue yourdevelopment in working with academically diverselearners. The ideas may come from the categoriesbelow, or from other areas you’re thinking about.

• Assessing learner need and growth.

• Coaching for individual success.

• Varying patterns of teaching.

• Helping groups work effectively.

• Communicating with students and parents.

167



OVERHEAD 34

Azwell, T., & Schmar, E. (1995). Report card on report cards:Alternatives to consider. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.

Cohen, E. (1994). Designing groupwork: Strategies for theheterogeneous classroom (2nd ed.). New York: Teachers College Press.

Daniel, T., & Terry, K. (1995). Multiage classrooms by design: Beyondthe one-room school. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin.

Delpit, L. (1995). Other People’s Children: Cultural Conflict in theClassroom. New York: The New Press.

Erickson, H. (1998). Concept-based curriculum and instruction:Teaching beyond the facts. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin.

Finnan, C., & Swanson, J. (2000). Accelerating the learning of allstudents: Cultivating culture change in schools, classrooms, andindividuals. Boulder, CO: Westview.

Gardner, H. (1999). The disciplined mind: Beyond facts and standardizedtests, the K–12 education that every child deserves. New York:Penguin.

Kiernan, L. (2000). Differentiated instruction (Web-based professionaldevelopment course). Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision andCurriculum Development. Available athttp://www.ascd.org/framepdonline.html.

Kiernan, L. (Producer/Writer) (1997). Differentiating instruction (videostaff development set). Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervisionand Curriculum Development.

Krumboltz, J., & Yeh, C. (1996, December). Competitive gradingsabotages good teaching. Phi Delta Kappan, 78(4), 324–326.

Jackson, A., & Davis, G. (2000). Turning points 2000: Educatingadolescents in the 21st century. A Report of the Carnegie Corporation.New York: Teachers College Press.

National Research Council. (1999). How people learn: Brain, mind,experience, and school. Washington, DC: National Academy Press.

Sizer, T. (1999, September). No two are quite alike. EducationalLeadership, 57(1), 6–11.

Sizer, T., & Sizer, N. (1999). The students are watching. Boston:Beacon.

Strachota, B. (1996). On their side: Helping children take charge of theirlearning. Greenfield, MA: Northeast Society for Children.

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Tomlinson, C. (1996). Differentiating instruction for mixed abilityclassrooms: A professional inquiry kit. Alexandria, VA: Associationfor Supervision and Curriculum Development.

Tomlinson, C. (1998, November). For integration and differentiationchoose concepts over topics. Middle School Journal, 30(2), 3–8.

Tomlinson, C. (1999). The differentiated classroom: Responding to theneeds of all learners. Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision andCurriculum Development.

Tomlinson, C. (1999, September). Mapping a route toward differentiatedinstruction. Educational Leadership, 77(1), 12–16.

Tomlinson, C. (2000, August). Differentiation of instruction in theelementary grades. ERIC Digest. Document No. ED0-PS-00-7.

Tomlinson, C. (2000, September). Reconcilable differences:Standards-based teaching and differentiation. Educational Leadership,58(1), 6–11.

Tomlinson, C. (2001). How to differentiate instruction in mixed-abilityclassrooms (2nd ed.). Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision andCurriculum Development.

Tomlinson, C., & Allan, S. (2000). Leadership for differentiating schoolsand classrooms. Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision andCurriculum Development.

Tomlinson, C., & Kalbfleisch, L. (1998, November). Teach me, teach mybrain: A call for differentiated classrooms. Educational Leadership,56(3), 52–55.

Weinbrenner, S. (1992). Teaching gifted kids in the regular classroom.Minneapolis, MN: Free Spirit.

Weinbrenner, S. (1996). Teaching kids with learning difficulties in theregular classroom. Minneapolis, MN: Free Spirit.

Wiggins, G., & McTighe, J. (1998). Understanding by design.Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision and CurriculumDevelopment.

[email protected] site containing differentiated lessons, units, and products.

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Documents

Director, Design and Production Services - ASCD · him a thing during the year, but rather my curriculum and instruction had caused him to march in place academically, if not to backslide—and