Strategies of Differentiation

STRATEGIES OF DIFFERENTIATION
Differentiate the Content/Curriculum

Vary what students will learn and the materials that represent the
content.
Organize content delivery in different ways (e.g. simple to complete, concrete

to abstract)
Use curriculum compacting (e.g. pre-test and increase challenge
developmentally)
Use graphics and steps in handouts and materials.
Tiered content
Mini-lessons
Digest of key ideas
Highlighted print materials
Graphic organizers illustrating the organization of the content (i.e. chunking)
State and display learning objectives for each lesson
Activate and build background information related to the content
Use non-serif fonts and larger sizes ( Arial 12)
Differentiate the Learning Environment

Vary the classroom conditions that set the climate, expectations for
learning
Use small groups or individual learning

Seat the student in front of classroom
Seat the teacher or aide near student
Provide special lighting or acoustics
Provide adaptive or special furniture
Provide an individual work area
Reduce extraneous noise
Allow movement to increase physical comfort and to maintain attention
Use tiered learning stations/centers (i.e. different levels of difficulty
Use flexible need grouping
Seek assistance from student service personnel (e.g. counselors,
psychologists, special ed staff)
Recognize effort and relate it to achievement
Encourage out-of-school tutoring
Use an effective behavior management
Use computer-assisted instruction
Teach parents how to tutor their child
Use instructional aides
Employ a student peer tutoring program
Create a safe environment for risk taking
Encourage students to use resource rooms productively
Differentiate the Process/Instruction

Vary the activities through which students make sense of key ideas using
essential skills.
Math Problem Solving

o Provide immediate feedback about progress
o Model and use guided practice with tightly sequenced forms of explicit
instruction
o Teach and model the use of problem representation and problem
solving
o Use small group, cooperative learning
o Use peer tutoring
o Item analyze student performance to determine specific needs
o Teach prerequisite skills prior to the introduction of new operations and
concepts
o Provide direct instruction in self-monitoring procedures
o Use graphic organizers to illustrate processes and concepts
o Explicitly teach summarizing and writing math extended responses
o Incorporate manipulatives, concrete materials and authentic situations
o Use short timed math exercises that mirror state and district
assessments
o Provide opportunities to use calculators
o Provide computer assisted math instruction
o Provide correctives and re-takes for grades below C (i.e. acceptable
mastery level)
o Teach notetaking
o Teach memory and retrieval strategies
o Teach math roots, prefixes and suffixes
Lectures/Presentations/Demonstrations
o Use assistive technology
o Use guided or teachers notes
o Record lectures and demonstrations
o Assign a note-taking peer partner
o Provide a digest of key ideas
o Repeat directions and show them in graphic form
o Cue the students to remain on task
o Give directions in a simplified language
Memory
o Use a three-column note-taking
o Break down ideas into smaller chunks
o Encourage distributed practice
o Encourage drawing ideas/words to remember
o Adapt handouts for memory
o Provide a list of things to remember for focusing memorizing time
o Encourage the use of flashcards and incremental rehearsal to learn
facts
o
o
o
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o
Assign study buddies

Use peer and parent tutoring
Provide storyboards and flowcharts
Allow the use of a calculator
Allow the use of an index card for printed copy of facts, multiplication
tables and formulas
Differentiate the Process/Instruction

Vary the activities through which students make sense of key ideas using
essential skills
Reading
o Books on DVD, CD and MP3
o Large print editions of text
o Activate/build student background information before reading
o SQR3 (survey, question, read, review, recite)
o Anticipation guides
o Reading guides
o Paired reading
o Repeated reading
o Teach text patterns (e.g. main ideas, comparison)
o Graphic organizers
o Assisted response for oral reading
o Herringbone format to generate questions or use as a comprehension
checker (Ws)
o Summary templates/frames
o Reciprocal teaching with pairs and trios
o Encourage highlighting
o Re-reading
o Make and refine predictions
o Paraphrase/retell
o Visualize images from text
o Structured note-taking
o Roots, prefixes and suffixes
Differentiate the Product/Assessment

Vary how students demonstrate and extend what they understand and can
do as a result of a span of learning
Homework
o Notify parents if an assignment is not turned in (through Skedula)
o Reduce the homework quantity and spread out homework over time
o Require the homework to be redone/corrected if it is below a mastery
level
o Break down homework into small tasks
Spelling
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Allow spelling mistakes on in-class written assignments and nonspelling tests

Allow the use of an electronic spell checker
Create customized common mistakes lists
Written Expression and Handwriting

o Accept typed assignments and worksheets
o Permit students to print rather than writing cursive
o Allow students to rewrite papers if the evaluation is below a C grade
o Allow student to use graphic organizers instead of outline format for
pre-writing
o Explicitly teach proofreading strategies
o Permit students to turn in parts of the written work during the process
for you or someone to read and comment.
Differentiate the Product/Assessment

Vary how students demonstrate and extend what they understand and can
do as a result of a span of learning
Oral Presentations
o Permit the use of notes or text during oral presentations instead of
memorization
o Permit students to video record their presentation instead of a live
presentation
Assessment and Test Anxiety

o Read directions and/or test items students
o Give extended time to students
o Allow students to retake a test if they get below a C grade on a test
and if the student participates in some remediation activity.
o Place fewer items on each test page
o Assist students to track test items by pointing or placing the students
finger on the items with an aide
o Provide modified tests if the student requires modification in
complexity and format (e.g. 3 multiple-choice options instead of 4 or 5
options, words banks, etc)
o Provide cues (e.g. arrows, stop signs) are provided on answer form
o Provide physical assistance for kinesthetic tasks
o The aide or special ed teacher can administer the assessment
o Read assessments to the student when the intent of reading is to
measure comprehension
o Allow students to mark answers in test booklets or large-spaced paper
o Allow students to mark answers by computer
o Allow students to dictate to a scribe or recording device to be later
transcribed
o Allow the use of spell-check device
o Provide pencils adapted in size, special grip pencil
o Allow the use of arithmetic table
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Allow multiple testing sessions

Collect work in portfolios to show incremental progress
Vary evaluation criteria
Increase formative assessment and provide more feedback covering
less content
Use non-serif fonts and larger sizes (Ariel 12)

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STRATEGIES OF DIFFERENTIATION

Differentiate the Content/Curriculum

Organize content delivery in different ways (e.g. simple to complete, concrete

Differentiate the Learning Environment

Use small groups or individual learning

Differentiate the Process/Instruction

Math Problem Solving

Assign study buddies

Differentiate the Process/Instruction

Differentiate the Product/Assessment

Allow spelling mistakes on in-class written assignments and nonspelling tests

Written Expression and Handwriting

Differentiate the Product/Assessment

Assessment and Test Anxiety

Allow multiple testing sessions

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