Differentiating the 21st Century Curriculum

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Sometimes you will group students by shared ability, at other times, mixed ability will be more useful to the learning process. Direct instruction should be well scaffolded and even targeted at specific groups of students. Information may also be presented through a variety of mediums — visual, videos, songs, literature, and hands-on activities. Station rotations also make it easier to provide focused instruction to different groups of learners.

In station rotations, students learn and practice skills for a specific learning goal through individual and group work at several different stations, including a station with their teacher for more focused instruction. The larger tasks students complete should help you assess for understanding and should vary according to the learners in the classroom. Visual learners may thrive best by creating diagrams and illustrations, while kinesthetic learners need to build or create physical models.

Options for student choice that take into consideration both ability and interest are great ways to motivate and engage the learners in your classroom. Technology tools like Wixie have built in options for differentiation, making it easy to assign different work on the same topic to different learners in your classroom. Providing a variety of options for performance gives students a choice and makes them a partner in the learning process.

Metacognitive students who are aware of their strengths and weaknesses learn to make choices about how they best gain knowledge and understanding as well as the way they can best demonstrate their learning. Viewing your students as unique individuals and learners helps you forge stronger relationships and develop more effective methods of teaching and learning. How you differentiate in your classroom will depend on the unique human beings and learners in your classroom, as well as the unique human being and learner you are. She has been helping educators implement project-based learning and creative technologies like clay animation into classroom teaching and learning for the past 15 years.

New approaches to building literacy through creative technology in elementary schools. Help students ask good questions. How to make the most of one tech period a week.

A curated, copyright-friendly image library that is safe and free for education. Building Literacy in Elementary Students New approaches to building literacy through creative technology in elementary schools. Get this FREE guide that includes: What can your students create?

Differentiate content, process, and product

More sites to help you find success in your classroom. Rubric Maker Create custom rubrics for your classroom. In a high school English classroom in Arizona, students work in established teams to tackle assignments. Maier, coaches them on how to support each other through a variety of communication and collaboration strategies, such as the Harkness Discussion.

Evaluating digital curricula for the 21st century school district

In a grade class in Michigan, Mrs. Jessica builds perseverance and communication through her students using a digital language app on tablets. Each student studies Spanish at their personalized level of need. The teacher monitors their progress and frustrations.

From collaborative teams to self-guided individualized explorations, 21st Century learning and Differentiation go hand-in-hand. Combining both empower students to find their voice, self-advocate, and uses a variety of 21st century tools that help meet learner needs. What is Differentiation in the 21st Century Teachers who teach differentiate. The focus starts with the learner. No lesson or project-based learning unit survives unchanged when exposed to students.

There will likely be confused learners who need supports to navigate the activities.

Know students as human beings and learners

There will also be learners who shine a Mona Lisa smile, already knowing the key skills, and are prepared to coast through the lessons with minimum effort. Today's 21st Century learners deserve a year plus growth as we prepare them to successfully interact the global community.

Here are five Differentiation elements for how best to support the 21st Century Learner. Begin using these at least once per week as needed. Then expand the practice, with deeper understanding and confidence.

Readiness Start instruction based on what students know and do not know. Students engage into a lesson if they think the structure invites them to succeed. Healthy frustration is good if there are supports in place to help learners move forward, such as coaching, learning teams, and guided steps. Practicing perseverance, communication, and collaboration skills build a student's ability to self-advocate. Critical Thinking through reflection is the engine that encourages students to problem solve about strategies to try when setbacks and failures happen.

For example, ask students to write reflections about their academic progress. Weekly, they should evaluate their progress and identify a strategy from a provided list to help them move forward. Or use a digital option like Sown to Grow.

Topics - Common Core, Differentiated Instruction, 21st Century Skills

Interests Based on interviews, students consistently express preference of activities that connect to or maximize their life experiences. Their eyes light up when they talk about tasks that they care about. Opportunities exist for problem solving through creative thinking, in collaborative teams or through individual explorations. Begin by giving students choices that they care about. Later, include an option where students propose their own topics or ways to accomplish the challenge.

Communication and critical thinking skills are important tools for crafting a clear and concise proposal for how students will accomplish tasks.

Search Dr. Z Reflects

Student buy-in drives learning forward. Learning Preferences Empower students with understanding the different ways that they can learn.

Start by having students complete Learning Preference Cards to inform the teacher about the students' preferred learning preferences, and avoid labeling students as "one" type of learner. In a lesson, include at least three different preferences for a 3-Dimensional learning experience. There are many tools and approaches to understanding content, such as graphic organizers, mind maps, and media options like images, videos, and audio.

Find more ideas from So All Can Learn: A Practical Guide to Learning. Thinking about one's thinking is important for students to hone critical thinking skills so that they can choose the best strategies to assist themselves.

Processing Making sense of direct instruction needs to happen before tackling an assignment. Based on my many classroom visits, these processing opportunities happen less often than needed. Processing is a student's opportunity to review and evaluate what they know and did not understand based on the direct instruction. Tools for communication, critical thinking, and creativity enable students to make needed connections, and recognize gaps in their understanding.

Journaling, doodling, partner conversations, and questioning the teacher using the Question Formulation Technique are some ways to build success. Learner Environment A successful 21st Century Learning culture is best when students and teachers share a common understanding. Build common language through anchor charts. Teaching, coaching, and assessing 21st Century Skills becomes possible when the skill is understood in concrete behavioral language.

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