Apples or Oranges?

1. Apples or Oranges? Differentiating Instruction in Social Studies Patricia Shields-Ramsay InPraxis Learning pshieldsramsay@inpraxis.org May 4 2010

2. how would you rate your comfort level in differentiating your social studies classes? Great...I’m just here to share my ideas I’m doing some things but can always use new ideas I need all the help I can get take a few seconds

3. differentiation is a philosophy and teaching approach that… • supports the learning of ALL students • provides students with multiple options for taking in information, making sense of ideas and expressing what they learn (Tomlinson, 2001) • integrates strategic assessment, thoughtful planning and targeted, flexible instruction

4. concept attainment... what are the critical attributes of differentiated instruction? take a minute Is… Is not….

5. concept attainment… • applies critical thinking skills • starts with “yes” examples and “no” examples • examples can be presented to students in data sets • students can generate their own examples

6. concept attainment… • share hypotheses about what the concept means • develop conclusions about the relevance and importance of the concept to what they are learning • then apply understanding of the concept

7. what are the critical attributes of differentiated instruction? take a minute

8. differentiation is… • different styles of content, process, product • ablend of whole class, small group, and individual instruction • focused on students • about teaching to patterns

9. differentiation is not… • just another way to group kids • expecting less of struggling learners • a substitute for specialized support • new • just one more thing • one size fits all

10. non-negotiable factors for a differentiated classroom… • a supportive learning environment • curriculum that is relevant and meaningful • continuous assessment • flexible grouping • respectful learning tasks • choice and ownership

11. resulting in classrooms in which… • students differ in their learning profiles • “covering information” takes a backseat to making meaning out of important ideas

12. resulting in classrooms in which… • students are active learners, decision-makers and problem solvers • students are not served with a “one-size-fits-all” curriculum and treated as passive recipients of information

13. differentiation is to social studies curriculum like… • identities are to citizenship • multiple perspectives are to diversity take a couple of minutes

14. picture books birthday analogies Weblink: Pow! Zap! Wham! Creating Comic Books from Picture Books in Social Studies Classrooms http://www.quasar.ualberta.ca/css/Css_37_1/FTcomics_in_social_studies.htm A Case for Children’s Literature as a Powerful Teaching Tool http://www.cla.ca/casl/slic/262socialresponsibilityschoollibraries.html

15. building differentiated instruction in social studies involves… • knowing your students as learners • knowing your stuff – what has to be learned • knowing what you expect of students • knowing the tools and strategies that can help you differentiate • starting with one small step at a time

16. building differentiated instruction in social studies involves… • knowing your students as learners • knowing your stuff – what has to be learned • knowing what you expect of students • knowing the tools and strategies that can help you differentiate • starting with one small step at a time

17. key characteristics of a differentiated classroom… A differentiated classroom is a ‘student centred classroom.’ The emphasis shifts from teacher-directed instruction to a focus on student-centred learning. Therefore, The role of the teacher is redefined. check-in

18. individual portfolios group folders learning logs TILT logs (Things I Learned Today) interactive notebooks

19. building differentiated instruction in social studies involves… • knowing your students as learners • knowing your stuff – what has to be learned • knowing what you expect of students • knowing the tools and strategies that can help you differentiate • starting with one small step at a time

20. 18676024365911

21. record the number from memory! 18676024365911 you’ve got 10 seconds

22. try again but think of 3 concepts. . . Confederation Minutes…. Hours….Days…. Emergency

23. try again but think of 3 concepts. . . Confederation Minutes…. Hours….Days…. Emergency 1867 60… 24… 365 911

24. “Currently, students are required to adapt . . . to the prevalent teaching practices, instructional materials and assessment instruments. Those who can’t adapt are viewed as being deficient in their ability to learn.” Marie Carbo, Educating Everybody’s Children check-in

25. what is really essential for students to know, understand and do? The “big ideas” of the curriculum help students connect facts and skills to conceptual frameworks and prior experiences. They encourage students to recognize and apply familiar ideas and help them build deep understandings through transferring what they learn to new and different contexts.

26. take the ‘big idea’ challenge… Share one ‘big idea’ that is essential to understanding at the grade level you teach. take a minute

27. why use big ideas to differentiate social studies curriculum? • clear expectations for allstudents • visibility • context that encourages students to make connections and see relevance • starting point for differentiating instruction • creates patterns

28. building differentiated instruction in social studies involves… • knowing your students as learners • knowing your stuff – what has to be learned • knowing what you expect of students • knowing the tools and strategies that can help you differentiate • starting with one small step at a time

29. why differentiate assessment • differentiated instruction leads to differentiated assessment • assessment tools and supports are differentiated to support a diversity of student responses, while maintaining a focus on learning outcomes

30. why differentiate assessment • differentiated assessment informs differentiated instruction • formative assessment provides information to make instructional decisions that optimizes the learning of all students http://www.pd360.com/index.cfm?ContentId=163

31. brainstorm the assessment strategies you would typically use with students in a learning unit… take a couple of minutes

32. sample process to use graphic organizers to facilitate understanding and critical thinking… • create a placemat organizer with a group • brainstorm ideas in an individual section of the placemat • ghostwalk – visit other groups to get 2 additional ideas • categorize ideas based on “like attributes” • create a fishbone chart to organize ideas around the categories • use another ghostwalk if students need more help

33. to start to differentiate assessment, consider to what degree your assessment practices will involve Whole class – Individualteacher choice – student choicelearning outcomes from program of studies – individual goals

34. building differentiated instruction in social studies involves… • knowing your students as learners • knowing your stuff – what has to be learned • knowing what you expect of students • knowing the tools and strategies that can help you differentiate • starting with one small step at a time

35. how would you characterize the grouping strategies you use in your social studies classes? Noisy Flexible and responsive Chaotic Structured and mechanical take a few seconds

36. how would you characterize the grouping strategies you use in your social studies classes? A “Popcorn” strategy involves students being provided with the opportunity to brainstorm by randomly sharing ideas with no preordained order. And you thought this was called the “Chaos” strategy. Noisy Flexible and responsive Chaotic Structured and mechanical

37. Using think-pair-share is shown to increase learning by 50 to 70 percent. Using this type of strategy instead of traditional lecture and question and answer structure can boost student confidence in their ability to learn and increase content mastery.

38. flexible grouping... Meets individual learning needs of students within a group setting. Can be anchored by tasks. Facilitates movement between different grouping options. Includes whole class groupings that engage students in critical thinking and provides them with motivation to move to the next task. Not all groups need to be the same size. Not all groups have to be working on the same task. Not all students have to stay in the same group throughout a lesson or task. Not all groups need an equal amount of teacher time.

40. anchors can also be a powerful differentiation strategy that can teach independent learning and decision-making and facilitates flexible grouping… An example of ways that tasks and anchors can be tiered or structured.... http://www.primarysourcelearning.org/teach/best_practices/diff_instruct_bulletin_elem.pdf and http://www.primarysourcelearning.org/teach/best_practices/diff_instruct_bulletin_sec.pdf

41. instructional approaches... • provide options and choices for students • encourage students to transfer understandings • facilitate cooperative and collaborative learning • allow for scaffolding and learning support

42. instructional approaches... What is the human activity depicted by the art on this ancient cup? take a couple of minutes

43. a variety of ways to approach planning for differentiation... • using strategies that you know work for you and your students • not necessarily always “something new” • looking at how you structure instruction differently check-in

44. building differentiated instruction in social studies involves… • knowing your students as learners • knowing your stuff – what has to be learned • knowing what you expect of students • knowing the tools and strategies that can help you differentiate • starting with one small step at a time