Pre-Assessments & Differentiation

The idea can be overwhelming.  I was doing some research on differentiation…looking for ways to make the idea “approachable,” and I came across this from a website you really should explore.

http://www.byrdseed.com/six-traits-of-quality-pre-assessments/

One of my favorite things to do is synthesize information and figure out an easier way to look at the combination of ideas.  We know we need to improve differentiation for students.  We know we need to pre-assess.  We know.  We know.  We KNOW!  But why don’t we do it more?  We need all these things we KNOW to be combined in a way that we feel like we CAN DO them.  That’s where my brain has been swirling over the last month.  I’m determined to feel like I can tackle this and teach it.  One thing that might help us is to look at using KUDo’s instead of “I Can” statements.  By spending a little more time on the learning objectives, the differentiation and preassessment pieces seem a little more feasible.  Check out what this man has to say…LOVE the idea of adding “some, most, all” to the learning objective.

http://dougbelshaw.com/blog/2009/10/23/learning-objectives-the-basics/

I learned about KUDo’s through a book by Diane Heacox.  (Making Differentiation a Habit:  How to Ensure Success in Academically Diverse Classrooms) 

What do you want the students to KNOW?  What do you want the students to UNDERSTAND?  What do you want the students to be able to DO?

Synthesize these ideas…where do the words ALL, SOME, MOST belong in the KUDo’s?  Maybe they already know it (preassess).  So now what?.  Don’t forget to consider higher order thinking such as Revised Bloom’s when you begin to plan your lessons and the applications.  Nice synthesis, don’t you think?

Yes, there’s much more work to be done.  I’m still researching, but I liked these ideas and wanted to share.

Okay…so now a favor.  I’m not sure how many teachers know about the blog.  Share the link with someone.  If you haven’t signed up to receive alerts when a new post is added, consider signing up.

Group for Differentiation with Ease

(Should I tell you the names of the individuals sharing the ideas?  I haven’t been, but I’ve decided I can no longer keep the secrets.  I must tell you from this point on!  This entry comes from Mrs. Strevel at Scales.)

It’s amazing to me how the things teachers do are “just what we do” to the point we don’t even realize how wonderful they really are!  That happened today.  During a conversation, Mrs. Strevel referenced putting Post-it notes on the desks of her student to make small groups for further instruction based on needs.  I asked her to explain how that worked.

While she teaches her lesson, she places different color Post-it notes on the desks according to how the students are performing (need help, almost have it, got it, etc.).  After the lesson, this system provides her with immediate groups ready for small group instruction based on the previous lesson.

That’s not all.  As exit tickets, she gives a slip of paper with a small task from the lesson.  Those exit tickets give her one more peek at levels of performance.  She then groups according to student needs, and again the next morning, codes the desk for small group instruction.  In addition to Post-it notes, she uses instructional tools, such as pattern blocks or money.  Calling groups then becomes another instructional review.

Brilliant.

Why do we insist on making our job harder?  This is so easy.  And why didn’t I think of this???  To her, it’s just “what she does.”  We should share more of what we do!!

So…let’s get some comments going here…what do YOU do?