Summary: Differentiating Content In The Classroom

There are four main elements of a classroom that can be differentiated: the content, the process, the product, and the learning environment. Content refers to what the student needs to learn or how the information is presented to the student. It can be differentiated because of a student’s readiness level, their interest, their learning profile, or any combination of these (Tomlinson, 2001, pg. 45). To differentiate in readiness means looking at what the student understands about a topic and if it is in his or her capacity to be able to understand it (Tomlinson, 2001, pg. 73). Differentiating based upon interest means looking at what students are passionate about or curious in and incorporating that into the curriculum through different ideas …show more content…
Providing these materials at a students’ level helps to meet the student right where he or she is. Students with a learning disability may require their materials to be at a lower reading abilities and teachers need to make sure they have books in their classroom that are at a variety of levels. A teacher can also put the content being taught on tape so students can listen to a lecture (Tomlinson, 2015). Additionally, the teacher can meet with small groups of students to review material that was taught or extend their thinking through enrichment activities. The teacher does need to be careful that all student groupings should be flexible. This means students should be with a variety of students at different times, not simply always grouped based on ability (Marzano, Pickering, & Pollock, 2001, pg. 89). Students will become disengaged if they feel they are always in the “dumb” group, so grouping students on a variety of criteria, such as birthday, what color shirts they are wearing, or what their interests are, can help ensure this does not …show more content…
Some students work best with others, while others prefer to work alone, so allowing students to choose which method works best for them is very beneficial. A teacher can also provide various levels of support to students while they are working, such as working with a small group intensively, while others work on their own (Weselby, 2014). Providing a small group with manipulatives or giving them more time to work can also be ways to differentiate the process, as it is providing students with what they need to best succeed (Tomlinson, 2015). Looking specifically at the accommodations listed in a student’s IEP will help the teacher to further see how the process of learning can be modified to help students with a learning disability be