Planning a Differentiated Social Studies Lesson

     

As I thought about the lesson I wanted to do, I knew I would need to use instructional strategies that incorporated visuals, sounds, and hands on experiences because these strategies will be the most beneficial for my students. When we are intentional about the instructional strategies we use, our instruction will be more effective and our students will be more engaged (Waterford.org, 2020). I also knew that not all of my students are at a 6^th grade level in reading. I had to plan a lesson that could be read out loud to meet the needs of these students. I know that several of the learners in this class are auditory learners. I made sure to use instructional strategies that involved both reading and listening such as the guided notes, Blooket vocabulary game, and virtual fieldtrip to accommodate the needs of both the visual learners and auditory learners. These students love Blooket. I thought a fun way to practice using the vocabulary from the lesson would be to play a quick Blooket vocab game. I also knew students find activities that involve technology to be engaging. The virtual field trip activity was a fun way for them to explore the structures we read about during the short lesson using Google Earth. Visual learners have the option to create a brochure for the summative assessment. I made sure there was a hands-on element somewhere in the lesson for the tactual/kinesthetic learners in this class by including the newscast and 3D map options for the summative assessment. I created a rubric that is beneficial for all students because they help students plan their work and monitor their progress (Murawski & Scott, 2019). A rubric also communicates my expectations for the assessment and knowing the expectations sets students up for success.

 I differentiated each assessment to address specific learning goals and students' differences. The reading lesson, guided note sheet, and Blooket vocab activity are all done as a class to support ELL students and students with special needs. By doing these activities as a class, I am able to model exactly what I want students to do. I am also able to ensure that students are getting the correct information on their note sheet that is used during the summative assessment. My special needs students benefit from information, questions, and answer choices being read to them which is why I choose to read all of these things out loud during the lesson. Gifted students need more of a challenge, but we do not want them to feel like they have to do extra work because they excel academically. I pose higher order thinking questions during the reading lesson to engage gifted students and give them an opportunity to think critically about the content. Because the whole class is asked these questions, the gifted students do not feel like they are receiving additional work if they choose to respond. The options to choose from for the summative assessment give gifted students the freedom to take control of their final product and provides opportunities to show what they can do in creative ways. Early finishers will be given a fun game or activity to work on while they wait for others to finish up. For example, the Egypt themed "3 words or less" game and King Tut's Tomb escape room are two activities that early finishers will be excited to work on.

    Technology is a great way to engage students in the lesson. Technology provides a flexible learning environment that is needed to accommodate various learning styles (Perez & Grant, 2022). Blooket is a prime example of an engaging tech tool that accommodates variability of learning preferences. I used Blooket as a quick formative assessment of students’ ability to use the vocabulary words from the lesson correctly. It is perfect for auditory learners because of the option to have the question and answers read out loud for students. Visual learners can read questions and answers at their own pace as well as look at pictures.  Google Earth is another tool that students love to use. During the virtual field trip activity, students use Google Earth to “travel” to the Giza Necropolis. Once there, they can “walk around” and explore the structures built by Egyptians long ago. Google Slides is a tech tool used to help students work their way through the virtual field trip and pose reflection questions. The structure of the slides helps students stay on task and gives them a clear space to share their reflections. The organized layout of the slides is beneficial for all students, but it is especially helpful for students who need additional support. Finally, I use Flipgrid as an option for the summative assessment. Flipgrid has fun features for students to play around with and make their videos even more creative. Flipgrid is appropriate for students who want to add their own creative touches to an assessment. 

The use of instructional strategies that are differentiated to support the different learners in the classroom is worth the extra planning. When students learning needs are being met, they are more engaged with the lesson. As a result, students are more motivated to complete the activities or assessments that encourage them to show what they know. The more they practice and apply what they learned, the better chance they have of storing the information long term. Ultimately, differentiating lessons guides students toward academic success.

References

Murawski, W. & Scott, K. (2019). What really works with universal design for learning. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin. ISBN: 9781544338675

Perez, L. & Grant, K. (2022). 30+ Tools for diverse learners. ISTE. https://www.iste.org/explore/Toolbox/30-tools-for-diverse-learners

Waterford.org. (2020). How differentiated instruction can help you meet every student in class. https://www.waterford.org/education/differentiated-instruction-strategies/