TheDifferentiatedClassroom:RespondingtotheNeeds

ofAllLearners
byCarolAnnTomlinson
TableofContents

Chapter1.WhatIsaDifferentiated
Classroom?
Adifferentwaytolearniswhatthekidsarecallingfor....Allofthemaretalkingabouthowour
onesizefitsalldeliverysystemwhichmandatesthateveryonelearnthesamethingatthesame
time,nomatterwhattheirindividualneedshasfailedthem.
SeymourSarason,ThePredictableFailureofEducationalReform
IntheUnitedStatesmorethanacenturyago,theteacherinaoneroomprairieschoolhousefaceda
challengingtask.Shehadtodividehertimeandenergybetweenteachingyoungchildrenwhohadneverheld
abookandcouldnotreadorwriteandteachingolder,moreadvancedstudentswithlittleinterestinwhatthe
youngonesweredoing.Today'steachersstillcontendwiththeessentialchallengeoftheoneroom
schoolhouse:howtoreachouteffectivelytostudentswhospanthespectrumoflearningreadiness,personal
interests,culturallyshapedwaysofseeingandspeakingoftheworld,andexperiencesinthatworld.
Thoughtoday'steachersgenerallyworkwithsingleclasseswithstudentsofnearlythesameage,these
childrenhaveanarrayofneedsasgreatasthoseamongthechildrenoftheoneroomschool.Thus,a
teacher'squestionremainsmuchthesameasitwas100yearsago:HowdoIdividetime,resources,and
myselfsothatIamaneffectivecatalystformaximizingtalentinallmystudents?Considerhowthese
teachersanswerthatquestion.

Mrs.Wigginsassignsstudentstospellinglistsbasedonapretest,nottheassumptionthatall3rd
gradersshouldworkonListThree.

Mr.Owenmatcheshomeworktostudentneedwheneverpossible,tryingtoensurethatpracticeis
meaningfulforeveryone.

Ms.Jerniganonlyoccasionallyteachesmathtothewholeclassatonce.Moreoften,sheusesaseries
ofdirectinstruction,practice,andapplicationgroups.Sheworkshardtogiveeveryoneequaltime
atanappropriateentrypointofinstruction,matchingpracticeworktostudentneed.Shealso
regroupsstudentsforrealworldmathapplicationssotheyhearavarietyofvoicesintheirjourneyto
thinkmathematically.

Ms.Enricooffersstudentsavarietyofoptionswhenit'stimetocreatethefinalproductforaunit.
Shebasestheoptionsonstudents'interestssotheyhavethechancetolinkwhatthey'velearned
withsomethingthatmatterstothemasindividuals.

Alloftheseteachersaredifferentiatinginstruction.Perhapstheypracticeddifferentiatinginstructionbeforeit
hadaname,orwithoutevenknowingitsname.Theyareteacherswhostrivetodowhateverittakesto
ensurethatstrugglingandadvancedlearners,studentswithvariedculturalheritages,andchildrenwith
differentbackgroundexperiencesallgrowasmuchastheypossiblycaneachday,eachweek,andthroughout
theyear.

HallmarksofDifferentiatedClassrooms
Indifferentiatedclassrooms,teachersbeginwherestudentsare,notthefrontofacurriculumguide.They
acceptandbuilduponthepremisethatlearnersdifferinimportantways.Thus,theyalsoacceptandacton
thepremisethatteachersmustbereadytoengagestudentsininstructionthroughdifferentlearning
modalities,byappealingtodifferinginterests,andbyusingvariedratesofinstructionalongwithvaried
degreesofcomplexity.Indifferentiatedclassrooms,teachersensurethatastudentcompetesagainsthimself
ashegrowsanddevelopsmorethanhecompetesagainstotherstudents.

Indifferentiatedclassrooms,teachersprovidespecificwaysforeachindividualtolearnasdeeplyaspossible
andasquicklyaspossible,withoutassumingonestudent'sroadmapforlearningisidenticaltoanyoneelse's.
Theseteachersbelievethatstudentsshouldbeheldtohighstandards.Theyworkdiligentlytoensurethat
struggling,advanced,andinbetweenstudentsthinkandworkharderthantheymeanttoachievemorethan
theythoughttheycouldandcometobelievethatlearninginvolveseffort,risk,andpersonaltriumph.These
teachersalsoworktoensurethateachstudentconsistentlyexperiencestherealitythatsuccessislikelyto
followhardwork.
Teachersindifferentiatedclassesusetimeflexibly,calluponarangeofinstructionalstrategies,andbecome
partnerswiththeirstudentstoseethatbothwhatislearnedandthelearningenvironmentareshapedtothe
learner.Theydonotforcefitlearnersintoastandardmold.Youmightsaytheseteachersarestudentsof
theirstudents.Theyarediagnosticians,prescribingthebestpossibleinstructionfortheirstudents.These
teachersalsoareartistswhousethetoolsoftheircrafttoaddressstudent'sneeds.Theydonotreachfor
standardized,massproducedinstructionassumedtobeagoodfitforallstudentsbecausetheyrecognize
thatstudentsareindividuals.
Teachersindifferentiatedclassroomsbeginwithaclearandsolidsenseofwhatconstitutespowerful
curriculumandengaginginstruction.Thentheyaskwhatitwilltaketomodifythatinstructionsothateach
learnercomesawaywithunderstandingsandskillsthatofferguidancetothenextphaseoflearning.
Essentially,teachersindifferentiatedclassroomsaccept,embrace,andplanforthefactthatlearnersbring
manycommonalitiestoschool,butthatlearnersalsobringtheessentialdifferencesthatmakethem
individuals.Teacherscanallowforthisrealityinmanywaystomakeclassroomsagoodfitforeachindividual.
Althoughdifferentiatedclassroomsembodycommonsense,theystillcanbedifficulttoachieve.Inpart,itis
difficulttoachieveadifferentiatedclassroombecauseweseefewexamplesofthem.Theexamplesthatare
outthere,however,offeraproductivewaytostartexploringdifferentiatedinstruction.

PortraitsfromSchools
Teachersworkdailytofindwaystoreachouttoindividuallearnersattheirvariedpointsofreadiness,
interest,andlearningpreference.Thereisnoonerightwaytocreateaneffectivelydifferentiated
classroomteacherscraftresponsivelearningplacesinwaysthatareagoodmatchfortheirteachingstyles,
aswellasforlearners'needs.Followingaresamplesfromclassroomsinwhichteachersdifferentiate
instruction.Somearelifteddirectlyfromanobservationinaclassroom.Somearecompositesofseveral
classrooms,orextensionsofconversationswithteachers.Allareintendedtohelpinformingimagesofwhatit
lookslikeandfeelslikeinadifferentiatedclassroom.

SnapshotsfromTwoPrimaryClassrooms
ForapartofeachdayinMrs.Jasper's1stgradeclass,studentsrotateamonglearningcenters.Mrs.Jasper
hasworkedhardforseveralyearstoprovideavarietyoflearningcentersrelatedtoseveralsubjectareas.All
studentsgotoalllearningcentersbecauseMrs.Jaspersaystheyfeelit'sunfairiftheydon'talldothesame
thing.Studentsenjoythemovementandtheindependencethelearningcentersprovide.
Manytimes,Isabelbreezesthroughthecenterwork.Justasfrequently,Jamieisconfusedabouthowtodo
thework.Mrs.JaspertriestohelpJamieasoftenasshecan,butshedoesn'tworrysomuchaboutIsabel
becauseherskillsarewellbeyondthoseexpectedofa1stgrader.
Today,allstudentsinMrs.Jasper'sclasswillworkinalearningcenteroncompoundwords.Fromalistof10
compoundwords,theywillselectandillustrate5.Later,Mrs.Jasperwillaskforvolunteerstoshowtheir
illustrations.Shewilldothisuntilthestudentsshareillustrationsforall10words.
Downthehall,Ms.Cunninghamalsouseslearningcentersinher1stgradeclassroom.She,too,hasinvested
considerabletimeindevelopinginterestingcentersonavarietyofsubjects.Ms.Cunningham'scenters,
however,drawuponsomeoftheprinciplesofdifferentiatedclassrooms.Sometimesallstudentsworkina
particularlearningcenterifitintroducesanideaorskillnewtoeveryone.Moreoften,Ms.Cunningham
assignsstudentstoaspecificlearningcenter,ortoaparticulartaskatacertainlearningcenter,basedonher
continuallydevelopingsenseoftheirindividualreadiness.
Today,herstudentsalsowillworkatalearningcenteroncompoundwords.Students'namesarelistedatthe
centeroneoffourcolorsisbesideeachname.Eachstudentworkswiththefolderthatmatchesthecolor
besidehisorhername.Forexample,Samhasthecolorrednexttohisname.Usingthematerialsinthered
folder,Sammustdecidethecorrectorderofpairsofwordstomakefamiliarcompoundwords.Healsowill
makeaposterthatillustrateseachsimplewordandthenewcompoundwordtheyform.Usingmaterialsin
thebluefolder,Jennawilllookaroundtheclassroomandinbookstofindexamplesofcompoundwords.She
willwritethemoutandillustratetheminabooklet.Usingmaterialsinthepurplefolder,Tjuanawillwritea
poemorastorythatusescompoundwordsshegeneratesandthatmakethestoryorpoeminteresting.She
thencanillustratethecompoundwordstomakethestoryorpoeminterestingtolookataswellastoread.In

thegreenfolder,Dillonwillfindastorytheteacherhaswritten.Itcontainscorrectandincorrectcompound
words.Dillonwillbeaworddetective,lookingforvillainsandgoodguysamongthecompoundwords.He
willcreateacharttolistthegoodguys(correctcompoundwords)andthevillains(incorrectcompound
words)inthestory.Hewillillustratethegoodguysandlistthevillainsastheyareinthestory,andthen
writethemcorrectly.
Tomorrowduringcircletime,allstudentsmaysharewhattheydidwiththeircompoundwords.Asstudents
listen,theyareencouragedtosaythethingtheylikebestabouteachpresenter'swork.Ms.Cunninghamalso
willcallonafewstudentswhomaybereticenttovolunteer,askingthemifthey'dbewillingtosharewhat
theydidatthecenter.

ExamplesfromTwoElementaryClassrooms
In5thgrade,studentsatSullinsElementaryworkwiththeconceptoffamouspeopletomakeconnections
betweensocialstudiesandlanguagearts.Allstudentsareexpectedtohoneandapplyresearchskills,towrite
effectively,andtosharewithanaudiencewhattheyhavelearnedasaresultoftheunit.
Mr.Elliottasksallhisstudentstoselectandreadabiographyofafamouspersonfromtheliteratureor
historytheyhavestudied.StudentsthenuseencyclopediasandtheInternettofindoutmoreaboutthe
persontheyhavechosen.Eachstudentwritesareportaboutafamousperson,describingtheperson's
culture,childhood,education,challenges,andcontributionstotheworld.Studentsareencouragedtouse
bothoriginalandfoundillustrationsintheirreports.Mr.Elliottgivesarubrictothewholeclasstocoach
studentsinareassuchasuseofresearchresources,organization,andqualityoflanguage.
Inher5thgradeclass,Mrs.Maygivesherstudentsinterestinventoriestohelpthemfindareaswherethey
mayhaveaspecialtalentorfascination,suchassports,art,medicine,theoutdoors,writing,orhelping
others.Ultimately,eachstudentselectsanareaofspecialinterestorcuriosity.Thestudentsandteachertalk
aboutthefactthatinallareasofhumanendeavor,famouspeoplehaveshapedourunderstandingand
practiceofthefield.Shereadsthemabiographicalsketchofastatesman,amusician,andanastronaut.
Together,studentsandteacherdescribeprinciplesaboutthesefamouspeople.
Forexample,famouspeopleoftenarecreative,theytakeriskstomakeadvancesintheirfields,they
frequentlyarerejectedbeforetheyareadmired,theysometimesfail,theysometimessucceed,andtheyare
persistent.Studentstesttheprinciplesastheydiscusshistoricfigures,authors,andpeopleinthenewstoday.
Intheend,studentsconcludethatpeoplecanbefamousfortherightreasonsorforthewrongreasons.
Theydecidetoresearchpeoplewhobecomefamousbyhavingapositiveimpactontheworld.
Theschoolmediaspecialisthelpseachstudenttogeneratelistsofpositivefamouspeopleinthatstudent's
particularcategoriesofinterest.Shealsohelpsthemlearnhowtolocateavarietyofresourcesthatcanhelp
themresearchfamousindividuals.Thisincludesbrainstormingpossibleinterviewsources.Shetalkswith
themabouttheimportanceofselectingresearchmaterialstheycanreadandunderstandclearly.Shealso
offerstohelpthemlookforalternativesiftheyfindmaterialsthatseemtooeasyortoohardforthem.
Mrs.Mayandherstudentstalkabouthowtotakenotesandtryvariouswaystotakenotesduringtheir
research.Theyalsoconsiderdifferentmethodsoforganizingtheirinformation,suchaswebs,outlines,story
boards,andmatrices.Theytalkaboutallthewaystheycanexpresstheirunderstandings:throughessays,
historicalfiction,monologues,poems,caricatures,orcharactersketches.Mrs.Mayprovidesstudentswitha
rubricthatguidesthemonthecontent,research,planning,andoutcomeoftheirwork.Studentsalsowork
withMrs.Mayindividuallytosettheirowngoalsforunderstandings,workingprocesses,andfinalproducts.
Astheassignmentcontinues,Mrs.Mayworkswithindividualsandsmallgroupstoassesstheirunderstanding
andprogressandtocoachthemforquality.Studentsalsoassesseachother'sworkaccordingtotherubrics
andindividualgoals.Theyensurethateachreportshowssomeonewhohasmadeapositivecontributionto
theworld.Intheend,thewholeclasscompletesamuralinthecafeteriathatliststheprinciplesoffamein
theshapeofpuzzlepieces.Oneachpuzzlepiece,studentswriteorillustrateexamplesoftheprinciplefrom
theirfamousperson'slife.Theythenaddwaysinwhichtheybelievetheprinciplesareorwillbeimportantin
theirownlives.Studentsalsosharetheirfinalproductswithanadultwhoknowssomethingabout,oris
interestedinlearningabout,thepersontheyresearched.

ComparisonsfromtheMiddleGrades
InMr.Cornell'sscienceclass,studentsworkinaspecificcycle:readthetextchapter,answerquestionsatthe
endofthechapter,discusswhattheyhaveread,completealab,andtakeaquiz.Studentsdothelabsand
completetheirreportsingroupsoffour.SometimesMr.Cornellassignsstudentstoalabgroupasawayof
managingbehaviorproblems.Often,studentsselecttheirownlabgroups.Theyreadthetextandanswerthe
questionsindividually.Mr.Cornelltypicallyconductstwoorthreewholeclassdiscussionsduringachapter.All
studentsenterthesciencefairinthespring,withaprojectbasedonatopicstudiedinthefallorwinter.

Mrs.Santosoftenassignsstudentsinherscienceclasstoreadingsquadswhentheyworkwithtextmaterials.
Atthisstage,groupassignmentsusuallyaremadesostudentsofsimilarreadinglevelsworktogether.She
variesgraphicorganizersandlearninglogpromptsaccordingtotheamountofstructureandconcretenessthe
variousgroupsneedtograspessentialunderstandingsfromthechapter.Shealsomakesitpossiblefor
studentstoreadaloudintheirgroupsortoreadsilently.Thentheycompleteorganizersandprompts
together.Asstudentsread,Mrs.Santosmovesamonggroups.Sometimesshereadskeypassagestothem,
sometimessheasksthemtoreadtoher,butshealwaysprobesfordeeperunderstandingandhelpstoclarify
theirthinking.
SometimesMrs.Santosasksstudentstocompletelabs,watchvideos,orworkwithsupplementarymaterials
beforetheyreadthechaptersotheyhaveaclearsenseofguidingprinciplesbeforetheyworkwiththetext.
Sometimestheyreadthetextforawhile,doalab,andgobacktothetext.Sometimeslabsand
supplementarymaterialsfollowtextexploration.Frequently,shewillhavetwoversionsofalabgoing
simultaneously:oneforstudentswhoneedconcreteexperiencestounderstandessentialprinciplesandone
forstudentswhoalreadygrasptheimportantprinciplesandcandealwiththemincomplexanduncertain
contexts.
Mrs.Santosgivesquizzesanddiagnosticlearninglogentriesseveraltimesinthecourseofaunit.Thus,she
isawareofwhichstudentsneedadditionalinstructionwithkeyunderstandingsandskillsandwhichstudents
needmoreadvancedapplicationsearlyintheunit.Studentshaveseveralchoicesforamajorscienceproject:

Workaloneorwithpeerstoinvestigateandaddressaprobleminthecommunitythatrelatestothe
sciencetheyarestudying.

Workinamentorshiprolewithapersonorgroupinthecommunityusingsciencetoaddressalocal
problem.

Studyscientistspastandpresentwhohavepositivelyinfluencedthepracticeofscienceinanarea
theyhavestudied.

Writeasciencefictionstorybasedonthesciencetheyhavestudiedwiththegoalofsubmittingthe
storytotheschool'sliteraryartsanthology.

Useclassroomcamerastocreateanarratedphotoessaythatwouldhelpayoungerstudent
understandhowsomefacetofthesciencetheyhavestudiedworksintheworld.

Proposeanotheroptiontotheteacherandworkwithhertoshapeaprojectthatdemonstrates
understandingandskillinscience.

InMr.O'Reillys8thgradeEnglishclass,studentsreadthesamenovelsandhavewholeclassdiscussionson
them.Studentscompletejournalentriesontheirreadings.
InMrs.Wilkerson's8thgradeEnglishclass,studentsoftenreadnovelsaroundacommontheme,suchas
courageorconflictresolution.Studentsselectfromagroupoffourorfivenovelsonthesameconcept,and
Mrs.Wilkersonprovidesclassroomsetsofthebooks.Mrs.Wilkersonalsomakessurethenovelsspana
considerablereadingrangeandtapintoseveralinterests.
Mrs.Wilkerson's8thgradersmeetfrequentlyinliteraturecircleswithstudentsreadingthesamenovel.There
theydiscusswhattheyarereading.Althoughthevariousliteraturecirclesreflectdifferentdegreesofreading
proficiency,studentsineachgrouptaketurnsservinginoneoffiveleadershiproles:discussiondirector,
graphicillustrator,historicalinvestigator,literaryluminary,andvocabularyenricher.Thereareprintedguides
foreachroletohelpstudentsfulfillthemwell.Mrs.Wilkersonalsovariesjournalprompts,sometimes
assigningdifferentpromptstodifferentstudents.Often,sheencouragesstudentstoselectapromptthat
intereststhem.Therealsoaremanyopportunitiesforwholeclassdiscussiononthethemethatallthenovels
share,allowingallstudentstocontributetoanunderstandingofhowthethemeplaysoutinthebookthey
arereadingandinlife.

SamplesfromHighSchool
InSpanishI,Mrs.Horton'sstudentscompletethesamelanguagepatterndrills,workonthesameoral
exercises,readthesamepassages,andtakethesamequizzes.
InFrenchI,Mr.Adams'sstudentsoftenworkwithwrittendrillsatdifferinglevelsofcomplexityandwith
differentamountsofteachersupport.Theiroralexercisesfocusonthesamebasicstructures,butcompletion
requiresdifferentlevelsofsophisticationwiththelanguage.Sometimesstudentscanoptoutofreview
sessionstocreatetheirownFrenchdialogueortoreadaFrenchlanguagemagazine.Studentsoftenworkin
teacherassigned,mixedreadinesspairstoprepareforwhattheteachercallsfundamentalsquizzes.
Studentswhowishtodosocan,fromtimetotime,selectapartnertoprepareforachallengequiz.Success
onachallengequiznetsstudentshomeworkpassestheycanusetobeexcusedfromhomework

assignmentswhentheirworkonthequizindicatestheyhavemasteredthehomeworkmaterial.
InMr.Matheson'sAlgebraIIclass,studentstypicallycompletethesamehomework,workindependentlyon
inclassdrills,andtakethesametests.
InherAlgebraIIclass,Mrs.Wanghelpsstudentsidentifykeyconceptsandskillsinagivenchapter.After
variouschapterassessments,studentsareencouragedtolookattheirownassessmentresultsandselect
homeworkassignmentsandinclassminiworkshopsthatwillhelpthemclarifyareasofconfusion.She
encouragesstudentstodecidewhethertheyworkmosteffectivelyaloneorwithapartnerandtomakethat
choicewhenthereareopportunitiestodoso.Towardtheendofachapter,Mrs.Wangalsogivesstudents
individualchallengeproblems,whichtheycantacklealoneorwithaclassmate.Shedesignstheproblemsto
beamentalreach.Onendofchaptertests,studentsfindchallengeproblemssimilarbutnotidenticaltothe
onesMrs.Wanggavethemearlier.Theremaybefiveorsixdifferentchallengeproblemsdistributedamong
thetestsof30students.
Inphysicaleducation,Mrs.Bowen'sstudentsusuallyallworkwiththesameexercisesandbasketballdrills.
Mr.Whartonhelpshisstudentsdiagnosetheirstartingpointswithvariousexercisesandbasketballskills,set
challenginggoalsforpersonalimprovement,andcharttheirpersonalprogress.Heparticularlystresses
growthintwoareas:astudent'sbestandweakestarea.
InU.S.History,MissRobersonandherstudentscovertheinformationinthetextsequentially.Shelecturesto
supplementinformationinthetext.MissRobersonincludesaspecialemphasisonwomen'shistoryand
AfricanAmericanhistoryduringthemonthsdesignatedbytheschoolforthoseemphases.
Mrs.Washington'sU.S.Historystudentslookforkeyconceptsandgeneralizationsthatrecurineachperiodof
historytheystudy.Theyalsolookforconceptsandgeneralizationsuniquetoeachperiod.Theystudyvarious
pointsofviewandtheexperiencessharedbyvariouscultural,economic,andgendergroups.Theyusea
varietyoftext,video,andtapedmaterialsofvaryingdegreesofdifficulty.Mrs.Washingtonsometimes
lectures,butshealwaysusesoverheadtransparenciesthatprovidekeypointsofherlecturetohelpvisual
learners.Shealsostopsthroughoutthelecturetoencouragestudentstotalkaboutkeyideasinthelecture
andtoensuretheirgraspofthoseideas.Essaysandprojectsoftenaskstudentstotaketheirunderstanding
ofaperiodinU.S.historyandcontrastitwithwhatwasgoingoninanothercultureandinanother
geographicalareaduringthesameperiod.Projectassignmentsalwaysofferseveraloptionsforhowastudent
canexpresshisorherunderstanding.Attheendofeachquarter,studentshavetheoptionoftakingtheir
wholegradefromanexam,ortheycantakehalfofitfromanalternativeassessmentproposedbythe
teacherandmodifiedbythestudentwithteacherguidanceandapproval.
Differentiatedclassroomsfeelrighttostudentswholearnindifferentwaysandatdifferentratesandwho
bringtoschooldifferenttalentsandinterests.Moresignificantly,suchclassroomsworkbetterforafullrange
ofstudentsthandoonesizefitsallsettings.Teachersindifferentiatedclassroomsaremoreintouchwith
theirstudentsandapproachteachingmoreasanartthanasamechanicalexercise.
Developingclassroomsthatactivelyattendtobothstudentsimilaritiesandstudentdifferencesisanythingbut
simple.Thechaptersthatfollowdescribeclassroomswithdifferentiated,orresponsive,instruction,andthey
offerguidanceonhowyoucan,overtime,makesuchclassroomsarealityforyourclassorschool.

TableofContents

Copyright1999byAssociationforSupervisionandCurriculumDevelopment.Allrightsreserved.Nopartofthispublication
includingthedrawings,graphs,illustrations,orchapters,exceptforbriefquotationsincriticalreviewsorarticlesmaybereproduced
ortransmittedinanyformorbyanymeans,electronicormechanical,includingphotocopy,recording,oranyinformationstorageand
retrievalsystem,withoutpermissionfromASCD.

CopyrightASCD.Allrightsreserved.