Differentiation for the Bright and/or Highly Capable Learner: Extension Activities

This coaching tip is written with the “Cougar Classroom” (Cluster Group Classrooms)  in mind, and it is applicable for any differentiation a teacher wants to do to challenge students.

When you have a student who completes work quickly and needs a challenge activity, one option is to have a board with cards in it with challenge activities related to THINKING (not necessarily specific content).  By limiting the choice each couple of weeks, you can have the necessary supplies available to students.

On the attached blog you can find Suggested Extension Activities for both primary and intermediate students, and a Daily Log where students can track their own progress of which extension activities they complete.  When the sheet is filled, have the student take the sheet home to show their parents how they have been challenged!

Pose/Pause/Pounce/Bounce–Formative Assessment and Student Talk Strategy

Who doesn’t love a 2 for 1 deal, right? Here is a great strategy that allows an opportunity for student talk AND formative assessment! Click here for resources

What? 

A student talk and formative assessment strategy that elicits evidence of student learning. High engagement classrooms have a significant impact on student achievement. This high engagement, no opt-out strategy creates accountability for individual student learning and allows teachers insights into student understanding.

Why? 

According to formative assessment guru Dylan Wiliam, there are only 2 reasons to ask students questions: to cause thinking and to provide information for the teacher about what to do next. Meaningful student talk is a strategy to elicit evidence of student thinking and learning. It becomes formative assessment if and only if evidence of learning is elicited and used by the teacher and or students to inform next steps. As teachers listen to student responses they should listen less evaluatively (listening for correct answers) and more interpretively (listening for student THINKING…misconceptions, fuzzy areas, understanding of topics and strategies). This information will allow teachers to make in the moment, informed decisions about how to move instruction forward.

How?
Strategy: Pose-Pause-Pounce-Bounce 
POSE: Teacher poses a thoughtful question
PAUSE: After posing the question, pause for at least 5 seconds to allow think time 
POUNCE: Randomly choose one student to answer the question (popsicle sticks, randomizer app, etc.)

BOUNCE: Bounce to another student at random asking “What do you think of that answer?” Students can respond by agreeing, disagreeing, adding on, asking a clarifying question, etc. using student talk stems. If a student is truly stuck, they can phone a friend for help before providing an answer.
As students talk, the teacher listens interpretively and uses the evidence gathered to inform next steps. Looking for a simple recording sheet? Click here

Bonus: Here is a great visual defining formative assessment, and comparing it with both pre-assessment and summative assessment from Crockett's Classroom Blog: 

Strategies to keep audience learning during peer presentations

Many teachers incorporate student presentations as an essential part of their classes. The challenge is to ensure that the listeners in the room continue to learn during the presentations.  Giving students a specific assignment to do in relation to the presentation will raise the level of audience thinking and engagement.

First, ask students, “What does it mean to be a good audience member during presentations? How might you maximize your learning from these presentations?” You might want to co-create the success criteria with students on the white board.

For a content-based presentation, you might also ask students to:

1.      1.  Be a critic on the content presented. Students could list strengths/weaknesses of the presented content.
2.       Create a list of questions about the content of the presentations. Teacher could cold-call on 2-3 students after each presentation to share their questions with the presenter. OR, the teacher could ask students in pairs or small groups to record three questions raised by the presentation. They could then choose the best one to add to a Google Doc or place on a Post-It for sharing.
3.       Take notes on the speaker’s presentation.
4.       Write a summary of the presenter’s information.
5.       Develop an argument on the opposing side if the student is trying to argue or persuade the audience.
6.       Think of themselves as researchers needing to develop the next research question, listing the next steps.
7.       Pause between presentations to give students a chance to ask questions, clarify and consolidate their notes with others.
8.       Insert brief demonstrations, short ungraded exercises, and/or simulation exercises between presentations to apply the learning.
9.       Use clickers or electronic programs such as Socrative, Plickers, or Kahoot to find out if students are understanding the material.
10.   Give specific feedback based on the rubric for the presentations

For a presentation evaluated on performance or presentation skills, you might also ask students to:

1.      1.         Complete a rubric on the presenter.
2.      Offer the presenter “Two Stars” (positive feedback) and a “Wish” (suggestion to improve their presentation).

Please share with us any other ideas that you have used in the classroom!

Some of the ideas above came from http://www.usciences.edu/teaching/tips/spal.shtml and   https://www.sdstate.edu/engr/upload/Engaging-Students-ASEE-CoE-3-24-11.pdf

Write About – Formative Assessment Strategy

Read below for rationale, how-to directions and modification tips. You can find the pre-made documents for Kinder, Primary & Intermediate classrooms here.

What? A concrete tool for use in classroom or at home where students summarize what they have learned about a topic using key words and pictures then combine their thinking into a written summary.  This tool is for use with a single concept (ex. Underground Railroad) within a larger unit (ex. Civil War). 

Why? This strategy helps students with long term retention of information and it helps them process information they have learned.  It allows the teacher to see at a glance trends in the information students are grasping and then allows the teacher to fill in gaps where needed.  

How?

1. Provide “Write About” sheet to students at end of lesson.
2. Model how to complete sheet by brainstorming key words and drawing a picture to represent main idea.  The level of independence will be depend on your class and grade level.  This might need to be modeled multiple times, depending on grade level.
3. Demo how to write a summary using the key words from your brainstorm.  Be sure to check off the words as you use them and circle them in your summary.
4. To start, you might want to use the gradual release of responsibility model, first guided by you, then as a whole class, then in pairs and finally on their own, when ready.
5.  Collect paper and provide feedback to students.  You are looking for mastery.  One suggested feedback tip is to use a check to show a student understands most terms and ideas but still has to master others.
6. Plan instruction for the next lesson to fill any gaps in student’s understanding.  Your follow up can be whole class, flexible grouping, or tiered based on data you collected.

Modifications: Expert Groups/Jigsaw, provide template with portions filled in (ex. key words supplied) and have them compete the rest, etc.

You can find the pre-made documents for Kinder, Primary & Intermediate classrooms here.

Learning Targets for Review Days

Have you found yourself wondering how to write a Learning Target for a unit or test review day?  Here are some ideas:

I can identify which learning targets from this unit I have mastered and which ones I still need to practice.  I can create a plan to for working on the targets I haven't mastered yet.

I can identify which skills I can apply independently, and which ones I still need to work on. I can create a plan for how I will practice and/or learn the skills I can't apply independently yet.

I can develop and refine my skills in ________________________.
Student would select specific skill(s) from the unit.

I can apply the skill of ________________________ to novel or real-world situations.


Possible Success Criteria:
Identify the specific material I need to master.
Identify who can help me with my plan for learning what I want to work on.
Identify the resources I will need.
Identify a timeline.



Students will make the best use of their time if they focus on skills they haven't mastered, rather than reviewing every skill or concept taught in a unit.  Setting up this type of review should also allow students to predict fairly accurately how they will perform on an assessment.

If you have students who have already mastered all of the skills or concepts, give them the job of coaching other students during the review.