Instructional Strategiesand Best Practices

Meeting the needs of the Middle School Learner

Think, Write, Share

• Work in groups to list three “Research-Based” Instructional Strategies you implement

• List three of your biggest challenges to implementing Best Practices for your students

• List three things/ideas you would like to know when you leave here today.

Examining our Attitudes• Challenging behaviors influence our attitude• Ever-changing needs and learning styles of

students• Have we tried strategies consistently?• Success stories

Effective Teachers DifferentiateContent Process Product

According to students

Readiness Interests Learning Profile

RAPID ROBIN

The “Dreaded Early Finisher”

“I’m Not Finished” Freddie

“It takes himan hour-and-a-halfto watch 60 Minutes.”

One premise in a differentiated classroom:

“ In this class we are never finished---Learning is aprocess thatnever ends.”

Using Anchor(ing) Activities

The Purpose of an Anchor Activity is to:

Provide meaningful work for students when they finish an assignment or project, when they first enter the class or when they are “stumped”.

Provide ongoing tasks that tie to the content and instruction.

Free up the classroom teacher to work with other groups of students or individuals.

Anchor ActivitiesAnchor activities

are ongoing assignments that students can work on independently throughout a unit of study or longer.

Some Anchor Activities “Brain Busters” Learning Packets Activity Box Learning/Interest Centers Vocabulary Work Accelerated Reader Investigations MSPAP or CRT Practice Activities Magazine Articles with Generic Questions or Activities Listening Stations Research Questions or Projects Commercial Kits and Materials Journals or Learning Logs Silent Reading (Content Related?)

Using Anchor Activities to Create Groups

Teach the whole class to work independently andquietly on the anchor activity.

Half the class workson anchor activity.

Other half works ona different activity.

Flip-Flop

1/3 works onanchor activity.

1/3 works on adifferent activity.

1/3 works withteacher---direct

instruction.

1

2

3

ANCHOR ACTIVITIESCan be:

used in any subject

whole class assignments

small group or individual assignments

tiered to meet the needs of different readiness levels

Interdisciplinary for use across content areas or teams

ANCHOR ACTIVITIESWork best:when expectations are

clear and the tasks are taught and practiced prior to use.

when students are held accountable for on task behavior and/or task completion.

Planning for Anchor ActivitiesSubject/Content Area:

Name and description of anchor activity:

How will activity be introduced to students?

- Points - Percentage of Final Grade- Rubric - Portfolio Check- Checklist - Teacher/Student Conference- Random Check - Peer Review- On Task Behaviors - Other _______________

How will the activity be managed and monitored?

Cubing

• What is Cubing?• Cubing is an instructional strategy

designed to help students think about a topic or idea from many different angles. A cube includes 6 commands, one on each of its six faces, followed by a prompt that describes the task the students should do related to the command. Cubing can help students think at different levels of Bloom’s Taxonomy.

Examples of Cube Activities

• Lower Question- Describe the desert using as much information as you can, and involve your five senses in the description.

• Higher Question- Describe how your life would change if you moved to the desert. Use your senses and explain why changes would occur.

Where can I find questions for cubes?

• Worksheets• Textbooks• Study Guide Problems• Teacher Generated/Student Generated• Quizzes

Cubing for a Story

• Write a letter to Character.• Create and perform a puppet show of the story • Create a mural or picture to show a scene from the story.• Make a Venn Diagram to compare and contrast 2 characters, 2 stories, etc…• Develop a story map for Book.• Create an art project that illustrates the sequence of events in the book (1st, 2nd…)• List characteristics of the characters.• Write a different ending.• Write a letter to the author.• Read another book by the same author. Compare and contrast.• Read another book about the same topic. Compare and contrast.• Choose 4 interesting words from the story. Then, use a thesaurus to find synonyms for

each of the words.•

Question Cubes• Who• What• When• Where• Why• How• • Might• Can• Will• Is• Should• Did

Story Starter Cubes

• On the moon• Caught in a Tornado• The Best Vacation• The game winning play• The new invention• Favorite animal• The rainforest• On the farm• Cafeteria Disaster

Other Flexible Groups/ Choices

• Menus• Poetry Studies• Reading Journals• Partner reading• Scavenger hunts• Comic books

TIERED Lessons

Tiered Lessons

• Used to meet the needs of student readiness by providing multiple assignments with the same understandings, but varying degree of difficulty

• They are the “meat and potatoes” of differentiated instruction

Think, Write, Share

• Work in groups to list three “Research-Based” Instructional Strategies you implement

• List three of your biggest challenges to implementing Best Practices for your students

• List three things/ideas you would like to know when you leave here today.