Tiered and Tiered and Anchor ActivitiesAnchor Activities

Rebecca Mannrlmann@purdue.edu

Tiered ActivitiesTiered ActivitiesTiered Instruction features:Whole group introduction and initial instruction Identification of developmental differences Increase or Decrease the:

AbstractionExtent of SupportSophisticationComplexity of goals, resources, activities & products

What constitutes a tiered What constitutes a tiered activity?activity?

• A focus on a key concept – parallel tasks

• Adjust to students’ achievement levels

• Adjust number of steps to the students’ productivity levels

• Students working with appropriately challenging tasks

• Result = Respectable work for everyone

• Students understand why they are all not doing the same thing.

Zone of Proximal Development

• The difference between what a child can do with help and what he or she can do without help (Vygotsky, 1979).

• Allowed to work in your ZPD, you will be in a state of moderate challenge.

ZPD• Moderate

Challenge– Know

something– Have to

think– Must

persist– Effort leads

to success

• Too Hard– Don’t

know where to start

– Missing skills

– Can’t solve– Makes no

sense

• Too Easy– Already

knows– Gets it

quickly– No effort

needed

Based on C. Tomlinson, 2004

Information, Ideas, Materials, Applications

Representations, Ideas, Applications, Materials

Resources, Research, Issues, Problems, Skills, Goals

Directions, Problems, Application, Solutions,

Approaches, Disciplinary Connections

Application, Insight, Transfer

Solutions, Decisions, Approaches

Planning, Designing, Monitoring

Pace of Study, Pace of Thought

The Equalizer

Foundational Transformational

Concrete Abstract

Simple Complex

Single Facet Multiple Facets

Small Leap Great Leap

More Structured More Open

Less Independence Independence

Slow Quick

Essential Steps

1. Know your students’ interests, learning styles, and ability levels

2. Identify your learning objective

3. Determine how you will get students to that goal

Ensure the Mastery of Basic Skills:

Mastery Not MasteryRecognition of situation requiring repeated addition, uses multiplication to shorten solution process

Uses variety of basketball passes depending on best strategy for the moment

Explain role of any word in sentence & explain how role changes based on placement

Can automatically recite multiplication facts

Primarily uses the bounce pass in basketball regardless of its potential effectiveness

Can match parts of speech to its definition

Wormeli, 2006

Preassessment OptionsPreassessment OptionsTextbook Pretest

Student/Teacher Conference - as short as a 5 minute talk

K-N-W Chart - What do I Know, Need to know & Want to know

Journal - Write what you know about...

List - If I say ...What does it make you think of?

Product - Draw a bar graph...Use the graphing calculator to plot...

Concept Map...

Five Hardest

Essential Steps

1. Know your students’ interests, learning styles, and ability levels

2. Identify your learning objective

3. Determine how you will get students to that goal

The PlanetsThe Planets• Average students: Write a sentence, giving an

important fact, about Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune, Pluto as you pass on your way.

• Above average students: Research the planets that you will pass and fill out the Solar System Comparison Graphic Organizer.

• High End Learners: Research the planets that you will pass and create a visual product that shows the earth in relation to the other planets.

Beginning ProbabilityBeginning ProbabilityTask 1: It’s early Monday morning and your mother has laid out the

following clothing items for you to choose from: a red shirt, a blue shirt, a white shirt, blue jeans, and khaki pants. How many different outfits can you make with the clothes your mother has provided?

Task 2: You are making cupcakes for a class celebration. Your classmates have indicated that they would like a choice of different cupcakes. You have: chocolate and yellow cake batter; strawberry, white, and caramel icing; and green and blue sprinkles. How many different types of cupcakes can you offer your classmates?

Task 3: You are trying to determine your schedule for next year at Leonard Middle School. First period, you can take art, chorus, or band. Second period, you can take technology or creative writing or be an office assistant. Third period, you can take a foreign language: German, Spanish, French, or Latin. Figure out how many different schedules are possible based on these options.

More work or More work or No work for you?No work for you?

How could you change the probability lesson for the high end students so that you will have as little prep as possible?

Tiered Activity: BiographiesTiered Activity: BiographiesLevel Prompt

Tier 1: These students benefit from structure and direct instruction.

Write a biography of your famous person. Use the timeline you created to help you organize your ideas. Remember to answer the following questions as you write.When and where was your famous person born?Where did your person live while growing up? What was his or her childhood like?What did he or she do when he or she became an adult?Why is your person famous?

Tier 2: These students can organize ideas without too much prompting.

Write a biography of your famous person. Use your timeline to help you organize your ideas. Remember to emphasize why your person is famous.

Tier 3: These students thrive on high levels of challenge.

Tell the reader about your famous person’s life through a series of letters written over his or her lifespan from that person to a friend.

Natural ResourcesPrompt 1: Every day our custodians throw out a tremendous amount of trash. What can we do at our school to reduce the amount of trash we throw out each day? Come up with a plan that you can present to the principal that explains your solution to our trash problem.

Prompt 2: Every day our custodians throw out a tremendous amount of trash. What can we do at our school to reduce the amount of trash we throw out each day?Think about these different types of trash:

PaperFoodPlastic Cans and other metals

Come up with a plan that you can present to the principal that explains your solution to our trash problem.

Prompt 3: Our school custodians have a problem. Each day they throw out a large amount of paper. They would like to save as many trees as possible and would like to come up with a plan to recycle the paper used in the classrooms. Your job is to come up with a plan for the custodians. Step 1: With a partner, talk to the custodians to find out what they do with the paper now. Ask them if they have any ideas about how to solve the problem.Step 2: With your group, brainstorm ideas for solving the paper problem.Step 3: Use the PMI (Plus, Minus, Interesting) strategy to sort your ideasStep 4: Write up 2 different plans using your “Plus” ideas.

Vacation Time!Vacation Time!

Family plans to average 50 miles per hour and travel 6 hours per day stopping twice to eat for an hour each time.

Prompt One

Given the cost of gas and mpg of car

Prompt Two

Given mpg of car

Prompt Three

Asked to approximate cost and justify answer

Calculate approximate cost of gas

How long will it take to get to their destination?

How many nights?

Cost of hotel is about $80 per night – calculate hotel cost for trip to destination.

How long will it take?

How many nights will they need to spend in hotels?

Calculate hotel cost for trip to destination.

How long? How many nights?

Find hotels that include breakfast.

Calculate hotel costs for each stay.

Differentiation Quiz…1. Should every student

do it?

2. Would every student want to do it?

3. Could every student do it?

Teachers who differentiate find…Teachers who differentiate find…• Greater understanding of the concepts

• All students experience challenge

• Ability to apply concepts/skills to new situations and daily life

• Students are excited

• Students have ownership

• Students are more independent learners

• Students have more metacognitive skills

• Students have greater mastery of content

• Students have problem solving skills

• Students are able to initiate their own projects.

“Summer’s over

kids! Now, all

you round

pegs get back into your

square holes!”

NCLB