1. Effectively Differentiate Instruction for All Learning Styles with EduSmart Science

2. Getting to Know You “It’s in the Bag”- Activity
Decorate the outside of a bag with your name
and campus/district/ information and grades/subjects you teach
Choose 3 objects from the table or provide three
objects that describe you in some way.
Pair- share explaining what the items represent.
Partners will introduce each other and
briefly share what they learned about
each other

3. Group Norms Take care of your needs Mute cell phones
Share ideas with the whole group
- jot ideas on sticky notes
- place sticky notes in the “parking lot”
- notes will be shared following breaks

4. Goals
to explore how to successfully address all student learning styles within the same lesson using effective instructional strategies, inquiry-based “hands on activities” and EduSmart Science – a multimedia science resource for grades 3-8
to connect science concepts to environmental issues

5. Agenda Overview of Learning Styles
Overview of effective instructional strategies
Implement effective strategies and address learning styles using Edusmart Science
Time permitting, apply the information presented:
- use an Edusmart subtopic to design and present a “mini-lesson” implementing an effective instructional strategies and a subtopic from
one of the EduSmart Science modules
Door Prizes!!!

6. A word about Journals!

7. Learning Styles What are learning styles?
identify the way a student learns best
have nothing to do with a student’s intelligence or ability
describe the way a student’s brain processes, stores and retrieves information most effectively

8. Three Main Learning Styles
Visual
Auditory
Tactile/ Kinesthetic

9. Characteristics of Visual Learners
learn best by seeing information and can recall visual details
remember information presented in pictures, charts, graphs, diagrams, movies, and demonstrations
visualize while they are reading and writing
doodle and have difficulty following lectures
and oral instructions
can remember faces but have difficulty remembering names
prefer to read silently
like to write down instructions

10. Characteristics of Auditory Learners
learn better by listening to explanations than by reading about them
follow spoken directions well, but have trouble following written directions
read slowly and prefer to read out loud
enjoy oral discussions, working in groups and giving oral reports
are good at explaining
talk to themselves while learning something new
need to have things explained orally
can’t keep quiet for long periods of time

11. Characteristics of Tactile/ Kinesthetic Learners
process information best through “hands on” experiences and whole body movements
like science labs, role playing and building models
have trouble sitting still, but writing things down makes learning easier
like adventure books and movies
like to move around while listening or talking
talk with their hands
remember by recalling who did what
like to touch things in order to learn
about them

12. Learning styles research shows:
65% of students are predominantly visual learners
20%-30% of students are predominantly auditory learners
5%-15% of students are predominantly tactile/ kinesthetic learners
Pass out learning style inventory. Ask, “What type of learning style best describes you?”
How can you determine a student’s predominant learning style?

13. Learning Style Inventories
Free online:
Printable:
Show learning style inventories online; pass out learning style inventories

14. Think- Write- Pair- Compare
How can this information be used to enhance instruction and impact student achievement?
Think for 30 seconds.
Write down your thoughts.
Pair with a partner and take turns sharing for 30 seconds.
Group share with those at your table for 1 minute, taking turns.
Choose 1 group observation to share with the whole group.

15. Let’s take a quick break!

16. Instructional Strategies that are Effective for All Learners
establish learning goals/ objective(s)
cue thinking, assess and activate prior knowledge
effective questioning
non-linguistic representations
cooperative learning
generate and test hypothesis
provide specific and timely feedback
identifying similarities and differences ****
summarizing and note taking ****
journaling facilitates reflection and metacognitive thinking
Disclaimer!!

17. The Rock Cycle

18. Establish Objective(s)
students can’t hit a target they can’t see - restate objectives in student friendly language
enables progress to be tracked
revisit them at the end of the lesson so students can evaluate their level of mastery in relation to the target (Assessment for Learning)

19. Effective questioning can be used to:
pre-assess level of knowledge
cue and activate prior knowledge
focus learning
maximize student engagement
assess mastery
uncover misconceptions

20. Assess/Activate Prior Knowledge and Cue Thinking
provides students with a preview of what they will experience
helps students recall what they already know about a topic
activating prior knowledge is critical for learning and retaining new information
should focus on information that is essential for understanding the concept

21. Non-linguistic Representations
generating mental pictures
using graphic organizers
creating physical models
drawing pictures and pictographs
engaging in whole body movement
facilitates building vocabulary comprehension and retention as students construct their own meaning

22. Cooperative Learning
assigning roles holds students accountable to the group
creates positive interdependence
promotes interactions and academic discourse
provides for group and individual accountability
groups should be 3-4 students
should be applied consistently and systematically
but not overused
includes formal, informal and base groups

23. Provide Feedback
focus feedback on specific knowledge and skills and provide as soon as possible following the task
feedback provides students with information that enables them to determine where they are in relation to the target (goal or learning objective)
should point out what is correct as well as what is not
student initiated feedback is most beneficial (assessment of learning)
rewarding genuine effort has a positive effect

24. Identifying Similarities and Differences
comparing important characteristics is the basis used to identify similarities and differences
classifying is the process of grouping things that are alike on the basis of characteristics
creating analogies show how seemingly dissimilar things are similar

25. Similarities and Differences
through note-taking
using a foldable to create a graphic organizer

26. Summarizing a skill that must be taught and practiced
choose information that is essential in order to understand the concept
discard information that is not essential
add or substitute words for clarity

27. Creating a Group Summary
Give each student 3 index cards per
subtopic
On each card, students write one thing that is important to remember about the subtopic
Students share cards, combine statements in common
Add statements they agree need to be added

28. Using Edusmart Science to support inquiry-based, 5E instruction:
Force and Motion

29. How does this work with 5E?
Engage
Explore
Explain
Elaborate
Evaluate

30. Links Teaching Academic Vocabulary
Marzano’s Six Step for Teaching Academic Vocabulary and Games