Learning Community for Parents
Independent Learning
Differentiated instruction means
meeting the learning needs and interests
of each student so that she or he can be a successful
learner. To help plan for student success,
parents may share with the teacher the learner's
strengths in a variety of "beyond the classroom" places. Learners, parents, and teachers work
together to set learning goals and action
plans to plan for developmentally appropriate
learning experiences and strategies. Planning
for learners with exceptional needs includes
developing an individual
education plan (IEP).
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As parents, you learn about and support differentiated instruction when you
- share assessment information on what you notice about your daughter or son at home and in the broader community
- think about learning along a continuum
of learning (for example, just
as learning to walk and talk happens at
different times, so, too, does school learning)
- participate in planning for the
next steps along the continuum of learning by assisting with
goal setting and action planning
- model, support, and celebrate new learning at home with your son or daughter
- guide your daughter or son in choosing
a variety of ways to learn and to share
new learning through art, music,
drama, visiting websites, and so on
- celebrate the achievement of goals,
and set new goals for learning
- collect materials (such as buttons, keys, bottle caps, bread tags, cartons, rocks, variety of art media) for mathematics, science, and art, and for discovery and hands-on learning in a collaborative classroom
- ask the teacher why subjects are often integrated to improve student learning
- notice that the classroom may look
and sound different from your schooling
because of new understandings about learning
and teaching (for example, observe students working
in a variety of groupings, choosing
their own topics for investigation, using criteria
to self-assess their work, and so on)
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- visit the classroom to see what
differentiated instruction looks like,
and assist in the learning of the class
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- ask your daughter or son to share her or his portfolio so that you can see evidence of learning over
time
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