Differentiating reading in an elementary classroom was my biggest challenge as an inclusion teacher so read some tips that helped me! I am here to share some ideas that worked for me and I hope they can work for you too!
Colored Tabs – Great for for differentiating reading
Colored flag tabs were great for a variety of reasons work great for differentiating reading in an elementary classroom. I used them for fiction and non-fiction reading. Students and I assigned topics (main idea, details, setting, characters) to the different colored tabs. Using the colored tabs was a visual way to help my students recall information. It was beneficial because they could find information easier. We did this throughout the school year and it prepared them for standardized testing. Their state testing is online and has a highlight feature for passages.
Graphic Organizers – for differentiating reading
Graphic organizers will simplify the expectations for students to help differentiate reading in an elementary classroom. Despite the teacher doing a great job explaining the assignment not all students are auditory learners. When a graphic organizer is given it can eliminate some questions for students. For example, we completed a reading/writing lesson on animals. Students had to read and find facts about an animal. I made these graphic organizers (pictured below) to show students exactly how many facts were needed for each section. These provided the students a template to know their expectations. It could relieved the uneasy feeling of not knowing what is too much or too little.
Simplifying Worksheets
Simplifying worksheets may seem like a no-brainer, but it is something we can easily forget. It does not have to be “Pinterest pretty”. It can be using a sharpie to mark out answers or defining a space where the students needs to write. Additional ideas are giving the students use multiple choice answers, having them fill in blanks for taking notes.
For our bookclub unit, we used a book with a lower reading level. I created worksheets to go along with the theme used each day. Students had cut and paste options for retell, or writing the numbers 1,2,3 next to the sentence. I had multiple choice options and fill in the blank answers. We worked on retelling, context clues, prediction, main idea, details, and more just using this one book!
If these tips were helpful check out my blog post on tips for differentiating math!
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