Tiered: Lessons and Assignments

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Tiered Lessons and Assignments

• February 2009
• TAG Office 503-916-3358
• www.tag.pps.k12.or.us

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In our last episodes

• Characteristics of Gifted Students
• Grouping Strategies

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The Big Picture
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And NowBack to our regularly scheduled program

• We bring you Tiered Assignments

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Tiered Assignments (Lessons or Activities)

• Tiered assignments are a differentiation strategy
  where learning tasks and projects are developed,
  based on assessed student need.
• Tiered assignments are intended to provide a
  better instructional match between students and
  their needs.

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At the end of this TAG Episode

• Participants will
• Define Tiered Lessons (or Activities)
• Experience a Tiered Activity
• View multiple ways to Tier

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Why Tier?

• Students arrive with varied
• Cultural and linguistic backgrounds
• Learning opportunities and experiences
• Interests
• Readiness levels

• Teachers vary
• TASK for different levels
• PROCESS for different levels
• PRODUCT appropriately to demonstrate learning

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Tiered Chocolate Activities

• Make a list of descriptive, sensory and/or
  comparative words to describe your chocolate.
• Create 3 SIMILES to help someone understand how
  you feel about your chocolate.
• Create a warning label to attach to your
  chocolate.
• Finish these analogies
• Chocolate is to stress as ___________
• Is to ___________________.
• Chocolate is to happiness as ________
• Is to ___________________.

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There are multiple methods for designing Tiered
Assignments
Tier by.

• Challenge level (Depth)
• Complexity
• Resources

• Outcome
• Process
• Product

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In designing a Standards-based tiered lesson

• Start with grade-level standards, concepts or
  skills
• Modify the content into two to three progressive
  levels of depth and complexity
• Differentiate by process, product, resources or
  outcome

Research, Interview, Read book, Use Internet.
Perform, create, present, write.
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Example of an Elementary tiered assignment Grade
1- Insects

• THE STANDARD L3. Explain why plants and animals
  reproduce their own kind
• Strategic Observe and show structures of an
  insect larva and of an insect adult (mealworm,
  wax worm, milkweed bug, silkworm or butterfly)
• On-level Show the life cycle of a wax worm
  (mealworm, milkweed bug, silkworm or butterfly)
• Advanced Compare the stages of the life cycle of
  a wax worm to the life cycle of another insect

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Example of a Mid-level tiered assignmentGrade
4- Land and Water

• Create an informational brochure meeting E2
  Standard Identify causes of Earths surface
  changesIdentify effects of wind and water on
  Earth materials using appropriate models
• Strategic informs classmates about how land
  features (shape of the land, angle of slope)
  affects the flow of streams and amount of soil
  runoff.
• On-level informs classmates about how land
  features and human activities (dams,
  removing/planting vegetation) interact to affect
  the flow of streams and erosion and deposition.
• Advanced presents various positions about human
  activities affecting water quality and makes a
  recommendation

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Example of a High School tiered assignment within
a Standard

• HS.1 Structure and Function
• ?HS.1.PS.1 Describe the atomic model and explain
  how electron configuration is related to the
  Periodic Table and to chemical properties.
• ?Compare and contrast the atomic model, electron
  configuration and chemical properties of an
  alkali metal, halogen, and noble gas and explain
  the placement of each in the periodic table.
• ?Based on the atomic model, electron
  configuration and chemical properties of an
  alkali metal, halogen, and noble gas, explain the
  placement of each in the periodic table and
  create a method for describing the chemical
  properties of other elements based on their
  relative position to these elements in the
  periodic table.

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Tiered by Resources

• When you choose materials at various reading
  levels and complexity of content, you are tiering
  by resources.
• Use this when there is an activity in which
  varied resources could be matched with student
  needs and readiness.
• This tiering option can be presented as a choice
  to students, based on their different learning
  styles and preferences.

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Examples of Elementary Tiering by Resources

• Leveled reading books
• Different print resources newspapers,
  newsletters, magazines, or primary sources such
  as diaries and journals
• Different technological resources computer
  programs, web searches, etc.
• Interviews work with community mentor
• or expert in a particular field

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Tiered by Product

• At times, you may form groups based on learning
  preferences.
• Once again, giving students options to show their
  understanding helps them feel more in control of
  their own learning, thus providing incentive to
  produce quality products.

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Example of an assignment tiered by Product

• Choose a way to represent the main character in
  the story
• Musical- Develop a song/rap to represent the main
  character.
• Verbal/Linguistic- Write an acrostic poem
  describing the main character.
• Logical- Diagram the main characters
  relationship with others in the book.

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Product Brainstorm

• Go-Around One Protocol
• Person 1 reports one idea that he/she has
  recorded.
• While person 1 reports, other group members
  listen attentively, but do not question or
  comment.
• When person 1 finishes, person 2 reports one of
  his/her recorded ideas while rest of group
  listens attentively.
• Repeat until all group members have reported.
• The group discusses ideas that were reported.

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Using a Teachers Edition for Support

• Does the activity help the student reach the
  standard?
• Is the activity basic or advanced?
• Do the suggested extensions offer more depth and
  more complexity, or just more work?
• Are there multiple activities that provided
  opportunities for tiering the
• content to support the standard?

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Caution

• Be sure that the tasks you design are truly more
  advanced and not simply MORE work.

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How do tiered activities meet the needs of
Special Ed, ESL, Gifted, and General Ed students?
Rate
Level
Matches individual need to content
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Rubrics

• General enough to apply to all tiers
• Key concepts are clear and included
• The Standard that students need to meet is clear
• Students understand how the varied activities,
  resources, products, etc help them demonstrate
  key concepts or State Standards
• Make sure the key concepts are
• evaluated separately from the
• quality criteria

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Rubrics

• Quality, Effort, or Career Related Learning
  Standards (CRLS)
• Criteria for Quality of Product, Measured Effort,
  or CRLS is separate from the evaluation of
  proficiency in meeting the standard.
• Neat, Organized, On-Time work is recognized, but
  not directly tied to meeting the Standard.

• The Standard that students need to meet is clear.
• Key Concepts are included, but general enough to
  apply to all tiers.
• Regardless of assignment, activity (or tier)
  students understand how their work demonstrates
  the standard.

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Additional Resources for Tiered Assignments

• Differentiating Instruction in the Regular
  Classroom by Diane Heacox
• How to Differentiate Instruction in the
  Mixed-Ability Classroom by Carol Ann Tomlinson
• Tiering Assignments Compacting Curriculum
  Its for Everyone! By Lynda Rice

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Take-Away Packet

• All of the handouts provided in your Take-Away
  Packet are available from our website
• www.tag.pps.k12.or.us
• Look in Educator Resources
• Resources for Tiered Assignments
• Tiered Assignments ppt
• K-5 w/common message

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