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Differentiate for All Students

April 1 kicks off Autism Awareness Month; a month-long observance promoting autism awareness, inclusion, and self-determination for all. In the spirit of Autism awareness, we're highlighting some helpful tools to differentiate for all students. Our features this week also include special professional learning archives for you!

Grades K-12

The Differentiator

Try your hand at this Bloom's Taxonomy tool. Develop unique objectives for differentiated instruction. Choose a level of Bloom's Taxonomy, thinking skill, content, resources, expected finished product, and more. This site does the creative work for you!

Grades 1-12

Thrively

Use this tool as an engaging way to assess the strengths and interests of your students. Based on 23 factors specifically for students, you receive a personalized profile including strengths and unique talents. Find ways to meet the needs of each student.

Grades K-12

Yellkey

Instantly shorten a URL. Set the time for how long the URL will remain active, from 5 minutes to 24 hours. Click "generate yellkey" and share. Use this shorter URL to help students (or parents) who may have difficulty typing the longer address.

Differentiating Content Areas

Volcanoes. Photosynthesis. The Universe and more! Find over 200 "Jams" to differentiate in science and math! Differentiation tools for writing, reading, and other subjects are also included below, including the Academic Word Finder -- a site that identifies and analyzes words students may find complicated. 

Grades 5-12

WriteWell

This site offers clear and easy to use writing tools designed to help make the writing process engaging. Search for templates for various types of writing or select from content links on the home page. No account is required, except to save.

Grades 3-8

Study Jams

The "Jams" help to learn new skills in a musical and entertaining manner. Explore engaging instruction and review activities in both math and science. Learn key vocabulary through music. Assessments are available. Read our full review for classroom ideas.

Grades 2-12

Newsela

Explore a collection of leveled reading stories. This site takes an article and creates 4 leveled versions making the content easier to digest for lesser-able readers and more challenging for more advanced readers. See our full review for tech ideas.

Grades 4-12

Academic Word Finder

Copy and paste any text you want to analyze (starting with two to three paragraphs). Select your grade level. This site identifies the vocabulary found in the text and provides additional context with grade range, part of speech, meaning, and examples.

Professional Learning Resources for Differentiation

This trio of professional learning resources from TeachersFirst includes a curated list of game-based learning tools, ideal for differentiation. An archive of a virtual workshop and a Twitter chat, both related to differentiation in your classroom, are included. 

Grades K-12

Game-Based Learning Resources

Peruse this curated list of game-based learning resources. Some tools have already-created games, while others allow you to create your own original games. Engage your students at all levels with these tools.

Grades K-12

OK2Ask: Digital Differentiation with Symbaloo Learning Paths

Are you familiar with Symbaloo Learning Paths? This cool interactive offers gameboard-style virtual lessons designed by you. Create pathways for students to learn at their own speed and infuse the Path with questions, review information, and more.

Grades K-12

Twitter Chat: Student Voice and Choice

View the archive from a differentiation-themed Twitter chat from December 2017. Read tips and tools from the moderators and chat participants. Assess and incorporate students' needs and wants into differentiated instruction.

This Week at TeachersFirst

Which subject do you find to be the easiest to differentiate your content? Share with us in our weekly poll and view other responses. Also, with Easter just around the corner, our Easter-themed tech tools offer egg-citing ideas for your classroom! And our latest blog posts tackle the challenges of middle school teaching and the validity of Internet quotes.