Inclusive Lesson Plannig and Instructional Strategies
Inclusive Lesson Plannig and Instructional Strategies
The Planning Pyramid provides guidelines for planning instruction in inclusive classrooms.
DEGREES OF LEARNING
The Planning Pyramid has three layers, termed Degrees of Learning. The layer at the base of the
pyramid represents "what all students will learn." This layer contains the largest volume of
material. The middle layer represents ''what most, but not all students will learn"; and the
smallest layer represents "what some students will learn." The premise is that all students can
learn, but all students may not be ready to learn all of the content covered. The most important
part of the Planning Pyramid occurs before instruction.
In an inclusive classroom, it's not only what the teachers cover, but also how
it is covered that determines what students learn. The second component of
the Planning Pyramid, Points of Entry, guides teachers to think about factors
that will affect the learning experience. The Points of Entry we consider for
learning are students, teacher, topic, setting, and instructional practices.
When planning for instruction, teachers consider how each Point of Entry
might influence the learning experience.
Putting thought into Points of Entry will facilitate planning and instruction
because issues will be identified that affect students' behavior, interest, and
understanding before they come up in your classroom.
ACCOMMODATIONS
Accommodations are adjustments that teachers and school personnel make to maximize
learning and social well-being for individual students. Accommodations can involve
anything from arranging desks so a student with a walker is able to navigate the
classroom to asking a parent volunteer to make tape recordings of class novels for a
student who is not able to read grade-level texts independently. Bradley, King-Sears, and
Tessier-Switlick (1996) suggest that accommodations "begin with creativity and end with
logistics." Considering a lesson in terms of the Points of Entry, teachers may outline which
accommodations will be chosen and for whom.
Many teachers find it useful to create a customized accommodation checklist for each
student with special needs. Table 1 contains a partial list of accommodations that are
feasible for most classrooms. A checklist helps teachers get away from relying on the
same accommodations again and again. Note that these are only a sampling of possible
accommodations, and teachers can develop a list that works for their teaching style and
individual student needs.
Accommodation Checklist
Instruction
Use a multisensory approach. Seat student close to board, teacher, or
student helper: away from door or window.
Use a highly structured format for
presentations. Provide a quiet work area.
Use graphic organizers. Allow students to move if needed.
Present material in small, sequential steps. Use visual reminders as memory aids.
Teach specific strategies (e.g. taking notes, Use teacher-initiated signals for redirecting
reading comprehension). attention.
Review key points frequently. Highlight sections of text.
Assign a buddy reader or note taker. Provide tape recording of lecture or required
texts.
Provide students with outline of notes.
Give oral and written directions.
Use color coding to match materials and
concepts. Speak slowly and clearly.
Reduce visual distractions. Allow for longer response time.
Organization and Task Completion
We offer the following suggestions for using the planning pyramid in the classroom.
1. Lesson overview - Begin by thinking about the lesson. Use the Points of Entry as a
guideline to ensure that an array of variables is considered. How will the topic, teacher,
students, and setting affect the instruction for this lesson?
2. Degrees of learning - Identify concepts for each of the Degrees of Learning and record
them on the lesson planning form (Figure 2). Use state or district guidelines, grade-level
team plans, textbook objectives, and personal judgment to establish objectives for each
level of the Planning Pyramid. Consultation with colleagues or school personnel to help
identify areas of potential difficulty for students with disabilities may be helpful. What
key vocabulary, concepts, or advanced organizers will be provided to set the stage for a
successful learning experience for the students?
Lesson Planning
Form
3. Instructional strategies
Identify the instructional strategies that will be used during this lesson. Refer to students'
accommodations checklists to ensure that necessary adaptations have been considered. At this point,
consider the following areas in terms of students with special needs (Schumm, Vaughn, & Harris, 1997):
• Grouping (cooperative learning with assigned roles, pairs)
• Presenting information (introduce key vocabulary, modify pacing of instruction)
• Learning strategies (provide outline for note taking, teach comprehension strategies)
• Reading levels (supply study guides, peer to read questions; provide books at different reading levels.
4. Sequence of activities
List the sequence of activities on the lesson planning form. Remember that this is the agenda for all
levels. Be sure to note how the lesson will be adapted for the degrees of learning. Record any special
accommodations (chunk assignment into smaller pieces, produce work on computer). List the materials
needed to implement the lesson and homework assignments
5. Evaluation
Decide how progress will be monitored and record it on the lesson planning form. Teachers check for
understanding throughout lessons by asking questions, monitoring work, facilitating discussions, and assessing
student work. By evaluating performance in a variety of ways, teachers can make instructional decisions to
maximize student learning. Is there a need to review the material for certain students, present concepts in
another form, or move on to the next topic?
Tests are a common way to evaluate learning. For this reason, it is especially important for tests accurately
to reflect what students know. Accommodations and adaptations on tests are often necessary to allow
students with individual differences to perform to their fullest capability. Not all students will require every
accommodation. Therefore, use of the individualized accommodations checklist will guide decisions relative
to testing modifications.
Students should be prepared to take tests. They should be familiar with the directions and format before
taking the test. Provide opportunities to complete sample items and teach test-taking strategies such as
carefully reading the directions or answering the easy questions first. When preparing tests, make sure the
print is clear and large enough to read easily. Write directions plainly and in simple sentences and read
directions aloud if needed. Leave adequate space between items and in spaces and delete any unnecessary or
distracting information (Salend, 1995).
Provide a shortened version of the test or an alternate format for students with individualized learning
objectives. During testing, allow extra time to complete the test and provide breaks if needed. And if it is
not necessary to use a traditional test format, try other ways to evaluate learning such as portfolios of
student assignments, projects, reports, individual conferences, and self reflection.
6. Reflection
After the lesson, reflect on how concepts at all degrees of learning were
presented and evaluate student understanding. After two or three lessons,
assess the use of the Planning Pyramid.
If necessary, make alterations to fit personal working style. If other
colleagues are also using the Planning Pyramid, share ideas and consider
suggestions for improvement.
FEEDBACK ON THE PLANNING PYRAMID
General education teachers at the elementary, middle school, and high school
levels have used the Planning Pyramid. Teachers have provided positive
feedback for its use in classes of students with diverse needs.
Observations of teachers using the Planning Pyramid inform us that teachers
increase the explicitness and clarity about what students must learn. Students
are not bogged down by the overwhelming amount of information presented
and have a clearer grasp of what they should know and how to accomplish the
tasks that lead to new understanding (Schumm et al., 1994)
Alter the instructional arrangement
Groups of the same size don’t always work for all students. Keep an eye on what types of
arrangements different learners respond to best. Here are some options for adapting the
arrangement of students during class time:
Let your student work in a group of three when most of her classmates work in groups of four
or five.
Have your student team up with a peer partner when most of his classmates are working
individually.
Add variety to small-group work: when most classmates are working in student-directed
small groups, have the student and a few selected classmates work in a small group that you
sit with and help support.
Alter the physical or social environment
A student’s surroundings can have a huge impact on how he or she learns. Be mindful of and
responsive to students with sensory and attention issues, and make changes to the learning
environment to meet their needs. Some examples:
Give your student the choice to sit at a table instead of a desk (or vice versa).
Get your student a larger (or smaller) desk, depending on her preference.
Let students with sound sensitivities work in a particular part of the classroom, such as a
“quiet space” or study carrel.
Give easily distracted students the option of sitting at a desk closer to the board. You could
even arrange for the student to complete certain tasks in another part of the school
campus, such as the media center or outdoors.
Alter your methods and materials
When you teach a new lesson, offer your learners many different ways to engage with and absorb the
content. For example:
Incorporate more visuals to present content in different ways, such as maps, pictures, drawings,
objects, or videos.
Use graphic organizers to arrange key points in a way students can easily grasp.
Provide additional models or demonstrations for students who need extra support during the lesson.
Select concrete materials instead of symbolic representations, or illustrate symbolic representations
with concrete examples.
Make the most of whatever technology is available to you–enhance your lesson with whiteboards,
streaming videos, or remote clickers.
Check for understanding more frequently, using methods that require active responses from your
students. For example, try asking questions about the lesson material and have your class vote on the
answers.
Provide students with differentiated reading material based on their reading level and/or interests.
Make content easier to learn by giving your student enhanced texts in which key parts are highlighted,
pictures or symbols are added, and/or text is enlarged.
Alter the process or task
For some learners, you may want to modify or reduce the requirements of assignments. And be sure to give all
your learners multiple means of action and expression (the third pillar of the UDL framework). Let them show
what they know in a variety of innovative ways, depending on how they best express themselves. Some
examples:
Have your student follow written, pictorial, or audio-recorded task steps instead of giving them oral
instructions.
Modify essay assignments–instead of writing an essay, your student could demonstrate understanding of the
content by completing a chart, developing a text-to-speech presentation, or creating an outline.
Reduce the number of items students are expected to complete. For example, your student can receive the
same math worksheet as the rest of the class, but you can ask him to complete only the odd-numbered
items.
Give your student the option of using the same materials as the rest of the class, but in a different way. On
a math worksheet, she could locate and mark certain numerals instead of completing problems.
Suggest note-taking helpmates such as guided notes or a slot-note note format, so students can more easily
record and recall key information.
Allow for more creative ways for students to show what they know. Artistic students might build a model,
create a poster, or draw a map a in place of a written assignment.
Alter the level of personal assistance
For learners who need extra support with some tasks, enlist helpers such as peers, a special educator, or a
paraprofessional. They can provide assistance in a variety of ways, depending on the learner’s needs:
Have the helper model the steps of a task before the student performs them on her own.
Encourage helpers to provide additional prompts (verbal, gestural, or partial physical) when students need
them.
Assign the helper to complete some of the task steps with or for the student.
Ask the helper to give the student immediate feedback and additional encouragement to reinforce
successes.
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