The most common questions I get asked by new teachers are about multi-level classrooms. Even if your program has leveled classes, it’s likely there’ll still be differences in levels among your students. So what’s a teacher to do? Start by checking out page 9 and 10 in the Introduction of the English Forward Curriculum. Dr. Heide Wrigley shares go-to Tips and Strategies:
- Use visuals and realia
- Allow students chances to express themselves non-verbally
- Vary your pacing
- Paraphrase
- Group students strategically
Because it is such a common issue we work with I’ve added a few more helpful hints to Hedie’s list:
- Get to know your students. This will help you better adapt your class to students’ levels.
- Develop a strong classroom community. Because group work is an important part of the multi-level classroom, a strong classroom community helps students to feel more comfortable working together. The security of a supportive environment also makes it easier for students to take risks, especially those at lower-levels.
- Use open-ended activities. An example of this is a writing or discussion prompt asking students their opinion on an issue. More advanced students can work at a higher level using more elaboration, and lower level students still are able to respond and express their opinions.
- Select topics that are of interest to your students and they have some background knowledge about. Background knowledge helps all students start out with prior knowledge on the topic and puts lower-level students on a more level playing field.
Try these ideas out in the classroom and let us know what you think. Leave a comment or contact me at 512-735-2537.
Want more resources? If you are in the Austin area, contact Tanlyn Roelofs at the Literacy Coalition of Central Texas (512-735-2536) to find out about registering for the next mini-training on multi-level classrooms. And keep watching the Blog and the Teaching Tips pages for more. Next month I’ll be posting a list of online resources for the multi-level classroom.