Tech+Book+Reviews

=Differentiating Instruction with Technology in K-5 Classrooms= =by Grace E. Smith & Stephanie Throne= =ISTE= ==

OVERVIEW Harness the 'power of two': Differentiated instruction plus technology equals a better learning environment for diverse students.


 * **//"Differentiating Instruction with Technology in K-5 Classrooms"//** helps today's educators understand how to immediately use technology as a tool to differentiate instruction.
 * The authors provide a variety of practical instructional strategies to accommodate a broad range of learning styles, abilities, and curriculum content.
 * Creative, ready-to-use lessons mapped to curriculum content standards, activities, and templates allow teachers to kick-start their use of technology in differentiating instruction.
 * Learn how to use technology to differentiate by student interest, readiness, ability, learning profile, content, process, and product.
 * A chapter dedicated to applying technology to specific subjects--art, music, physical education, and foreign language--rounds out the instruction-specific content.
 * The final two chapters focus on using technology to assess student learning and manage the differentiated classroom .

One of the strategies suggested in the book is R.A.F.T. R.A.F.T. Strategies The RAFTs Technique (Santa, 1988) is a system to help students understand their role as a writer, the audience they will address, the varied formats for writing, and the expected content. It is an acronym that stands for:


 * R ole of the Writer - Who are you as the writer? Are you Sir John A. Macdonald? A warrior? A homeless person? An auto mechanic? The endangered snail darter?
 * A udience - To whom are you writing? Is your audience the Canadian people? A friend? Your teacher? Readers of a newspaper? A local bank?
 * F ormat - What form will the writing take? Is it a letter? A classified ad? A speech? A poem?
 * T opic + strong Verb - What's the subject or the point of this piece? Is it to persuade a goddess to spare your life? To plead for a re-test? To call for stricter regulations on logging?

Almost all RAFTs writing assignments are written from a viewpoint different from the student's, to another audience rather than the teacher, and in a form different from the ordinary theme. Therefore, students are encouraged to use creative thinking and response as they connect their imagination to newly learned information.  1. Decide on the core concepts and the essential ideas you want students to grasps. 2. Seek out electronic sources, printed sources and other resources that will assist them. 3. Identify and be prepared to discuss to the students: a. Possible roles for them to take on when preparing the final product. b. A range of audiences for the product. c. An assortment of formats for the product. d. An array of topics for the product. 4. Determine how to differentiate the R.A.F.T. (By interest, readiness, etc.) 5. Show students a sample R.A.F.T. assignment, and review the key components together. 6. Design a rubric that you will use to assess final products, and review it with your students. 7. As a students work on their R.A.F.T, circulate among them and help as needed. It is possible to use the R.A.F.T. technique with pairs, triads, or even quarts, but it is a little more difficult with more students in a group. 8. Have students share their creations and assess them.
 * Steps to create a R.A.F.T. **

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[|Resources suggested in the book]
RAFT Writing []

How can a well-designed R.A.F.T.S. prompt promote focus and excitement from a student writer? []

RAFT Graphic Organizer []

RAFT Graphic Organizer Interactive []

RAFT Kidspiration Template []

RAFT: What is it? []

RAFT MS Word Template []