Inclusive education is a cornerstone of modern teaching practices, emphasizing the importance of adapting the curriculum to cater to the diverse needs of all students. One crucial aspect of this adaptation is addressing receptive and expressive language skills. Language is not only a means of communication but also a tool for learning, and it plays a pivotal role in a student’s academic success. In this blog post, we will explore strategies and considerations for adapting the curriculum to meet the needs of all students.
Adapting the Curriculum: Strategies and Considerations
Differentiated Instruction to Meet the Needs of All Students:
Recognize that students have varying levels of proficiency in receptive and expressive language. Tailor your teaching methods to accommodate these differences. Provide multiple avenues for students to access information and demonstrate their understanding. For instance, offer both written and oral instructions or assessments to cater to different learning styles.
Something that I like to do is to add an active component to what I am teaching. An example of this is in our school’s English Language Arts Curriculum the first story that the students are read is a fable about an old woman and a magic bow. The point or moral of the story is that there is no magic there is only effort and trying again to accomplish your goal. To teach this I brought in a target game and taught my students to say ” I will try again” and allowed them to play until they were successful. We then had a concrete way to discuss how sometimes something you want to achieve takes practice.
When we read the story “It’s Mine” by Leo Lionni we acted out with props the story. The story is about three frogs that are constantly fighting and being selfish. Acting out the story helped the students understand the characters, setting, problem and the sequence of events. By having activities that have visual, auditory and tactile supports we are adapting the curriculum to meet the needs of all students.
Visual Aids to Meet the Needs of All Students
Incorporate visual aids such as charts, diagrams, and images into your lessons. These can help students with receptive language difficulties by providing additional context and support comprehension. For expressive language development, encourage students to create their visual representations, diagrams, or drawings to convey their ideas.
I add rebus reads to many of my adapted books. Rebus reads are pictures that represent words. It requires that the children read from left to right and can sometimes have the child learning some of the words that are used consistently.
Vocabulary Building to Meet the Needs of All Students
Actively work on expanding students’ vocabulary. Teach new words and phrases within the context of your curriculum. Offer opportunities for students to use these words in both written and spoken assignments, promoting the development of expressive language skills.
One of the best ways to assist a child with vocabulary is to preview and teach the vocabulary before a child needs to use the vocabulary to understand the curriculum. I will go through the book or unit and look at what vocabulary the students might not understand paying particular attention to tier two vocabulary. These are vocabulary words are words that are primarily seen in text across multiple contexts. Then I take these words and use them in a variety of activities making sure that I included hands on activities as well as visual and auditory clues for the student. We together make personal dictionaries and keychains to continue to review and reinforce the vocabulary words.
Scaffolded Learning to Meet the Needs of All Students:
Break down complex tasks into smaller, more manageable steps. This approach benefits students with receptive language challenges by providing structured guidance. For expressive language development, gradually increase the complexity of writing or speaking assignments as students progress.
Peer Collaboration to Meet the Needs of All Students:
Foster peer collaboration and discussion in your classroom. Group activities can help students develop both receptive and expressive language skills. Encourage students to explain concepts to their peers, which reinforces their understanding and strengthens their expressive language abilities.
Feedback and Revision to Meet the Needs of All Students:
Provide constructive feedback on written and spoken assignments. This not only helps students improve their expressive language skills but also enhances their receptive language skills as they learn to interpret and apply feedback.
Adapting the curriculum to meet the needs of all students is a fundamental responsibility of educators. Focusing on receptive and expressive language skills is particularly important because language serves as the gateway to learning and communication. By implementing differentiated instruction, visual aids, vocabulary building, scaffolded learning, peer collaboration, feedback, and individualized plans, educators can create an inclusive learning environment where every student has the opportunity to excel, regardless of their language abilities. Remember, it is through such adaptations that we empower students to reach their full potential and become effective communicators and lifelong learners.
Related Blogs:
- FOUR WAYS TO PROVIDE SUPPORTS TO THE CURRICULUM
- UNDERSTANDING THE COMPLEXITY OF CHOOSING TIER TWO VOCABULARY
- SPEECH AND LANGUAGE PATHOLOGIST ROLE IN THE SCHOOLS
