What are teaching strategies?

Teaching strategies are alternative ways a teacher can provide instruction to those who may need alternative means of instruction.  Teaching strategies can be changes that are made to the curriculum, or changes made to the environment.  Different teaching strategies can also include different types of prompting and chaining of instruction

Why use different teaching strategies?

Using different teaching strategies can help meet the different learning styles.  Different teaching strategies can help individual who may have an auditory processing disorders, a visual processing disorders, a learning disabilities, ADD/ADHD, a developmental disability, or Autism by teaching to the student’s strengths and breaking down the learning process.   Different teaching strategies can include modifications, accommodations, and prompting, fading, chaining, or specialized programs.

What are the difference between modifications and accommodations?

Both Modifications and accommodations often used in conjunction with one another as things that are done to help a child be successful.   Modifications are changes made to the curriculum and or lessons, while accommodations are changes made to the environment.

What are different types of modifications?

  The following are different types of modifications that can be made to curriculum.

Size: Modify the number of items that the students must learn or complete. 

For example, a student who has ADD may have a hard time focusing on an entire math worksheet.   By shortening the amount of problems on a math worksheets, can help a student be able focus on the task. Use a sticker or a happy face to show an ending to the task.

Time: Modify the time allotted for learning or completing an assignment.

For example, a student may have a hard time attending to an entire lesson, so appropriate attending may occur if the amount of time is shortened.  Or a student may require more time to complete an assignment, therefore may need to be given more time in order to successfully complete the assignment.

Input:  Change the way the instructions is delivered.

Some students may be visual learners and would work best if they were taught with visual charts or picture. Other students may by auditory learners and learn best through songs. Kinesthetic learners may learn best by using manipulative to help learn new concepts.

Output: Allow the student to respond to the instruction in a different way.

 A student with fine motor difficulties may have a hard time completing a spelling test, by changing the output; the student may be able to use a keyboard to type out the spelling words.

Difficulty: Modify the level of difficulty of the material.

Adjusting the level of difficulty can be done by highlighting the important information in a text book or the answers to questions within the text.  It can also be done by rewording questions in more simple terms.

Participation: Modify the level of participation in the task that the student is doing.

An example of participation would be allowing a student to work with a partner to help read or write an assignment that would otherwise be too difficult to complete individually.

Alternative Goals:  Different goal for the student to meet using the materials.

 Alternative goals are great for inclusive setting.  A student’s goal during a reading assignment may by to sit quietly during read aloud activities, or it can be to hold the book correctly and turn the pages when cued, while the other student’s goal is to read the story and answer comprehension question.

Substitute Curriculum: Use different instruction and material to meet the student’s individual goal.

Special education classrooms often substitute curriculum to meet the individualize goals of their students that regular curriculum may fall short.  Substitute curriculum can also include worksheets and units provided by Teach2Reach in order to help teachers meet the needs of their students.

What are accommodations I can use in my classroom?

There are various accommodations that can be made for a student.  To determine the kinds of accommodations that are needed, it is important to look at the strengths and weaknesses of the individual student.   For example, a student may be a visual learner, therefore a preferential seating to the front of the class may be the accommodation needed for this student.  Preferential seating to the front of the class may also be needed if a student is easily distracted.   Other factors to consider include; communication needs visual needs, auditory needs, fine motor needs, sensory needs, and behavior needs. 

The following are different types of accommodations that can be made to a classroom.

• Assign preferential seating
• Change the physical arrangement of the classroom
• Implement a classroom management system
• Individual token system
• Provide a daily visual schedule
• Allow breaks during the day
• Label the classroom environment
• Provide visual cue
• Minimize visual distractions
• Minimize auditory distractions
• Provide alternative writing tools
• Use weighted vest or seated disc

 What are types of prompt I can use in my classroom?

 A prompt is an extra stimuli place in a learning procedure to provide a response. There are several types of prompts that can be used, some are more intrusive then others. 

 The following are the different types of prompts that can be used:

 Physical Prompting- Hand over hand guidance to help the child perform a skill.

                Providing hand over hand guidance to help a student write their name.

Partial Physical Prompting- Guiding from farther up the arm to help the child perform the skill.

                Guiding a student from the shoulder to help him or her line up appropriately.

Gestural Prompting- Pointing or providing another gesture.

                Pointing to the next problem or task the student needs to complete.

Modeling- Demonstration on yourself of the task or skill.

                Model for the student good walking in a line with your hands to your side.

Positional Prompting- Placing the item using a positional advantage.

                Placing the pencil closer to the student to encourage them to begin their work.

Verbal Prompting- Verbally telling the child how and what to do.

                Providing verbal instruction to the student the “sit” or “work.”

Visual Prompting- Provide a visual representation of instruction.

                Providing a picture of the command such as “quiet.”

What is fading?

 When using prompts, it should be the goal to gradually remove the stimuli or the prompt.  This is called fading.

 What is chaining?

 Chaining is a teaching strategy that joins two or more answers into sequence.  There are two types of  chaining; forward chaining and backward chaining. 

 Forward chaining- The skill is taught by starting with the first step of the sequence and move towards the last. 

  For example, to teach a student to write his or her name you would begin by teaching them to write the first letter of their name, then once mastered then next letter of their name is taught.  This chaining procedure continues until the entire name is completed. 

 Backward chaining-Teaching the skills from the last step in the procedure, then progressively moving to the first step.

For example, to teach a student to write his or her name you would begin by teaching them to write the last letter of their name independently, then once mastered then moving backwards next letter of their name is taught.  This chaining procedure continues until the entire name is completed. 

 Backward chaining materials:

                     Keyboard                                                  Backwards Chaining Writing