Content Imperatives Content Imperatives for Differentiating for Differentiating ContentContentAdapted from Educator to Educator Depth and Complexity Icon CardsAdapted from Educator to Educator Depth and Complexity Icon Cards and Riverside Unified School District’s GATE Program

Bakersfield City School DistrictBakersfield City School DistrictExtended Programs DepartmentExtended Programs Department

GATE Services ProgramGATE Services ProgramDecember 2009December 2009

Differentiating ContentDifferentiating Content

Differentiation refers to differing Differentiation refers to differing content, process (or skills) and content, process (or skills) and products of the core curriculum to products of the core curriculum to make that curriculum more make that curriculum more responsive to students’ individual responsive to students’ individual needs, abilities, and interests.needs, abilities, and interests.

Role of Content Role of Content Imperatives in a Imperatives in a Differentiated CurriculumDifferentiated Curriculum

Content imperatives represent a Content imperatives represent a set of terms that activate higher set of terms that activate higher levels of knowing.levels of knowing.

They focus the investigation of a They focus the investigation of a topic of study from a broad, topic of study from a broad, general area to a more structured general area to a more structured and specific one. and specific one.

Role of Content Imperatives in a Role of Content Imperatives in a Differentiated Curriculum Differentiated Curriculum continuedcontinued

They demand more sophisticated They demand more sophisticated resources of information, more resources of information, more analytical thinking to understand analytical thinking to understand the subject matter and more the subject matter and more complicated products to share complicated products to share what has been learned.what has been learned.

Content Imperatives Content Imperatives Relationship with Depth and Relationship with Depth and ComplexityComplexity

The relationship is significant.The relationship is significant. Each set of prompts strengthens Each set of prompts strengthens

students abilities to focus on and students abilities to focus on and investigate knowledge at more investigate knowledge at more advanced and sophisticated levels.advanced and sophisticated levels.

When used in tandem, the content When used in tandem, the content imperatives provide specificity to imperatives provide specificity to those dimensions.those dimensions.

When using both sets When using both sets of promptsof prompts Keep in mindKeep in mind

– The learning experience should be The learning experience should be feasible for the student to feasible for the student to accomplish. accomplish.

– The learning experience should be The learning experience should be worth the time and effort students worth the time and effort students must expend in order to accomplish must expend in order to accomplish the task.the task.

Content Imperatives with Content Imperatives with IconsIcons

Origin:Origin: or how things or how things got started or began.got started or began.

Parallel:Parallel: or how or how areas of study share areas of study share common common characteristics.characteristics.

Convergence:Convergence: or or how ideas meet to how ideas meet to form a new or different form a new or different idea.idea.

Contribution:Contribution: or or the benefit or effect the benefit or effect of some action or of some action or attribute.attribute.

Paradox: Paradox: or how or how things simultaneously things simultaneously can pose opposing or can pose opposing or contradictory ideas.contradictory ideas.