Learning Strategies

Active Learning Strategies

• Alternatives to Whole Class Question/ Answer

• Ways to Engage All Learners• Communicate High Expectations• Check for Understanding

If You Want Students to Work in Pairs

Think – Pair – Share• Ask a Question• Discuss with Neighbor• Share Responses with Whole

Group or Table

If You Want Students to Summarize Their

Learning3 -2 - 1• 3 Important Events in Person’s Life• 2 Questions You Would Like to Ask

This Person if You Could Talk to Them• 1 Way in Which You Are Like This

Person

If You Want to Check for Understanding

Use Signal Cards• Instruct Students to Raise Signal Cards

to Answer Questions• Example: Mean, Median, Mode,

Range

If You Want Students to Activate Prior Learning

4 Corners• Pose a Question That has Multiple

Answers.• Ask Students to Move to the Corner

of the Room With Other Students Who Share the Same View.

If You Want Students to Summarize Their

LearningTicket to Leave• To Provide Formative Assessment

Data• Name Something Learned Today.• What Will You Tell Your Parent That

You Learned Today?

Motivation

• Motivation to learn or participate is essential to the success of any intervention approach.– For an intervention to be effective for a student

with learning problems, the individual must be motivated.

– For adolescents with learning problems, it’s a roadblock to school success.

Motivation to ParticipateThe adage

“You can lead a horse to water, but you can’t make him drink.”

May be altered to …

“Although you can’t make a horse drink the water, you can salt the hay.”

• Time for listening to music on a CD or MP3 player

• Tokens for progress on academics• Tangible reinforcers such as restaurant

coupons, magazines, and movie tickets• Exemption from some homework or

assignments• Extra time for a break or lunch

Examples of Extrinsic Motivation

Extrinsic Motivation Cont.

• The most useful techniques include:–token economies–contingency contracting–verbal feedback

Content Instruction• In most educational programs,

adolescents with learning problems spend the majority of their school day in general education classes.

• The general education teacher must individualize and modify instruction to accommodate the needs of students with learning problems.

Problem-Solving Sequencefor General & Special Educators• Determine the requirements for “making it” in the general

class.• Specify the course requirements that the student is not

satisfying.• Identify factors hindering the student’s performance.• Brainstorm possible classroom accommodations.• Select a plan of action.• Implement the plan.• Evaluate the plan.

Adapting Materials

• Developing parallel curriculum• Simplifying texts• Using audio texts

Effective Teaching Strategies for Direct Instruction• Specify clear lesson objectives • Teach directly to those objectives • Make learning as concrete and

meaningful as possible • Provide relevant guided practice • Provide independent practice • Provide transfer practice activities

Teacher Vision

Strategies for Students with Disabilities *

• Sequence – Break down the task, step by step prompts.

• Drill-repetition and practice-review – Daily testing of skills, repeated practice, daily feedback.

• Segment – Break down targeted skill into smaller units and then synthesize the parts into a whole.

• Direct question and response – Teacher asks process-related questions and/or content-related questions.

Strategies Cont.

• Control the difficulty or processing demands of a task – Task is sequenced from easy to difficult and only necessary hints or probes are provided.

• Technology – Use a computer, structured text, flow charts to facilitate presentation, emphasis is on pictorial representations.

• Group Instruction – Instruction occurs in a small group, students and/or teacher interact with the group.

• Supplement teacher and peer involvement – Use homework, parents, or others to assist in instruction.

• Strategy clues – Reminders to use strategies or multi-steps, the teacher verbalizes problem solving or procedures to solve, instruction uses think-aloud models.

H.L. Swanson

Study Skills• Many students with learning problems lack study

skills and need instruction to learn them.• 11 study skills: (Hoover, 1993)

– Reading rate– Listening– Note taking/outlining– Report writing

11 Study Skills (cont’d)– Oral presentation– Graphic aids– Test taking– Library use– Reference/dictionary use– Time management– Self-management of behavior

Testing• Students with learning problems

frequently have difficulty displaying their knowledge or skills on tests. Modifications in test formats often help them perform better.

Suggestions for Improving Test Performance

• Give frequent, timed mini-tests.• Use alternative response forms.• Multiple choice alternatives.• Short answer alternatives.• Essay alternatives.• Provide a tape of the test items.• Leave ample white space between test questions, and underline key

words in the directions and test items.• Provide test-study guides that feature various answer formats.• Provide additional time for the student who writes slowly, or use test

items that require minimal writing. Oral tests also may be given and the answers recorded on tape.

The five strategies to help students with disabilities get the most from their homework are: 1. Give clear and appropriate assignments. 2. Make accommodations in homework

assignments. 3. Teach study skills. 4. Use a homework planner. 5. Ensure clear home/school communication. 

Cynthia Warger, 2001