Third, Fourth, and Fifth Grade Math Differentiation

Differentiation can and should be utilized in every classroom, no matter the grade level or subject being taught.  I’ve found that teachers’ struggles with differentiation tend to be at their highest in third grade, fourth grade, and fifth grade math classrooms, however.  Typically, center-based instruction helps teachers of younger students differentiate, and the gap between students is typically somewhat less at those grades as well.  On the other hand, by the time students get to junior high, class selection plays a role in automatically reducing the gap between student abilities once again, making things more manageable.

So how do we differentiate successfully in, for example, a fifth grade math class?  I suggest the following:

1.  Use pretests.  Break the pretest up into subcategories that align with what you’ll be teaching in this unit.  Any student who gets 90% or higher in a subcategory does not need to complete the regular assignments on that topic and instead goes right to challenge work when you are focusing on that material.

2.  Use tiered lessons.  Break your lesson up into two or three levels of difficulty, with the lowest level being the minimum requirement for your grade level.  Assign students to the level of difficulty you feel is best for them, or allow them to try a few problems from each level to find their best fit.  Each student needs to complete just one of the three levels to officially complete the assignment.

3.  Use technology.  Many online games are easy to differentiate, as they offer a variety of levels of gameplay.  You can assign the proper level to your students or once again allow the students to find their level of best fit.

The biggest problem that teachers usually have is that they don’t have the resources to have enough challenging problems for students who test out of their regular work, so it’s easier to keep everyone at the same basic level.  If you need more problems for your top students, check out the fun  competitions at www.onlinemathleague.com, pick a specific topic of study at www.edhelper.com, or create computation problems at themathworksheetsite.com.  (Even though the computation problems created by that site may not be something you’d want to force-feed to your students too often, they’re better than giving your students something they’ve already proven that they know.)

Whatever you do, do something to ensure that all of your students are working on something they don’t already have mastered.