Sunday, September 8, 2013

Planning for All Learners


 Review of http://www.cast.org/teachingeverystudent/toolkits/tk_introduction.cfm?tk_id=21 – Planning for all learners- a toolkit for UDL!

 After reviewing the site in my previous post, we should all know that UDL is based on meeting the needs of every student in our classroom in the best way possible. Sounds nice, but what to do when you have 30 students all with different needs? WHOA! Overwhelming? Maybe to some! If you are currently a teacher and experience the demands of not only classroom management, new curriculum and books, parents, faculty obligations outside of the classroom, UDL can seem like an impossible task! Trust me, this year I am staring at my plans constantly wondering how I’m going to meet all the needs I am coming across in my room of 26 this year! It is a daunting task at the least.

HOLD ON! Don’t run away from teaching just yet! The site above has come to the rescue!

This site introduced me to PAL, meaning Planning for All Learners! Just what we teachers need, a plan! The plan builds on two prerequisites:

        1. A basic understanding of Universal Design for Learning, and
        2. Commitment of participating educators to make the curriculum and learning accessible for all learners.

So now I have a basic understanding of UDL and I definitely have a commitment to my profession and students, now I just need to follow this plan. Below is a diagram of the 4 steps.

The first is setting goals. Next, is analyzing status. Then, apply UDL. Finally, Teach the UDL lesson.  An in depth description of each is provided on the site.                      

                              

The BEST thing about this site? You can practice PAL with provided templates and tutorials!!!

Off to some practicing….. ~ Michelle
 
What do you think of PAL? Is this something you find useful for your lesson plans?
 
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2 comments:

  1. UnknownSeptember 8, 2013 at 2:28 PM

    I think PAL is awesome! Planning for all learners is a term I was introduced to just a few days ago. However, it is a tool I will be using quite frequently to make implementing UDL in my classroom a lot easier. Personally, I found the PAL toolkit very helpful. I especially liked the downloadable documents, the section where teachers can list students in each category will definitely take the difficulty out of planning because the information is right there for you. This is definitely something I could use when planning for my kindergarten students. The challenging part will then be actually implementing the different activities.

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  2. Assistivetechnology786September 25, 2013 at 1:59 PM

    You've gained valuable UDL perspectives to integrate into your teaching!

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