• Define your role in differentiating instruction for this student. • Use the checklist in Chapter 9 as a guide to identify the specific steps you must take. ("The EA's Role in Differentiating Instruction for IEPs"- page 92)

DIFFERENTIATING INSTRUCTIONS Differentiated instruction is defined as a typical teaching approach that synchronises with the special needs of students and caters to their individual learning demands. It is specifically advantageous to children with special needs and helps them access mainstream educational platforms and adapt to the educational system despite any disabilities. The Individualized Education Plan (IEP) is a set of instructions that varies depending upon the students’ interests, struggles, preferences, and strengths. In the present report, we will discuss my role and the IEPs formulated for a student based on the case study and the special needs of the student (Tucker, 2019). In the provided student profile, the case study belongs to a grade 5 student named Riley. She is quiet by nature and excels in math. However, she faces struggles while performing the writing tasks. There are contrasting attributes to her nature since she enjoys being with other students but also shies away when it comes to working in groups. She is more comfortable with oral modes of answering and is very creative. She is also very interested in animals and shares creative insights with her teachers. However, she faces increased difficulties in putting her thoughts and organizing them into writing papers and assignments. Considering the above case study and analysing the necessity to assist Riley, the school has decided to provide her with assistance that can improve her learning and cater to her specific needs individually. My role is to assist her in the weekly writing task, which consists of writing a persuasive essay with five complete paragraphs. I have been assigned the job of providing differentiating instructions to the student to help her complete the assignment, identify her weak areas, and improve her writing skills with this assignment. Therefore, I have to be upfront with my assistance and also be empathetic towards Riley’s condition. I should be trained and informed enough to identify her sources of weakness, the problem areas, and design an articulate IEP for her that will help her achieve the best outcome in terms of her educational performance and overcome the challenges of her learning disorder. Considering all the above aspects, the specific steps of differentiating instructions for IEPs are identified and discussed in the following paragraphs. Firstly, the task of writing five paragraphs may seem overwhelming to her. For that, the assignment needs to be broken into smaller tasks depending on her skills. The persuasive essay should be broken into small essays, each demanding her viewpoint on a specific sub-topic catered to the essay. Secondly, assistive and adaptive technology will be used to teach her the specific instructions and assist her in the assignment. Since she has a creative inclination and a love for animals, music and audio-visual aids that utilise animal teaching aids should be used to grow her comprehensive intellect. She should also be encouraged to read books and watch videos involving animal-aided learning methodologies. Thirdly, focus should be on her strengths and building on her existing skills and knowledge base. She is excellent in mathematics. Therefore, employing her logical and reasoning skills, one can help her write the persuasive assignment by making her recall strong argumentative points and logically connect them with the topic of her assignment. Fourthly, she should be given small writing tasks that can build her vocabulary, and based upon that learning, she should be encouraged to formulate a draught of her upcoming assignment. Fifth, the differentiating instructions should be flexible and engaging for her to help her till the end. They should involve certain games, like task cards and instruction games, that can be fun and educational for her simultaneously. Her weaknesses should not overpower her creative inclination and mathematically sharp mind. Sixth, the task can be presented orally too. So, focusing on her comfort level with presenting orally, she should be encouraged and allowed to do so. Finally, the instruction method should be varied occasionally depending on the analysed feedback, her response, and her sense of involvement (Guido, 2021). REFERENCES Guido. (2021). 20 Differentiated Instruction Strategies and Examples [+ Downloadable List]. 20 Differentiated Instruction Strategies and Examples [+ Downloadable List] | Prodigy Education. Retrieved November 7, 2022, from https://www.prodigygame.com/main-en/blog/differentiated-instruction-strategies-examples-download/ Tucker. (2019). What Is Differentiated instruction? What Is Differentiated Instruction? | Understood. Retrieved November 7, 2022, from https://www.understood.org/en/articles/differentiated-instruction-what-you-need-to-know