Here are some technology tools that can help in differentiating instruction:

• Have students reorder the sequence of events in a story or the steps in a process by independently using the Slide Shorter to reorganize PowerPoint slides.
• Record narrations or directions in PowerPoint.
• Create PowerPoint games using templates available from the Internet for learning centers.
• Have students add text to PowerPoint slides that contain pictures and/or titles.
• Have students use Kidspiration or Inspiration to organize information.
• Create or download graphic organizers.
• Group or classify objects using the SuperGrouper in Kidspiration.
• Use the talking interface in Kidspiration and Inspiration to read text aloud.
• Use the record command in Kidspiration and Inspiration to record sounds that can be attached to symbols or ideas.
• Use hyperlinks in Word or Inspiration organizers to toggle between a website and a research organizer page.
• Use the Auto-Summarize feature of Word to highlight key information in digital text for students to pre-read.
• Use the Auto-Summarize feature of Word to create summaries of digital text.
• Use the format painter tool in Word, Publisher, Excel and PowerPoint to quickly change the format of words or phrases in a document.
• Use the Find/Replace tool in Word to emphasize the same item throughout the document.
• Increase readability in a Word document by changing the line spacing.
• Increase readability in a Word document by using the Find/Replace tool in Word to increase each space to 3 or 4 spaces.
• Have students use the Find/Replace and Synonyms or Thesaurus tools in Word to prevent word overuse.
• Use draw tools in Word, Publisher, PowerPoint and Excel to illustrate ideas.
• Use the Readability Statistics and Synonyms or Thesaurus features in Word to increase vocabulary.
• Use the Readability Statistics feature of Word to check the reading level of websites and other electronic text (copy and paste information from the website into Word).
• Create Internet Hotlists of websites written at different reading levels.
• Create or download WebQuests to assist in scaffolding learning.
• Keep an electronic journal.
• Use the free text-to-speech ReadPlease software to read text on the screen.
• Determine student learning styles by having them complete the many available surveys and questionnaires that are available online.
• Use Britannica Online and/or Ebsco Host databases - two online resources available through the District - to find articles written at different reading levels and multimedia resources.