UDL


   accommodate      acquire      approach      assessments      background      background knowledge      choices      curriculum      curriculum needs to be designed      deaf      diverse      enthusiasm      flexible paths to learning      fuel      graphics      highlight      learning opportunities      levels of proficiency      might interfere      minimizes barriers      multiple media      Neuroscience      one size does not fit all      persist      prioritizing      provide models      research      risk mistakes      skills and strategies      strengths      support and challenge      varied supports   


This teacher needs to meet a goal and she's got a very group of students. And so does this teacher. And this one. Most do. In fact, shows that the way people learn is as unique as their fingerprints.
What does this mean for teachers of today?
Classrooms are highly diverse and from the start to meet this diversity. Universal Design for Learning is an to curriculum that and maximizes learning for all students.
Woah! That's a fancy term - Universal Design for Learning. Let's unpack it a bit. Let's think about the word Universal.

By "Universal" we mean curriculum that can be used and understood by everyone. Each learner in a classroom brings their own , , needs, and interests. Curriculum should provide genuine for each and every student. Now let's think about the word "Learning".
Learning is not one thing. tells us that our brains have three broad networks, one for recognition (The "What" of learning), one for (The "How" of learning) and one for caring and (The "Why" of learning). Students need to gain knowledge, skills, and for learning and a curriculum needs to help them do all three.
But every learner is unique and . So how do we make a curriculum that challenges and engages diverse learners? This is where the word "Design" comes in.

A "Universally designed" building is planned to be flexible and to all kinds of users with and without disabilities. It turns out that if you design for those "in the margins,"your building works better for everyone. Curb cuts and ramps are used by people in wheelchairs, people with strollers, and people on bikes. Captioning on TV serves people who are , people learning English, people in gyms, and spouses who get to sleep at different times!

UDL takes this idea and applies it to the design of flexible curriculum. UDL goes beyond access because we need to build in . So how do we use the UDL framework to make learning goals, methods, materials and that work for everyone?
First ask yourself: "What is my goal? What do I want my students to know, do and care about?"Then ask: "What barriers in the classroom with my diverse students' reaching these goals?" To eliminate the barriers, use the three UDL principles to create so that each student can progress.
1. Provide rultiple means of representation. Present content and information in and provide . Use and animations, the critical features, activate , and support vocabulary so that students can the knowledge being taught.

2. Provide multiple means of action and expression. Give students plenty of options for expressing what they know and , feedback, and supports for their different .
3. Provide multiple means of engagement. What fires up one student won't fire up another! Give students to their interests and autonomy. Help them and learn from them. If they love learning, they will through challenges! And remember, always keep in mind the learning goal. Get rid of barriers caused by the curriculum, and keep the challenge where it belongs! And that's it.
Okay, quick re-cap: show the information in different ways. Allow your students to approach learning tasks and demonstrate what they know in different ways. And offer options that engage students - and keep their interest. Universal Design for Learning equals for all.