Differentiated instruction is a teaching approach in which a teacher designs curriculum (i.e., what to teach) and instruction (i.e., how to teach) based on children’s interests, developmental readiness, and learning needs. A teacher who adopts differentiated instruction as her teaching philosophy authentically assesses children’s current knowledge and skill level, sociocultural background, and special learning needs. Teachers use this information to plan learning experiences that would optimally challenge and elevate children to a higher level of ability and understanding.

This entry aims to inform the reader about differentiated instruction and assessment in the early childhood education context and to provide a concrete description of this approach and its implementation steps pertaining to education of young children. The entry begins with explaining the definitions of differentiated instruction ...

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