Adapting+materials

Low/no-tech adaptation
Many times materials can be adapted using low- or no-tech approaches. Pencils and paintbrush handles can be built-up to make them easier to hold. Materials can be placed on a turntable to make it easier for students with a limited range of motion to manipulate them.

Using technology to adapt materials
Many learning tasks in elementary school require the manipulation of materials to complete work. This is particularly true in the Montessori classroom. Maria Montessori based her method of education on the materials she designed over a hundred years ago. Some students find it easier to complete the work if I put a technology-based twist on the classic Montessori materials. SMART Notebook software has been very useful for this purpose. I have been able to make templates that can easily be customized for a particular set of pink language cards. I have also started to make a SMART version of each of the Analyze and Symbolize cards, which require students to identify the parts of speech for words in a phrase or sentence. The original version of this activity requires the student to copy the sentences/phrases and then use a template to trace symbols to represent the different parts of speech. Using the adapted version of the original material, students can complete the exercise on a notebook computer and print out the results to put in their composition notebooks. This has meant the difference between this activity taking all week for a student to complete and having them complete it independently in an hour. The adapted material can also be projected onto and manipulated on the SMARTboard for presentation and for students to complete as a group.