When students in your classroom are not progressing at the same rate or better as their peers, supplement their learning with researched based strategies that increase achievement. These are also Tier Two interventions for Response to Intervention.
How to Respond to Students’ Needs While Making Progress Together
When students in your classroom are not progressing at the same rate or better as their peers, supplement their learning with research-based strategies that increase achievement. These are also Tier Two interventions for Response to Intervention (RTI).
Use classroom adaptations that do not reduce content, yet make the curriculum more accessible using readability tools and scaffolds:
- Ensure instructional materials are accessible using readability tools and adjust where appropriate.
- Ask students to repeat instructions to ensure understanding.
- Use books on tape to allow students who benefit from extended time or auditory supports to keep up with the reading.
- Provide an outline or a copy of notes and teach students how to make notes memorable rather than taking class time to engage students in the mechanical act of copying.
- Encourage the use of word-processing software with auditory feedback so students can use higher-level cognitive skills without being hindered by writing difficulties.
- Use proofing aids: proofreader buddy, spell checker, a grammar checker.
- Use tools that support visual organization and reduce cognitive load: graph paper, vertical lines, darkened horizontal lines.
Streamline Instructions for Clarity and Equitable Access
Look for confusing directions in handouts, tests, and especially project descriptions. Even if unclear aspects are discussed in class, some students will miss the clarification. Provide the opportunity for success by ensuring the written instructions are very clear.
- Look for confusing directions in ready-made handouts.
- On worksheets, put each specific instruction with the activity being instructed.
- Do not put all the instructions for one worksheet at the top of the page with two or three activities below it when each activity requires a different instruction.
- Use simple terminology in the instructions. Words with double meanings cause confusion. Some students will struggle to demonstrate their understanding because they did not understand the language in the instructions.
- Break instructions down into bullets. Paragraph form invites the student to miss instructions.
- Provide examples whenever possible.
- When assigning projects, use exemplars to clarify expectations and reduce ambiguity. How often do we, as adults, need to see examples of resumes, letters, finished décor, constructed furniture, etc., before we can do it ourselves? Yet we routinely require students to create results from purely verbal instructions.
The Power of Explicit Expectations
My perspective on expectations shifted when I began tutoring students using another teacher’s assignment materials. I found myself asking the same questions my students had. What exactly does the teacher want here? Is this a formal paragraph, or a list? Do they want a citation? It was a humbling reminder: when instructions are unclear, students are left guessing. Now, I consistently double-check my own assignments—not just for content accuracy, but for clarity of expectations.
Pattern Recognition Strengthens Memory and Deepens Conceptual Understanding
One of the most underutilized learning tools is pattern recognition. Students remember information more effectively when it’s grouped and connected in meaningful ways. Use storytelling instead of lectures. Integrate timelines, cause-and-effect diagrams, or sequencing activities that help students visualize relationships. These aren’t just supports—they are tools that strengthen conceptual understanding and transfer learning into long-term memory.
Amplify Feedback with Audio Coaching
One of the most innovative ways to provide feedback is through audio recordings. This approach allows students to hear your thinking in real time and review your comments multiple times. Simply have students submit a flash drive (or use a shared cloud folder) with their drafts. As you review, record audio notes about content, grammar, or revision strategies, then return the audio files along with the written work. Students experience your feedback as a conversation, not just a critique—an approach that builds trust and fosters growth.
Conclusion: Progress Without Compromise
The myth that we must choose between supporting struggling learners and maintaining high expectations is outdated—and harmful. With strategic, accessible adaptations, we can make space for every learner to grow. Responding to student needs doesn’t mean slowing down the entire class. It means ensuring that each student has what they need to keep moving forward.
The challenge isn’t whether we should adapt; it’s whether we’re willing to believe that all students are capable of success when instruction aligns with how they learn best. We don’t need to lower the bar. We just need to build better ladders.
📣 Call to Action
If this article resonates with your classroom experience, don’t wait for a formal IEP meeting or benchmark report to guide your next steps. Choose one adaptation or strategy to implement this week—just one. Then observe what changes: in engagement, in comprehension, in confidence. And when it works (because it will), share it. With a colleague. On your school’s PD day. In the break room. This is how we scale transformation: one student, one strategy, one shift at a time. Let’s move forward—together.
Ready to make your classroom a space where every student can thrive?
👉 Try one new strategy from this post in your next lesson.
👉 Share your results or insights in the comments—what worked? What did you adapt?
👉 Want more strategies that help struggling learners succeed? [Subscribe here] or [download your free Differentiation Toolkit] to get started.
Let’s keep building a classroom where all learners move forward—together.
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