Given the robust nature of learning sciences research, this website is best viewed on tablets and computers. A small screen experience is coming in the future.
On June 22, 2021, we will launch updated strategies for the Math PK-2 model, as well as additional updates to the Navigator that highlight equity, SEL, and culturally responsive teaching. To learn more, visit our Site Updates (available in the "About" menu at the top of any page).
Hover to see how factors connect to Motivation. Then click connected factors to explore strategies related to multiple factors.
Motivation is the desire that guides behavior. We are all affected by whether or not we want to do something. When we are motivated, we value what we are doing more and, as a result, learn more. Providing supports that help students value their work is critical to helping them become successful readers.
The strategies that educators use can significantly impact Motivation. For example, students will be better Motivated when they can connect learning material to their own lives and interests.
Self-Determination Theory is a theory of motivation based on three psychological needs: competence (the desire to learn and gain mastery of tasks), autonomy (the desire to have control over one’s own behaviors and goals), and relatedness (the desire to interact and connect with others and feel part of a family or group).
Self-Determination Theory distinguishes two forms of motivation. Intrinsic Motivation is the inherent desire to learn and accomplish goals. Extrinsic Motivation is the desire to accomplish goals because of external rewards/recognition. Extrinsic Motivation can vary in terms of relative autonomy:
According to Self-Determination Theory, internal Motivation, including intrinsic and fully identified regulation of extrinsic Motivation, is ideal for supporting learning, including learning to read, because it is autonomous. External Motivation (external and introjected regulation of extrinsic Motivation) is not autonomous and therefore less effective in supporting learning.
Students activate more cognitive processes by exploring and representing their understandings in visual form.
Visiting places connected to classroom learning provides opportunities to deepen understanding through firsthand experiences.
Free play supports learner interests and allows more complex social interactions to develop.
As students walk through stations working in small groups, the social and physical nature of the learning supports deeper understanding.
Attributing results to controllable aspects (strategy and effort) fosters students' beliefs in self.
Learning about students' cultures and connecting them to instructional practices helps all students feel like valued members of the community.
Overtly encouraging all students to ask when they have forgotten something creates a classroom that supports risk-taking and skill development.
Setting small goals encourages consistent, achievable progress, helping students feel confident in their skills and abilities.
The Mindset Kit offers free online lessons and practices to help teach and foster adaptive beliefs about learning.
By talking through their thinking at each step of a process, teachers can model what learning looks like.
Teachers sharing text-to-self, text-to-text, and text-to-world connections models this schema building.
When teachers share their goals and the paths they take to achieve them, they demonstrate that learning involves effort, mistakes, and reflecting.
Talking with students about what they know about the topic of upcoming work helps activate their Background Knowledge or reveals gaps.
Students are more likely to come to school when families feel like a valued part of the community.
Reading aloud books about skills children are learning provides another model for their development.
When students explain to others, they deepen their understanding and gain confidence in their learning.
Self-reflection on their learning can nurture students’ growth mindsets.
Responsive Classroom is an evidence-based approach focused on the link between academic success and SEL development.
Books of varying complexity and reading levels are necessary for all students to experience reading success.
Multicultural and Primary Language books are critical for supporting all students.
With rhyming and creative word use, poetry is a genre that supports the development of early literacy skills in particular.
Books with SEL topics, such as developing friendships and identifying emotions, help teach these skills.
Many programs offer lesson plans for focused sessions on understanding and managing emotions.
Breaking larger tasks into steps and receiving feedback at each step helps students both manage their work and stay motivated.
Providing students a voice in their learning is critical for making learning meaningful.
Taking breaks from work, especially ones that encourage physical activity or calming routines, helps students reset their brains and learn how to maintain focus.
A talking piece passed around a circle invites equal participation.
Students develop reading skills by listening to and speaking with others in informal ways.
This toolkit provides resources to support family well-being and students’ ongoing learning and development.
Videos developed with discussion guides can teach students about SEL skills.
Except where otherwise noted, content on this site is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License
This is our homepage. You can access many of the features of the Navigator here, and learn more about how learner variability intersects with topics in education and learning. To start, select a content area – we call them Learner Models – to visit a factor map.
Factor maps show research-based concepts, "factors," that likely impact learning. They are organized into four categories: Learner Background, Social and Emotional Learning, Cognition, and Content Area. The map is interactive. Move your cursor over a factor to see connected factors. Select any factor to visit its summary page. We'll look at factor summary pages next.
This is a factor summary page. It provides a brief definition and review of the factor, a factor connections diagram, additional resources, and strategies that support this factor. On the strategy card, the multi-colored boxes show all the factors that it supports. Select a strategy to visit its summary page.
Strategy summary pages have an overview, information about using the strategy in different learning environments, resources of interest, the factors this strategy supports, and related strategies you can explore. To view all the strategies in a content area, use the strategies tab at the top of the page. We'll look at all the Strategies for this learner model next.
The strategy page shows ALL of the strategies for that learner model. You can select factors of interest for you or your learners, and it will narrow the strategies to only those that match all of the factors selected. This makes it easy to find key strategies to better design for learner variability. Again, select the strategy name to visit its summary page. Use the plus signs on each strategy card to add a strategy to a workspace. We'll explore those next.
The “Tools & Workspaces” tab on the navigation bar or the “My Workspaces” button on the account menu takes you to a page that shows your workspaces. There are two tabs on the My Workspaces page: a Workspaces tab and a Reports tab. The Workspaces tab lists workspaces you can personalize and update. You can create new sections, move cards between sections, add annotations, share with collaborators, and write reflections. The second tab, "Reports", are a kind of workspace created through the Instructional Design Tool or the Product Assessment Tool and have fewer personalization options.
There are three, step-by-step tools you can access on the Navigator to help make workspace or a workspace report. The Learner Centered Design Tool has four steps and helps you create a workspace. First, enter basic information and select a content area of interest. Second, select a few factors that you want to focus on. Third, review connected factors you may not have considered. Note – you don't have to select any extra factors on this step if you don’t want to. The fourth and final step, review and select strategies that you want to use, and save them to a workspace.
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Learner variability is the recognition that each learner is a unique constellation of strengths and challenges that are interconnected across the whole child. Understanding these connections and how they vary according to context is essential for meeting the needs of each learner.
It disrupts the notion of a one-size-fits all education. Understanding learner variability helps educators embrace both students’ struggles and strengths as we connect practice to uplifting the whole learner.
Throughout the site, we talk about "factors" and "strategies." Factors are concepts research suggests have an impact on how people learn. Strategies are the approaches to teaching and learning that can be used to support people in how they learn best.
Use the Learner Centered Design Tool to build a workspace. Go to Learner Centered Design Tool.
Or, create a new blank workspace for your product or project.
Use one of the guided tools to build a workspace.
Or, create a new blank workspace for your product or project.
Make a copy of this workspace.
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On this page, using your heatmap, you will be asked to select factors to further explore, and then select new strategies you might incorporate into upcoming instruction. Once done, click “Show Summary" to view your Design Summary Report.
On this page, using your heatmap, you will be asked to select factors to further explore, and then select new strategies you might incorporate into upcoming instruction. Once done, click “Show Report” to view your Design Summary Report.
By selecting "Show Report" you will be taken to the Assessment Summary Page. Once created, you will not be able to edit your report. If you select cancel below, you can continue to edit your factor and strategy selections.
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Learner variability is the recognition that each learner is a unique constellation of strengths and challenges that are interconnected across the whole child. Understanding these connections and how they vary according to context is essential for meeting the needs of each learner. It embraces both students’ struggles and strengths. It considers the whole child.
Throughout the site, we talk about "factors" and "strategies." Factors are concepts research suggests have an impact on how people learn. Strategies are the approaches to teaching and learning that can be used to support people in how they learn best.
The Learner Variability Navigator is a free, online tool that translates the science of learner variability into factor maps and strategies that highlight connections across the whole learner. This puts the science of learning at teachers' fingertips, empowering them to understand their own practice and support each learner.
