How Great Thinkers helps you create an inclusive learning environment

We know each learner has different strengths and weaknesses, and learns best in different ways. In order to build on individual capabilities and help students to learn and teachers to create an inclusive learning environment, each of our courses provides a range of components and methodologies that help you to meet the needs of everyone in your classroom.

Methodology

Great Thinkers ensures inclusion of all students in group work through whole class engagement activities, such as the Great Learners, Great Thinkers sections which are based on Social and Emotional Learning, Critical Thinking and documentary videos.

• Great Thinkers offers differentiated materialsto ensure that students of all language levels receive the necessary level of challenge and support.
• Reach Higher pages in the Student’s Book provide additional challenge.

• The Student’s Appoffers On-the-Go Practice which encourages autonomous practice and allows students to work at their own pace.

Components

–  DIFFERENTIATED MATERIALS

Differentiated materials or alternative tasks for activities where students will benefit from different levels of challenge and support.

• Flipped Classroom Videos give students the chance to ‘pre-study’ the grammar for the following lesson, thus allowing them to study at their own pace.

• Reach Higher activities in the Student’s Book cater to more confident students who are more likely to finish activities in the core units earlier.
• A star-rating system in the Workbook enables teachers to set suitable tasks according to the language level of their individual students.
• Grammar Savvy pages in the Workbook are specifically designed for the mixed-language-level class. The pages offer grammar practice at two different levels of difficulty.
• On-the-Go Practice allows students to work autonomously to reinforce the content covered in class.

• Unit, mid- and end-of-year progress tests offer grammar, vocabulary and skills revision at two levels.
• Extra grammar practice worksheets provide grammar revision at two levels of difficulty.
• The Test Generator allows teachers to custom-build their own tests according to their students’ needs.

–  WHOLE CLASS ENGAGEMENT

Solutions for ensuring all students are involved and engaged in group work and whole-class teaching.

• Collaborative projects offer the opportunity for students to work at their own pace within mixed-language-level groups.

• Documentary videos can be watched with the whole class and have a subtitles option for students who need more support whilst viewing.
• Great Leaners, Great Thinkers pages move away from linguistic and comprehension skills practice to focus on elements such as Social and Emotional Learning, and creativity and critical thinking. This puts an emphasis on non-linguistic knowledge and personalisation.

• Peer review, pair and group work tasks appear throughout the Student’s Book so students can work together in mixed-language-level or same-level pairs and groups.

–  TEACHER SUPPORT

Simple and practical tips and tools to allow teachers to manage the class with confidence.

• Mixed-ability teaching tips appear throughout the Teacher’s notes in the Teacher’s Book allowing teachers to easily adapt activitiesfor mixed-language-level classes.

• Professional development videos offer teachers helpful teaching tips, including suggestions and ideas for mixed-language-level classes.
• Extra activities in the Teacher’s Book offer suggestions for how teachers can extend Student’s Book activities or lower or increase the level of challenge.
• Fast finisher activities in the Teacher’s Book provide extra tasks teachers can use to occupy fast-finishing students, while students who need more support complete the main activity.
• The Teacher’s App allows teachers to assign work to students according to their needs and monitor progress.

Want some additional practical tips and ideas on how to create an inclusive learning environment? Visit our Únicos page, where a range of experts share their experience and offer practical advice.