“At this time of increasingly standardized approaches to instruction and assessment, Diane Heacox’s book brings education back to how it works best: Actually responding to children rather than simply responding to curricular mandates.”—Jane Bluestein, Ph.D., author of Creating Emotionally Safe Schools

“Provides a multitude of practical, teacher-tested tools and templates to help you begin or refine your own journey toward more fully differentiated instruction . . . no matter where you are in [that] journey.”—from the foreword by Cindy A. Strickland

“A practical guide for teachers new to or interested in the process of differentiation. Drawing on Bloom’s taxonomy, Gardner’s theory of multiple intelligences, and other experts in the field of educational psychology, Heacox presents several practical strategies and ideas that teachers can use to differentiate instruction at any level in any curriculum . . . The reader will come away with some good, practical suggestions for increasing the challenge level for gifted students.”—Journal for the Education of the Gifted

Differentiating Instruction in the Regular Classroom is one of my consistent recommendations to educators. My copy of the book is well worn! It is filled with such a wealth of informative, useful, and practical gems. I love to be able to help others apply its benefits to design great learning for kids.

As a school principal in Alberta, Canada, my school became an immediate champion of the book’s Integration Matrix, and incorporated this into our unit planning. We used arts-integrated learning strategies at our school to support the many children with special needs, and to also ensure our teachers were continually growing their professional practice to include a variety of approaches to learning for all students. The matrix blending Gardner’s multiple intelligences with Bloom’s taxonomy worked beautifully for everyone.

I have since left that school and school district and continue to provide mentoring and professional development for teachers in both Alberta and British Columbia. In conversations with other educators around differentiating for learners, I often find myself sharing how effective the Integration Matrix has been and what a wonderful resource this book is.

—Lauren Gannon, arts & education consultant, director of Learning Through the Arts, British Columbia