Differentiated Instruction Workshop

i had a workshop this afternoon on differentiated learning in the intermediate classes (lucky for me, it continues all day tomorrow for our PD day!)
most of what was presented was material we were all taught in teacher's college, if it wasn't already obvious: all of our students have different learning styles and our job/challenge is to deliver our lessons effectively to reach all our students. HOW....through differentiated instruction.
we all do it on a daily basis, but we probably never gave too much thought as to placing certain labels on activities and procedures. we do them because we know our students and how they will learn best. in many of the examples the instructor shared, she used visuals as one way for some students to represent their work.
for example, if your focus was on character analysis in a novel, some students may write a descriptive paragraph, others may choose to write a poem, others may choose to draw/paint the character. rather than drawing/painting, why not have the student create the visual image of the character on themselves, or someone else. students love to use costumes. they could dress themselves in the proper clothing, sport the necessary hair style and facial features as well as posing with the appropriate facial expression to capture the true essence of the character.
perhaps the character goes through many changes in the novel. these changes can be captured with a digital camera. when the photos are placed beside one another, a better example is shown of the character has developed through the novel.
perhaps, even better than a written description. the point of the idea was to give students a choice as to how they wanted to represent their information. some students may prefer to use pen and paper, but others may prefer to display it visually. let's try to expand our limits beyond pencil crayons and paint to the use of the digital camera! if students are given options, they can take more ownership of their work.
can't wait for tomorrow's workshop:)