Universal Design

As Nancy Firchow stated in her article entitled Universal Design for Learning - Improved Access for All "the goal for every student is to learn, but not every child learns in the same way." She then goes on to explain how the concept of Universal Design helps each child learn in their individual way and at their individual pace. By recognizing that each child brings their own strengths and weaknesses into the classroom; teachers can tap into them in order to make material more meaningful for their students.
I think that as a preschool teacher I sort of take this idea for granted. Every Early Childhood class I took in my Undergraduate Degree and even those here at Bank Street stress meeting every student where they are and adapting your classroom materials and routines to best suit your students. At the preschool I teach at we follow the Creative Curriculum and as part of my lesson planning I need to incorporate how I am going to make accomodations or changes for children in my classroom with special needs. For example, If I were to do a finger painting activity but had a child in my class with sensory issues; how would I accomodate him/her? Since accomdation and adaptation are so common in preschool settings I tend to forget that "in the real world" there are big scary tests and things you need to prepare for which leave less room for this kind of individualization. It seems to be that with the use of technology, teachers of older students are better able to meet the needs of their students, with less effort than may have been necessary in the past.