Differentiating With Student Interests and Choice: Choice Boards, RAFTs and More

A sixth-grade teacher has been struggling to get her class excited about writing persuasive paragraphs. Then, almost by accident, she lets students pick their own topic: one argues for a later school start time, another for a new skate park, another for why a particular video game deserves an award. The paragraphs aren't perfect, but for the first time in weeks, nobody asks how many sentences they have to write.

Interest is a powerful lever. When students care about a topic or have some say in how they work, many put in more effort and stick with difficult tasks longer. Differentiating by interest and offering structured choice are among the most approachable ways to start differentiating, because one well-designed task can serve the whole class.

This article explains how to learn about students' interests, how to build choice into tasks without losing rigor, and how to use tools such as choice boards and RAFT assignments. It also addresses a common misconception: that matching lessons to students' "learning styles" is the goal.

Understanding the Concept

Interest-based differentiation

Interest-based differentiation connects the learning goal to topics, contexts or questions students care about. The skill stays the same; the context varies. A student practicing ratios might work with sports statistics, recipes or music tempos. A student practicing summarizing might summarize an article about animals, space or fashion.

Structured choice

Choice means letting students make meaningful decisions about some part of their learning: which topic, which text, which task from a set or how to show what they know. Structured choice keeps every option aligned to the same goal and the same success criteria. Unstructured choice ("do whatever you want") tends to produce uneven learning.

Preferences, not learning styles

Students do have preferences: some like to talk ideas through, some like to sketch, some prefer to work alone. Respecting preferences can increase comfort and engagement. However, research reviews have not found good evidence that teaching students according to a diagnosed learning style (such as visual, auditory or kinesthetic) improves how much they learn. The more useful approach, consistent with Universal Design for Learning, is to offer varied ways for all students to access ideas and show learning, and to choose the format that best fits the content. Labeling a student as "a visual learner" can even limit the experiences they are offered.

Why It Matters

• Engagement supports effort. Students who find a task relevant or interesting are often more willing to persist through difficulty.
• Choice builds ownership. Making decisions about their learning helps students develop self-direction and self-knowledge.
• Interests reveal strengths. A student who seems disengaged may show deep knowledge and skill when the topic connects to their life.
• It's manageable. One structured choice task can serve students across readiness levels, especially when options vary in complexity.
• It supports belonging. When students see their interests, cultures and communities reflected in classwork, they may feel more connected to school.

Practical Strategies

Interest inventories

What: a short survey about students' hobbies, favorite topics, things they're curious about and how they like to work.

Why: you can't connect to interests you don't know about.

How: give an inventory in the first weeks and refresh it mid-year. Keep questions simple: "Three things I'm interested in outside school," "Something I'd like to learn more about," "I do my best work when..." For young students, use pictures to circle. Keep a class summary handy when planning examples and texts.

Interest-based contexts for the same skill

What: offering two or three contexts for the same practice.

Why: students practice the same skill but in a context they find more engaging.

How: write one set of word problems about sports, one about cooking and one about animals, all at the same difficulty. Or choose three articles on different topics at similar reading levels for a summarizing task.

Choice boards

What: a grid of task options, often three by three, from which students choose a set number.

Why: choice boards offer variety while keeping every option tied to the learning goal.

How: put a required task in the center square. Arrange other tasks so that any row a student completes (tic-tac-toe style) covers the key skills. Make sure every option has the same success criteria.

RAFT assignments

What: a writing or project format where students choose a Role, Audience, Format and Topic.

Why: RAFTs build perspective-taking and let students demonstrate understanding in creative but rigorous ways.

How: offer a menu of RAFT combinations tied to the unit. In a unit on the water cycle, one option might be: Role = a water droplet; Audience = students in a younger grade; Format = a picture book page; Topic = my journey through the water cycle.

Learning menus and "must do, may do" lists

What: a list of required tasks plus optional tasks students choose from.

Why: it guarantees core practice while giving some choice.

How: post "must do" tasks (for example, the reading and the summary) and "may do" tasks (an illustration, a comparison chart, a short podcast script). Students complete all musts and at least one may.

Interest-based groups and expert projects

What: grouping students by shared interest for a project or discussion.

Why: it varies grouping beyond readiness and lets students work with different classmates.

How: in a unit on ecosystems, students form groups around ocean, desert, rainforest or grassland ecosystems. Each group researches the same questions and teaches the class.

Example Choice Board: 5th Grade Reading, Character Analysis

This illustrative board assumes students complete any three in a row, including the center.

Option A	Option B	Option C
Write a diary entry from the main character's point of view at a key moment.	Draw a "then and now" portrait showing how the character changed, with labels.	Write a letter of advice to the character at the story's turning point.
Create a character web with traits and evidence from the text.	Required center: Write a paragraph explaining how the character changed and what caused the change, with two pieces of evidence.	Compare this character with a character from another book we've read.
Record a short interview with the character (a partner asks questions).	Make a timeline of the character's key decisions and their effects.	Write a new scene showing how the character might act a year later.

Shared success criteria for every option: identifies at least two traits; uses specific evidence from the text; explains how or why the character changed.

Step-by-Step Implementation

1. Start with the learning goal and the success criteria.
2. Decide what students can choose: topic, context, text, task or product. Not everything needs to be a choice.
3. Design three to nine options aligned to the same criteria.
4. Check rigor: does every option require real thinking about the goal?
5. Teach students how to choose: what to consider, and that they can try something new.
6. Set checkpoints so you can see progress and offer feedback.
7. Use one shared rubric to assess all products.
8. Debrief: ask students what they chose and why, and what they learned about how they work best.

Illustrative Scenarios

These are fictional examples to show the approach.

Ms. Johnson, kindergarten: letter sounds

Ms. Johnson's interest survey (with pictures to circle) shows many children love animals, vehicles and food. For practice with initial sounds, she makes three picture-sort sets, one for each theme, with the same target sounds. Children choose a set. Everyone practices the same sounds; the pictures are what change.

Mr. Lee, 8th grade math: linear relationships

Mr. Lee offers three contexts for writing and graphing linear equations: phone plan costs, saving for a purchase and the speed of a runner. Each context has the same number and type of problems. Students choose one, then share how their context showed slope and starting value. The class compares contexts and notices the same structure across all three.

Ms. Garcia, 12th grade government: civic action

Ms. Garcia's students research a local issue they care about, using the same research questions: Who has the power to decide? What are the arguments on each side? What can a citizen do? Students choose how to present findings: a policy brief, a letter to a local official or a short presentation, all assessed with the same rubric.

Differentiation and Adaptations

• Early elementary: offer two or three options with picture cues. Choice of topic or materials is often more manageable than choice of product.
• Upper elementary: choice boards and menus work well. Teach students to plan their choices and track completion.
• Secondary: adolescents often value autonomy. Offer genuine choice in topic and product, and connect tasks to real audiences and issues.
• Students with disabilities: make sure every option is accessible, or provide accessible versions. Too many options can overwhelm some students; offer a smaller set where helpful, and follow IEP accommodations.
• English learners: topics connected to students' own experiences and cultures can lower language barriers. Include options that use visuals or oral language, with the same content expectations.

Common Challenges

• Students always choose the easiest option. → Make options equally demanding, require a center square or "must do," and sometimes ask students to choose one option outside their comfort zone.
• Products are fun but shallow. → Apply the same success criteria to every option, and show strong examples before students begin.
• Too much prep. → Reuse the same choice board structure throughout the year and change only the content. Choose fewer, better options.
• Students waste time choosing. → Set a short deadline for choosing, and let students switch only once, before a set checkpoint.
• Interest inventories go unused. → Keep a one-page class summary next to your planning book and pull one example from it each week.

Key Takeaways

• Interest-based differentiation keeps the skill the same and varies the context.
• Structured choice gives students ownership while keeping every option aligned to the goal.
• Choice boards, RAFTs and must-do/may-do lists are practical, reusable tools.
• Offer varied ways to learn and show learning for everyone; don't sort students by "learning style."
• Use one set of success criteria for all options.

Next step: Give a short interest inventory this week and use the results to rewrite the context of one upcoming practice task. Find more in Differentiated Instruction, including the core principles of differentiated instruction.

This article offers general classroom guidance. It does not replace your school's policies, a student's IEP or 504 plan, or advice from your school's specialists.

Sources & Further Reading

• CAST, Universal Design for Learning Guidelines. https://udlguidelines.cast.org/. Accessed November 2026.
• Pashler, H., McDaniel, M., Rohrer, D., & Bjork, R., Learning Styles: Concepts and Evidence, Psychological Science in the Public Interest (2008). Accessed November 2026.
• Edutopia, Student choice and voice articles. https://www.edutopia.org/. Accessed November 2026.
• Tomlinson, C. A., The Differentiated Classroom: Responding to the Needs of All Learners, ASCD. Accessed November 2026.