One sheet, three levels — without labeling students

Differentiation often fails for a social reason before it fails for an academic one: the “easy” worksheet is visibly different, and students notice. A generator helps because the page can look identical while the numbers change.

Start with the same skill

Choose one skill for the whole group — addition with regrouping, for example. The skill is the learning target; the difficulty is the entry point. Do not differentiate the skill and the difficulty at the same time.

Use easy for fluency, standard for practice, challenge for transfer

The easy level narrows the number range. It is for students who need to complete the procedure without also fighting the arithmetic. The challenge level adds missing values or an extra step; it is for students who can already do the standard version accurately.

Keep the page layout identical

Print the same number of questions, the same header and the same instructions for every group. Only the numbers change. Students who compare papers see the same task, not a label.

Use the answer key to plan, not to grade

Before class, read the answer key and circle the two items most likely to cause disagreement. Those are the ones worth doing together at the board, regardless of which level a student had.

A practical routine

Print three stacks with the same sheet ID but different difficulty settings. Hand them out by table rather than by name. Nobody has to announce which stack they received.