Glenn Patterson

Posts by Glenn Patterson

A Case for High Quality Math Instruction for Students with Complex Needs

I would like to discuss a topic dear to me - the importance of high quality instruction for math students with complex cognitive needs. In the state of Vermont, these students tend to fall under the disability category of Intellectual Disability. My background in education is as a special educator. In my role as an ALN facilitator I continue to work with students with more complex needs or low incidence disabilities and the teachers and school districts who support them. (Low incidence disabilities are severe disabling conditions with an expected incidence rate of less than 1% of the total sta …

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3 min read
Dec 22, 2022

Inclusion and MTSS

I spend a lot of time in schools in many different grade levels and while there are more differences than similarities in the goings on of a 1st grade classroom and a 10th grade one, a major similarity is the question of inclusion. How does one classroom teacher meet the needs of all their students when the needs can be quite disparate?

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3 min read
Nov 2, 2022

David’s Math Class: A Story of Inclusion

Often, when we talk about differentiation and inclusion, the responsibility is put upon the teacher to create, provide, and derive the means for low floor/high ceiling tasks (with multiple entry points) so all students may access the learning activity. I had the rare pleasure of experiencing a moment when a teacher let the students in her class, inspired by one typically marginalized student, take the lead in creating one of the most inclusive math classes I have had the privilege of experiencing. What follows is a true story:

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6 min read
Oct 4, 2022