There is a wide range of students who attend the sister schools in our Innovations project. When focusing on improving math comprehension in preschool to third grade, it is important to note the different developmental trajectories and special needs of all of the children in those classes. Pre-k special education teacher Jennifer Auler at Brentano Elementary and K-3 special education teacher Melissa Holland at Jordan Elementary both implement ideas from the project in their curriculum, and their results have been representative of real-world change in early education classes.

Classrooms with special education concerns pose their own specific challenges. Ms. Auler’s classroom, for example, exemplifies the scope of the entire Innovations project itself. It follows the blended preschool model, in which students with special needs share the classroom with others. The students are taught by a team comprised of a special education teacher and a general education teacher. Their class also spans a wide range of ages, from two- to five-year-old children.

“There is an extensive range of math ability levels among these students,