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Educator Workshop
Stephen Gaynor School is a NYC Public Schools (DOE) approved vendor.
Playful Problem Solving Routines for Neurodiverse Learners
April 16, 2026
9:00 am – 12:00 pm
Stephen Gaynor School
175 W. 89th Street
Target Audience
Independent and public school K-8 educators who are hoping to gain strategies to support students with or without learning differences.
Description
As math teachers, we want all students to have the chance to solve rich problems with minimal support, but removing scaffolds can be intimidating: how will students handle disequilibrium if they already grapple with factors such as low frustration tolerance, dysfluency, significant distractibility, math anxiety, or a learning difference?
In this session, we will explore multisensory problem solving routines that promote tinkering, predicting, and persevering while also supporting students who just want to know how to get to the answer. We will practice introducing multi-step problems in a way that allows students time to process and visualize without any additional verbal cueing. Then we will discuss the research behind manageable, multisensory, differentiated routines and visit Stephen Gaynor School classrooms to see some of these routines in action.
About the Presenter: Libby Miles
Libby Miles is the Math Department Chair at Stephen Gaynor School. She earned an M.A. in Secondary Mathematics Teaching from Stanford University and a M.S.Ed. in Mathematics Leadership from Bank Street Graduate School of Education. She has been teaching and coaching math in NYC independent schools for twelve years and has presented at NCTM, NYSAIS, and Bank Street conferences.