Casco Bay High School welcomes Special Education students! Our faculty is highly skilled at
differentiating curriculum and instruction to meet diverse learners’ needs, and our percentage of special
education students is reflective of the district; however, we do not currently have the resources to staff selfcontained
behavioral or academic programs. Many of our freshmen and sophomores with IEP’s do access
the courses described below and some may access our Learning Lab for specialized support. Additional
academic support is available for juniors and seniors as well (Supported Study), but the focus is less on
skill development and more on helping students be successful in core academic classes (and this support is
not credit-bearing). Note: In accordance with their IEP, some special education students (with academic
achievement at grade level 2-5) may work toward modified course standards in mainstream core courses
(e.g.: Foundations in Biology).
Academic Strategies One and Two
This two UPs elective course is designed for freshmen and sophomores with IEP's who need to develop
further the organizational talents which are often called “Executive Skills,” from time management to goal
setting. Under the guidance of a special educator, students develop the key executive skills and habits of
work that will help them be successful in rigorous, mainstream core classes, especially humanities and
math. Students also have an opportunity to receive additional academic support. Each trimester, students
must meet all executive skills standards in order to demonstrate proficiency. The executive skills standards
include: goal-directed action, task initiation & completion, flexibility, time management, work
organization, emotional management, using an agenda, and thinking before acting.
Math Foundations
This two UPs course is for students with IEP's who need additional support and skill development to meet
core math standards. The course focuses on building up math confidence and competence through
developing numeracy skills, problem-solving, and lagging skills. Math foundations will include a close
study of whole numbers, fractions, decimals, percentages, integer operations, inequalities, linear models,
exponents, polynomials, and basic algebra.
In the 2014 book Deeper Learning by Monica Martinez and Dennis McGrath, Casco Bay High School was
featured throughout as one of the “eight innovative public schools” that are “transforming education in the
twenty-first century.”