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Regarding the article “Math, yes. Lego club? No plan” (Nov. 30), I agree with parents that schools must do more to inform families about opportunities for children with disabilities.

Mervin Rodriguez’s experience of self-discovery brought to mind two key ideas from Maria Montessori about education.

First, Montessori emphasized the importance of “the utilization of the inner powers of the child for his own instruction.” But this cannot happen in isolation. Lev Vygotsky underscored the need for “scaffolding” provided by teachers or more knowledgeable peers. Schenectady native Pat Riley, for example, honed his basketball skills by playing with his older brother and friends — a clear illustration of Vygotsky’s Zone of Proximal Development, in which learning and growth occur through social interaction, play and imagination.

Second, Montessori warned that educators must not become obstacles to a child’s development. Knowing what to teach is not especially difficult, she argued; recognizing and discarding our own assumptions and prejudices is far harder.

Schools and parents too often blame one another. Poor communication plays a role, but the problem is more complex. We need more volunteers, better training and greater resources. Moderation may be a virtue in some contexts, but not here. As Branch Rickey famously said, “A moderate is a moral pickpocket” — a sentiment that resonates when confronting racial discrimination and ensuring inclusion for all children in our schools.

Published Dec. 29, 2025

Aggressive electrification mandates continue to drive up costs for consumers, as noted in “New York’s Climate Act mandates in question” (Dec. 1), and also threaten to strain an already overburdened electric grid — one that the state’s grid operator has warned could face reliability challenges by the mid-2030s.

Electrification has a role in the........

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