When a student with a learning disability approaches you in class, in study hall, or after school and asks for help, do you wish you had more strategies to help her catch up in class? When a student with a learning disability needs to be pulled aside and given some one-on-one instruction, do you struggle to get him restarted after he has shut down? When these students get upset about mathematics, how can you help them relax, build some confidence, and develop the skill set that they will need to succeed in your class? Well-timed encouragement and emotional support, paired with strategic conversations that relate the content to these students' experiences and interests, can increase their motivation and success rate. These teaching strategies can be especially effective in one-on-one remediation sessions, when a teacher can tailor instruction to a student's specific needs and experiences. With the boost of some strategic interventions, we believe that many students with learning disabilities can succeed with challenging mathematical topics such as algebra and geometry.