Curriculum design is at the center of developing student ability to construct understanding. Without appropriately designed curriculum, instruction can be ineffective at scaffolding understanding. Often students with disabilities need more explicit instruction or guidance in applying their schema to new information. Thus, instruction must not only be carefully scaffolded; it must also address students' unique learning needs. The reason why many students fail to develop understanding of key concepts is that instruction is too often driven by textbooks, lectures, worksheets, and activities that fail to make learning relevant for students and are not grounded in curriculum standards. Designing curriculum and instruction that scaffolds learning is a vast paradigm shift for many teachers and may require retraining of teaching methods. One design approach that has been highly useful for retraining teachers to design curriculum for scaffolding learning is the "backward design" approach, easily utilized with a general education curriculum. This approach can be implemented in inclusive classrooms with students with disabilities and across content areas and grade levels. Applying this approach in classrooms with students with disabilities involves four key steps: (1) Identify learners; (2) Identify curricular priorities; (3) Design assessment framework; and (4) Create learning activities. Through the use of the backward design approach, learning can become relevant and meaningful for all students, supporting their mastery of general curricular standards. When standards, assessment, and inquiry-oriented activities drive the curriculum, learning can be transformed. (Contains 2 figures.)