My specialist experience working with young people with SEN to develop trusting and meaningful relationships
I believe that a holistic approach, tailored to a young person’s interests, helps capture their attention and fosters a sense of safety and trust. Often, young people I have supported have experienced many challenges in their school settings. I set high expectations with achievable goals that my learner can believe in and commit to. Initial sessions involve relationship-building activities to promote a positive connection whilst I get to know my learner’s unique strengths and needs. I am highly responsive to a child: Do they need to keep moving when communicating and learning? Do they benefit from a designated sensory space? Most importantly, a young person with SEN needs to feel understood and not judged.
My experience supporting young people with dyslexia
It is a pleasure to share my extensive qualifications and dedication to supporting learners with specific learning difficulties. My foundation is built upon a Masters degree in Dyslexia, which has provided me with a profound and current grasp of the complex cognitive and linguistic factors involved. I have had the privilege of serving as a Dyslexia Specialist in two highly distinct and enriching environments: within a prestigious London independent day school and as part of a strategic London Borough Advisory Team. In both capacities, I have successfully applied my expertise to create bespoke, evidence-based support systems. I leverage a deep understanding of the psychology of learning to ensure that every intervention is holistic, addressing not just academic challenges but also the essential metacognitive skills and emotional well-being that empower learners to thrive.
My Specialist Experience of teaching English and Literacy
As a specially qualified dyslexia expert (Primary and Secondary) with more than fifteen years specialist experience, I understand the need for a rich and broad range of learning opportunities required for language development. Yes, phonics plays an important role, but there is so much more to building solid foundations that a neurodivergent young person can rely on to grow their language, literacy and comprehension to their best advantage. I always look forward to meeting my learners to try diverse, multi-sensory strategies that work well for them, with the ultimate goal of reading and writing for pleasure. I use a highly structured approach for writing that allows the learner to build skills to showcase their creative ideas and build their confidence.
My experience supporting young people to prepare for 11+ exams
A key area of my expertise is unlocking the potential of dyslexic students, whom I have successfully prepared for entry into high-achieving London independent day schools and prestigious boarding schools. I have more than 20 years experience in the 11+ preparation process and thoroughly enjoy supporting my young people to build their confidence and skills in readiness not only for the exams, but also for their upcoming Secondary journey. A highlight of my work is when I hear from parents many years later, that not only did their children gain entry into their chosen school, but that the young people have achieved high grades in their GCSE exams and beyond.
My experience developing confidence, self-esteem and independence
My approach to specialist teaching and learning has always been to keep the young person’s well-being at the heart of every activity in a session. Yes, the content needs to be well-founded and relevant to their learning needs, but an individual’s response to any activity needs to be underpinned by their emotional engagement. My approach to building rapport centres around finding out about what the child likes, what they know they do well and exploring what they don’t like and where they lack confidence. This helps us to find teaching and learning opportunities to explore in our sessions. When a young person starts to feel ownership of a skill and knows they have made progress on a target they want to improve on, there is a powerful boost of confidence and self-esteem. Even more rewarding, growth in confidence and self-esteem ensures that life skills are being gained beyond the educational setting.
My specialist experience providing engaging sessions to inspire a love of learning
I seek engaging learning activities for my unique learner. I have extensive experience in the SEN sector, especially in Dyslexia, and utilise well-founded and respected approaches to underpin my specially designed sessions. I love to share my excitement and pride in my learner’s progress. I am an empathetic and enthusiastic professional dedicated to helping the child thrive. I enjoy discovering a person’s particular areas of interest to find resources and content most suited to them. I am genuinely interested in getting to know each child and understanding how to best support their educational needs, both within and outside of education. My teaching and learning style is flexible and is structured and intuitive to the benefit of each individual learner. I focus on maintaining calm and steady emotions, integrating variety of tools. The language I use and how I approach questions play a significant role, often influencing the response and the likelihood of success with each task. I actively seek advice from parents to incorporate and adapt their tried-and-true strategies into my sessions. My goal is always to promote increased trust in others, boost self-confidence and ultimately help students develop more flexibility and independence in the daily challenges of life.
