Supporting children with SEN to develop trusting and meaningful relationships:
I believe that positive relationships are at the heart of good teaching and learning. Before the first lesson, I arrange a phone call with parents to find out more about their child – their strengths, interests and challenges. By getting to know the students well, I tailor the lessons to their interests – for example, using Lego in maths or art in English. I use games, humour and a light-hearted approach to create a low-stakes learning environment that makes students feel safe and comfortable. Over a period of time, I build trust by being consistent, reliable and flexible. My clear expectations and boundaried approach are, above all, tempered with kindness.
My experience developing students’ skills and confidence in English and maths:
My students develop confidence and self-esteem from my sessions because I adapt the learning to their level, enabling them to make progress and experience success on their own terms. I use concrete resources in maths (Dienes blocks, Cuisennaires, Numicon and tokens) to deepen students’ understanding of abstract mathematical concepts. In English, I use an engaging, text-based approach as a springboard for writing. I create subject-specific Widgits (picture/word banks and sentence stems), which help students structure their writing and reduce cognitive load. My pupils come away from lessons feeling good about their learning, knowing that – with the right tools and support – they can produce good work with increasing independence.
My experience supporting children with dyslexia:
I currently tutor children with dyslexia and I have participated in school-based, dyslexia training delivered by an educational psychologist. While working in schools, I undertook a year-long speech and language, certified course (called ELKLAN) aimed at improving students’ listening, memory and language skills. Supporting children with dyslexia requires a thoughtful, well-scaffolded approach. Difficulties with processing and reading written language can pose barriers to learning and require a huge, cognitive effort on the child’s part. By breaking down the learning into manageable chunks, reducing cognitive load and scaffolding the steps with visual aids, I empower pupils to engage with the learning. To aid reading fluency, prosody and comprehension, I use paired or choral reading; this is a technique which involves shared, repetitive reading. The pre-teaching of vocabulary can increase familiarity with the content and allows the student to make meaningful connections that can aid retention. I prepare topic-specific, Widgit word banks and sentence stems for writing lessons and model the use of spider diagrams to make links and aid retention.
My experience supporting students with dyspraxia (Development Coordination Disorder):
I currently tutor a child with a diagnosis of dyspraxia – a multi-faceted condition that can impact motor coordination, speech & language, memory & focus, and planning & completion skills. This condition can make it difficult for students to organise themselves, leading to a frustration gap’. Often, the child has great ideas and knows where he/she wants to get to, but finds it hard to draw out the information and see the work through to completion. I find that by breaking down the task into chunks, providing visual supports and structures – coupled with plenty of time and patience – students are able to access the learning and make good progress. Visual tools, such as mind maps and diagrams, can help pupils make connections and embed the learning into their long-term memory. Revisiting topics in maths and pre-teaching vocabulary in English can increase increase the child’s familiarity with the material and promote retention. An ‘Every time I write’ laminated checklist encourages independence and meta-cognition as the student is responsible for taking ownership of their learning – reading back their work and editing for missing punctuation. Practical tools – a keyboard, writing slope, ridged ruler and pencil grip – can help reduce frustration, while other techniques, such as role play, drama and art, can make the learning ‘sticky’ and meaningful.
My experience working with autistic young people:
I have experience working with a range of autistic pupils, each of them with a unique set of needs. In my daily practice, I use visual timetables and a consistent routine to reduce anxiety and support emotional regulation. On any given day, I set the pace of my lessons according to the child’s individual needs -allowing for regular movement and brain breaks in order to sustain a positive dynamic that supports self-regulation. Some students benefit from an ‘if/then’ star chart; others benefit from using a 10 minute sand timer. One of my autistic students enjoyed the occasional drawing break on her sketch pad. There is no ‘one size fits all’ approach when teaching autistic pupils as every child is different and unique. As such, I work closely with families in order to ascertain what works best for their child, and I put in place routines that respect and support the child’s needs. I have attended a specialist training course to support self-regulation for autistic children and I use the ‘Zones of Regulation’ chart as a tool to allow children to express and validate their emotions. Furthermore, I use social stories as a means to help autistic pupils navigate everyday situations with greater ease, enabling them to have a better understanding of others’ thoughts and feelings, along with a greater awareness of how to manage their own responses in an appropriate manner.
My specialist experience teaching students with hearing impairments:
For two years, I worked in a school that has a specialist, hearing resource base and as a class teacher, I have taught pupils with cochlear implants. Children with hearing impairments need considerable support with speech and language. By pre-teaching vocabulary and providing word banks and sentence stems, I ensured that the learning was scaffolded in such a way that they could work independently. My clear modelling, which breaks down the task into manageable steps, enables all children – including those with hearing impairments – engage with the learning. My school chose to teach BFL as its modern foreign language so I have observed sign language lessons and assemblies. I believe that it is essential for children with hearing impairments to be exposed to positive role models and to be inspired by stories of adults with hearing impairments who have gone on to succeed in the wider world.
My specialist experience teaching students with visual impairments:
As a class teacher, I have taught a student who was partially sighted. I provided my student with large font text, a magnifier and a specially lined workbook for writing. We honed in on letter formation and handwriting, using Widgit word banks and concrete resources as a scaffold. Some children with visual impairments may find it challenging to identify how others are feeling as they can’t easily read others’ expressions: they may require social stories to help them avoid misunderstandings and navigate social situations.
My skills and experience supporting children to develop their independence:
I believe that independence is an essential component of self-esteem. By pitching and scaffolding the learning accurately, I give my pupils every opportunity to work as independently as possible. I use a variety of strategies – concrete resources, visual aids, word banks, sentence stems and clear models – which enable my pupils to engage with the learning independently. My philosophy is to offer the least help first; this means that I work doubly hard to prepare for lessons in order to facilitate independent learning and I am always ready to step in with more scaffolds as need be. By promoting independence – and avoiding the trap of learnt helplessness – I give my students the opportunity to exercise agency and feel a sense of empowerment.
