My specialist experience working with young people with SEN to develop trusting and meaningful relationships.
Some children I have supported have experienced many challenges in their school settings. 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. 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 SEND needs to feel understood and not judged.
My experience working with young people with ASC.
I have had the privilege of working with a diverse range of needs, with much of my support focused on pupils diagnosed with or presenting with ASC. This has allowed me to develop a deep understanding of each individual’s unique needs and strengths. I have undertaken extensive training and have qualifications to equip me with effective ideas and techniques to support children with Autism in reaching their full potential. My approach often incorporates sensory circuits and movement breaks, visual supports, such as timetables and fidget tools, to address sensory needs while engaging children in activities. Developing routines, providing structure, and maintaining clear boundaries have been essential in helping children focus on new concepts. I like to get to know the likes and dislikes of my learners to find multi-sensory approaches that contribute to the development of children’s attention, communication, and play skills. For older learners (tweens/teens), I have experience in the PEERS intervention for building social communication, where I have had the pleasure of seeing real progress in boosting social confidence and friendships for the young people on the programme.
My experience working with young people with ADHD.
I have extensive expertise in working with young people with ADHD and executive functioning needs. For many learners, it’s important to maintain a young person’s motivation by providing small, manageable tasks that are clearly explained and allowing sufficient time for completion. All of my sessions incorporate regular, brief breaks for movement, games, and even singing and dancing if this appeals to my learner. I find talking about their interests can be very effective in keeping students engaged. Physical tools such as a stress ball or fidget cushion are simple strategies that can greatly enhance their learning experience and motivation. Additionally, I believe it is essential to regularly check in on their emotional well-being, and I teach calming techniques to help them focus more effectively. As a qualified dyslexia specialist, many of my students have ADHD and ASC alongside additional learning needs. I’m a qualified Executive Functioning coach and I use a range of approaches to help my learners develop these essential skills for life. I am specially trained to administer ADHD screening, and I have in-depth studies (Psychology Masters, Psychotherapeutic counselling qualification) where I use many cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) techniques in my specially designed programmes.
My experience supporting young people with a PDA profile.
I have worked with numerous students who present with challenging behaviour. This can range from a mild reluctance to engage, to impulsive and hyperactive actions. Some of my pupils/students can be defiant and oppositional when experiencing certain situations. I have also supported children and adolescents with more complex behaviours such as PDA and Conduct Disorder. I believe that establishing a strong rapport with the students is crucial, so I dedicate time to understanding their interests and dislikes, and I then incorporate this knowledge into my planning. I adopt a flexible approach to foster trust and develop a meaningful relationship. An indirect style of negotiation helps them feel more in control of their learning, which reduces their anxiety. My learning style can often be less structured and more intuitive if I think it will benefit my learner. I focus on maintaining calm and steady emotions, frequently integrating drama and role-playing into my lessons. 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 adapt more flexibly to the daily challenges of life to strengthen their independence.
My experience supporting young people with SEMH needs.
Over the past 15 years, I’ve gained extensive, hands-on experience helping young people navigate their Social, Emotional, and Mental Health (SEMH) needs. I work within diverse multidisciplinary teams including teachers, therapists, clinicians, and social workers to develop truly comprehensive support for every individual. My approach is centred on making things right for the young person. This starts with using trauma-informed practice (TIP), always looking past the behaviour to understand “What happened?” by focusing on Safety, Trust, and Empowerment. I actively utilise restorative approaches to foster accountability and repair relationships, employing both Restorative Questions for informal, on-the-spot mediation of minor conflicts. Ultimately, I focus on equipping my students with key life tools: building their emotional literacy, strengthening their self-regulation skills, and providing the stable, structured interventions they need to succeed both in the moment and long-term.
My experience teaching primary Maths and English.
As a specially qualified dyslexia expert, I understand the need for a rich and broad range of learning experiences 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 have more than fifteen years of experience assessing and providing specific numeracy interventions for learners with dyscalculia. From Year 1 to Secondary, my interventions aim to build crucial foundational skills. As with any intervention, I do a thorough strength and need audit to inform the specially designed intervention that I will create for my learner. I have delivered a variety of numeracy lessons tailored to children with different ability levels and needs. I prioritise making maths engaging, often using real-life resources and outdoor opportunities to develop both numeracy and fine motor skills. Hands-on, multisensory approaches have consistently shown positive outcomes. Additionally, I have completed “Catch Up Maths” training, which involves brief, targeted activities to consolidate understanding and boost confidence.
My experience developing confidence and self-esteem.
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, ASC, and ADHD 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 can often be less structured and more intuitive if I think it will benefit my learners. I focus on maintaining calm and steady emotions, frequently integrating drama and role-playing into my lessons. 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.
My skills and experience supporting young people to develop their independence.
Supporting young people with SEN to develop independence requires a strengths-based and highly individualised approach. This involves breaking down complex independence skills, such as executive functioning, self-advocacy, and daily living tasks, into smaller, manageable steps and providing explicit instruction and visual support tailored to their unique learning styles. I approach self-advocacy by fostering my learner’s self-awareness and teaching them specific communication strategies. This begins with helping them understand their own profile, their strengths, challenges, and specific sensory or processing needs (e.g., “I learn best by seeing” or “Loud noises overwhelm me”). Then, I share and guide them to voice their choices clearly and respectfully articulate these needs to others that can be relied upon in every step of their lives. The process requires repeated practice in a safe environment, moving from guided scripts to independent, confident, and assertive communication to ensure they can secure the necessary adjustments for success and independence.
