After 18 years in My experience building mutually respectful, trusting relationships
Trust is the foundation of any learning experience: to be a learner is to be vulnerable, and learning can only occur if we are confident enough to make mistakes. Education is not a race – there is nothing that a child must be able to do by a particular age – and the best progress is made when pupils experience success early on. For that reason, my approach to the teaching of SEN students is to begin with their interests: what are they good at? How can they show me what they can already do? Once the pupil feels safe and knows that we learn when we are challenged, I can begin to coax them out of their comfort zone.
My experience teaching Maths and English
I am first and foremost an English specialist, with a wealth of experience in teaching children of all abilities between the ages of 11 and 19. I have supported children with a huge range of SEND in the mainstream classroom and, having led whole-school literacy, have particular expertise in supporting pupils with dyslexia and other communication needs. As a tutor, I also teach Maths to Foundation GCSE level and understand the way learning in Maths must be sequenced and consolidated to ensure success.
My experience supporting pupils with ASC
I have taught autistic students both within a mainstream classroom and in a one-to-one setting. In both settings, it is critical to get to know the individual first. However, my priority is always to ensure that the pupil feels safe and a predictable structure to the lessons can be useful here, as can explaining what we will aim to achieve during the lesson – or sequence of lessons – at the start. Tasks that a child lacks confidence in can be approached obliquely – perhaps I will take notes as we discuss a topic and then the pupil will turn those notes into paragraphs. Exploring topics together, using written frames and visual aids, can also be a good way in. The autistic pupils I have tutored have been some of the most exciting pupils I have ever taught, because they are often highly literate and love a good argument (which is what learning is all about).
My experience supporting anxious students
As with autistic pupils, those suffering with anxiety are often very academically able and it is a privilege to be trusted with unlocking that ability. In my experience, it is important that learning is exploratory, and that the pupil has some control over the pace. Extended tasks can be broken into chunks to make the learning navigable, and pupils should always feel able to take a sensory break.
My experience supporting pupils with to develop their independence
Having led Independent Learning in a large secondary school, I have supported pupils in everything from personal organisation and time management (such as using a diary to prepare for the week or writing and following a revision timetable) to learning strategies like quizzing and meta-cognition. All of us learn most effectively when we understand how our current learning connects to what we already know, and how it is preparing us for future knowledge. It is therefore critical to have a clear program of study, to revise prior learning frequently, and to link new learning to areas of existing knowledge or interest to make them engaging and memorable.
