Jeanie

My specialist experience working with young people with SEN to develop trusting and meaningful relationships

I am a fully qualified teacher with QTS and 17 years of experience in education. I came into teaching through my personal connection to neurodivergence and SEND, and I specialise in supporting students who find school challenging academically, socially, and emotionally.

Alongside teaching academic content, I focus on learning strategies, emotional regulation, confidence, and self-worth in a world that does not always accommodate difference. I am warm, empathetic, and skilled at building genuine connections with young people. Many of the students I work with have had difficult experiences in traditional education. I create calm, structured learning spaces where students feel safe, capable, and respected. My lessons are interest-led and personalised, combining patience and kindness with clear, consistent boundaries.

For eight years, I worked at a NAS-accredited SEN provision as a sixth form teacher, delivering Maths and English Functional Skills, PSHE, and BTEC Life Skills, Animal Care, and Managing Relationships through ASDAN. Over the past five years, I have worked privately with students unable to access the mainstream curriculum, supporting those on Education Otherwise Than at School programmes as well as providing supplementary support. In every setting, my focus is on helping students grow academically, socially, and emotionally through trusting, supportive relationships.

My experience working with young people with Autism

I have worked with autistic young people for over eight years in specialist provisions and for the past five years in private tutoring. I have a deep understanding of how autistic students process information, manage sensory experiences and navigate social demands, and I adapt my teaching accordingly.

I use visual supports, clear and direct language, and predictable lesson structures to reduce anxiety and cognitive load. I allow generous processing time and never pressurise students to respond quickly. I understand that what can appear to be challenging behaviour is almost always driven by overwhelm, sensory difficulty or anxiety rather than defiance, and I respond with curiosity and calm rather than consequence

I incorporate special interests as central tools in my teaching, not as rewards or additions, but as the genuine scaffolding through which learning happens. A student who loves trains, animals or a particular video game will find those interests woven throughout our sessions. I believe autistic students thrive when their unique ways of experiencing the world are understood, respected and valued.

My experience working with young people with anxiety

Anxiety is present in the majority of students I work with, whether as a diagnosed condition or as an understandable response to years of feeling misunderstood, behind or out of place in educational settings. My entire approach is designed to be anxiety-reducing: I create predictable, calm and low-pressure learning environments where students know what to expect and feel in control of their experience.

My counselling training gives me a solid grounding in understanding how anxiety manifests in young people, how avoidance behaviours develop and how genuine safety and attunement can begin to shift long-standing patterns. I never use pressure, time limits or comparison as motivators. Instead, I celebrate small wins, make tasks feel manageable and give students the experience of genuine competence, which is the most powerful antidote to anxiety about learning.

I also teach practical self-regulation strategies where appropriate, helping students to understand their own nervous systems and develop tools they can use independently beyond our sessions.

My experience working with young people with PDA

I have 15 years of experience supporting young people with a PDA profile, both as a classroom teacher and as a private tutor, and working with PDA students has fundamentally shaped how I think about teaching. I have developed expertise in collaborative, demand-reduced approaches that prioritise autonomy, choice and psychological safety above all else.

My practice with PDA students is built on the understanding that the anxiety driving demand avoidance creates behaviours that can seem challenging, but are in fact a young person's way of preserving their autonomy. This requires a completely different response from traditional teaching methods. I reframe, offer choices, follow the student's lead and find indirect routes into learning. For example, rather than asking a student to sit down, I might ask whether they would prefer this chair or that one. Rather than setting a task directly, I might wonder aloud about something interesting and see where their curiosity takes us.

Boundaries remain consistent and clear, but they are maintained through relationship and trust rather than authority. I am patient, flexible and genuinely interested in the student as a person, which is the only foundation from which PDA students can begin to feel safe enough to engage. I have also attended numerous professional development courses on PDA to ensure my approaches are informed, current and respectful of each young person's individual needs.

One of my favourite techniques, and one that PDA students respond to particularly well, is offering a carousel of activities. The content we need to cover remains the same, but the student chooses where we start and how we move through it. For example, if we are working on spellings, they might choose which list to begin with; if we are doing maths, I will offer three different activities covering the same concept and let them pick. This takes a little extra preparation, but it is always worth it. Even the most demand-avoidant students I have worked with become noticeably more willing to engage once they have genuine choice and autonomy in their learning. I am also explicit with students that our work together is collaborative: we are figuring it out as a team, not following a script I have written for them.

Experience Working with Young People with ADHD

I have worked with many young people with ADHD across both school and private settings, and I have a thorough understanding of how ADHD affects attention, working memory, emotional regulation, motivation, and executive function. My sessions are structured to work with the ADHD brain rather than against it. I use short, focused tasks, varied and energising activities, movement breaks where helpful, and material that connects to the student's genuine interests.

From my experience, there is much more to ADHD than what is described in the DSM. Almost all children I know with ADHD are sensitive and compassionate, and I use praise, positive framing, and celebration of effort and progress. I also help students understand their own ADHD and develop personalised strategies for focus and self-regulation.

My experience teaching Functional English and maths

I specialise in Functional Skills qualifications as an alternative to traditional GCSEs, which are particularly well suited to students who find exam conditions overwhelming or who are working towards practical independence rather than academic progression. I have ten years of experience supporting students across the full range of Functional Skills levels, from Entry Level 1 through to Level 3, meeting each student exactly where they are and building their skills and confidence incrementally. During my eight years at a NAS-accredited SEN provision, I delivered Maths and English Functional Skills as part of a specialist curriculum, and I continue this work in private tutoring.

I teach Maths and English across Key Stages 1 to 3, with a particular specialism in supporting students who have found these subjects difficult or distressing. I use interest-led approaches and connect abstract concepts to real-world contexts that feel relevant to each student. I use memory techniques including mnemonics, acronyms and visual methods, and I break complex concepts into manageable steps, celebrating small wins and focusing on genuine understanding to support deep learning.

Experience Developing Confidence and Self-Esteem

Building genuine confidence is central to my work. Many students I support have developed negative beliefs about their abilities, and I help them challenge these by creating real experiences of success and competence. My teaching experience and counselling training give me a strong understanding of how self-esteem develops and enable me to guide students in recognising their strengths, celebrating progress, and developing a balanced, compassionate view of themselves. My aim is always to help students become more confident, better able to regulate their emotions, advocate for their needs, and trust in their own capabilities.

My specialist experience providing engaging sessions to inspire a love of learning

I believe that every young person has the capacity to be curious, to be interested and to experience the satisfaction of understanding something new. My sessions are designed to tap into that capacity by making learning feel relevant, enjoyable and genuinely connected to each student's world.

I use a wide range of teaching techniques across visual, kinaesthetic and auditory modalities, and I assess understanding through quizzes, games and conversation as well as more formal approaches. I incorporate each student's special interests as a central learning tool: if a student loves cats, cats will feature heavily in their Maths problems, their English writing prompts and their PSHE discussions.

My skills and experience supporting young people to develop their independence

Supporting young people to develop independence is an important part of my work. I help students build practical life skills, confidence, and the ability to make decisions for themselves. This may include developing organisation and study skills, managing their time, communicating their needs clearly, and gradually taking more responsibility for their learning. Through patient guidance and encouragement, I help students recognise their capabilities and develop the confidence to navigate challenges more independently both in education and in everyday life.

My teaching philosophy

Learning happens best when teaching works with a student's natural processing and learning style, sensory needs, and interests.

I believe every young person can learn and thrive when teaching is tailored to how their brain works best. This means respecting neurodivergent differences and incorporating each student's interests into learning in ways that feel meaningful and engaging.

My philosophy centres on building trust first. Without genuine connection and a sense of psychological safety, learning is significantly inhibited. I approach each student as a whole person, supporting their emotional and social development alongside their academic progress, because these aspects of development are deeply interconnected.

I work collaboratively with students wherever possible, offering structure and guidance while also respecting their autonomy and perspective. When students feel that their voice matters and their needs are understood, they are far more able to engage with learning.

I support neurodivergent students through their challenges while celebrating their strengths. A central part of my work is helping students rebuild confidence and self-belief, particularly when previous educational experiences may have led them to doubt their abilities.

Learning should feel achievable, relevant and even enjoyable — not a source of shame or anxiety. When students feel valued, understood and supported to develop strategies that work for them, they begin to see themselves as capable learners. This sense of competence and self-understanding forms the foundation for independence and self-advocacy long after our sessions end.