About Me:
Always wanting to be a teacher, I completed a BTEC National Diploma in Childhood Studies in 1998 and then went on to University to successfully complete the BEd Primary Education Studies degree in 2001. I am a dedicated and passionate classroom teacher and have worked in 3 mainstream primary school settings in Bromley and Bexley over my 23 year teaching career. I am highly skilled in collaborating effectively with teachers, parents and external agencies in order to ensure support for children.
I have a good knowledge of effective strategies and interventions to support, engage and inspire young people. I am a firm believer in that every child is a learner and that using a graduated approach to remove barriers to learning will enable the child to flourish.
Skills and Experience:
Working as a Class Teacher, Assistant Head, Deputy Head and Interim Headteacher I have had the opportunity to work with many children who have a range of different needs, including: anxiety, ASC (autism), ADHD, SEMH, working memory and processing needs and global development delay. I have a passion for primary education and am trained in both ReadWriteInc phonics and Mathematics Mastery. I always approach learning with a ‘I do, We do, You do’ style, giving the child confidence from effective modelling and shared practice.
My experience working with young people with SEN to develop trusting and meaningful relationships enabling them to engage
I recognise that developing respectful and trusting relationships is vital, I therefore always pride myself in developing these relationships with my young people and take my time to get to know them well, tailoring my approach to suit the individual. I use humour and a nurturing approach to allow them to get to know and trust me and to create a safe and successful learning environment in which they can take risks and challenge themselves.
My experience teaching young people with ASC (autism)
I understand how to make adjustments to the working environment in order to promote consistency, structure, reduce anxiety and maximise success. I create personalised programmes for children which are suited to their own interests and bespoke to each individual child. I am able to adapt the delivery of teaching and learning through different communication mediums, using signals and visuals when required.
It is so important that children with such needs may be prepared for different transitions and changes, this can be detailed to the incremental now/next/then steps that could be required of them during an hour session, or an overview timetable of their day. It is important that children are provided with visuals to support activities or as communication tools. Choice is also a huge aspect of working with pupils with additional needs in order to provide children with ownership and autonomy over their own education. The use of visuals to support timetabling, instructions, social stories, choice and communication from both teacher and child are invaluable.
My experience helping young people with their wellbeing – anxiety or emotional behaviours
Developing a good understanding of the child through building an effective relationship with them as well as engaging in purposeful communication with adults involved enables me to understand their behaviours and feelings. I teach the young person to learn about, recognise and communicate their emotions. I empathise with a child’s emotional state and use this as a teaching tool to explore with them more effective responses. I always ensure the child has their feelings acknowledged and validated, encouraging them to feel part of the process in understanding their feelings and emotions. I share resources and ‘tools’ with the children on how to understand and explore their feelings and provide them with routines that can support them in calming their feelings if it becomes overwhelming.
My experience teaching young people with executive functioning skills/study skills
Through the use of visuals, prompts, scaffolds, pre-teaching and overlearning (revisiting prior learning) I work together with the young person to identify a preferred method to support day to day challenge areas. I then scaffold around these key areas with a long term view of developing the confidence and independence of the individual.
My experience teaching young people with social communication difficulties
Developing an effective relationship with parents/carers to really understand the child is paramount for children with social communication difficulties. Parents and carers will be best placed in knowing the signs of anxiety and challenging behaviours the child may present and home and if any communication has come via other external professionals. I would use social stories to develop the child’s understanding of cause and effect through ‘what if’ scenarios. The feelings and emotions that come through the social stories would then be supported by the use of self-regulation strategies. I would ensure visuals are used and ensure they show what I would want from the young person.
My experience supporting young people with difficulties in using language
Modelling and extending language through conversation that is of interest to the young person will enable them to see and hear how the language can be used in context, giving them confidence before exploring with it themselves. I would always use the ‘MyTurnYourTurn’ when introducing, modelling and discussing new vocabulary as this shows the young person that I’m ‘having a go’ too. I would always encourage alternative means of communicating including: drawing, gestures, visuals, scribing or typing or using speech to text to showcase to the young person that their words, thoughts, ideas or suggestions can be communicated and shared with others.
My experience teaching young people maths
I teach maths through a CPA approach, whereby I would also refer and use concrete resources and manipulatives so that the child can experience these first hand. Practical activities that engage and enthuse children will always make maths seem a desirable and enjoyable subject to learn and be involved in. Once a concept has been introduced and experienced using the ‘concrete’ resources, I would then look to introduce this in a ‘pictorial’ representation enabling the child to match their experiences with the concrete resources with the pictorial representation. Once the child is fully immersed and has understood both the C and P, then the abstract can be introduced, with the child experiencing just the numbers that match their prior experiences.
My experience teaching young people English
Reading
Finding engaging texts that interest the young person will encourage them to be more involved and invested in the text and therefore reading in general. I pre-teach key vocabulary prior to reading the text and then would encourage the young person to identify those during the text sharing time, this encourages the child to stay forced and adds a level of competition and excitement to see who can ‘spot’ them first. Teaching and then encouraging pupils to summarise at key points will also ensure they have understood what they have read or have been read to, allowing them to become fully immersed in reading. Asking both closed and open-ended questions whilst reading will also encourage the child to think more deeply about the text and therefore deepen their understanding of what they have read, also encouraging links to prior learning, experiences and knowledge. Retelling narrative texts is also crucial as it vital links to speaking, listening and communication and also encourages the link into writing.
Writing
Providing word banks, pre-teaching vocabulary, having writing frames and scaffolds as well as having a good, modelled example will all allow the writing sessions to have a clear structure and support along the way. This means the child will feel supported and encouraged at every stage in the writing process, limiting the anxiety over a ‘blank’ page. Written tasks will be purposeful and meaningful to the young person as this creates the ‘buy-in’ to the task and reduces the reluctance to it. I use a stimulus for writing that is linked to their interests and therefore encourages engagement.
My experience providing engaging sessions to inspire a love of learning
Children learn best when a safe environment is created, where mistakes can be made and support and encouragement is on hand. I show my young people that we are ALL learning, ALL of the time. I aim to use children’s special interests wherever possible to showcase what they are capable of. I celebrate all successes and all strengths as well as valuing the effort and attitude. Developing a growth mindset using the power of YET has always been really successful with my young people. I can’t do that YET…but it’s coming, and I’ll help and support you to get there!
My skills and experience supporting students to develop their independence
The ultimate aim of any SEND tutor is to initially scaffold tasks and learning in order to develop an independent and confident learner. This is best achieved with a secure relationship between student and tutor and sessions that are tailored to the student’s learning style. Through my creative and personalised learning approach, I promote strategies such as curiosity and wonder to develop the small steps of self-awareness which in turn contribute to a child approaching life with a ‘can do’ attitude and a life long thirst for knowledge.
My experience teaching young people with memory and retention difficulties
Using lots of modelling and scaffolds (including writing frames and prompt sheets) will enable the child to ‘see’ the task and then, with support and guidance, be able to complete the small sections/chunks of learning. I provide exact repetitions and will ask the child to repeat back the instruction. Using recording apps and devices will also support the child in having their ideas played back once they have verbalised them. Effective modelling of both the learning and the vocabulary will all support the child in building up their memory and retention capacity.
My experience teaching young people with attention and listening difficulties
Ensuring I have the attention of the child is paramount in being able to communicate effectively. I say their name and, if suitable, gain eye contact before providing clear, brief and concise instructions to ensure attention in the first instance. I then allow the child time to process the information and would ask them to repeat it back to me so that I can see they have fully understood. I use visual support when giving instructions and am clear on the amount of time they have for the task. It’s really important to give praise to reinforce and encourage good listening as well as using positive redirection. I plan in and adapt the use of rest / natural movements breaks.
My experience supporting young people to develop metacognition skills
Teaching young people to think about their thinking is really, really important for them to understand what they need to do when presented with a situation. Showing them how the brain works is important for their learning journey. I would model to the young person what strategies they need to use and what they need to do. This would be done on a little and often basis so that they build confidence in knowing what strategies to use and what needs to be done.
