Katie

• My skills and experience supporting students with Autism (including high-functioning)

I have worked in the primary educational setting for nine years and within these nine years, I have trained and worked in both mainstream schools and a special school supporting children with Autism, as a teacher, interventions teacher and as a teaching assistant. Currently I am a class teacher and Year Leader in a North London primary school where I plan and teach individually-tailored lessons and interventions for SEN-D children. I work closely with the school SENCO to create learning plans to suit the needs of the children; this involves accurate assessments, setting achievable targets and the development of a tailored curriculum. I have also worked as a tutor for many years, and in this time, I have worked with a number of children with ASD; I tailor my strategies and approaches according to each child’s individual needs and use a range of resources such as visual timetables, PECS, colourful semantics, writing frames and many other manipulatives such as Numicon, dienes etc. to support children’s learning and understanding.

• My skills and experience supporting students in KS1 

I have worked as an interventions teacher in Reception and Year 1 supporting children with Phonics and writing. I designed, planned and taught units of lessons to help under-achieving children to catch up with their peers in these subjects. In addition, I have tutored a number of children in KS1 and Reception; lessons primarily focused on Phonics, mathematics and writing, all tailored to suit the needs and age of the child. Currently, I am a Year 3 teacher (Lower KS2) where there are a number of children who benefit from working through a KS1 curriculum, particularly children whose education has been affected by the pandemic. I plan using KS1 material and resources and set targets from the National Curriculum for Key Stage 1.

I have worked in Summer Camps too (including SENsational Summer Camps!) which incorporated the use of fun, play-based learning which creates an enjoyable, effective and memorable way for children to learn and a style I incorporate when teaching.

• My skills and experience supporting students in KS2

I have worked as Year 3 teacher and Year leader for 4 years, developing the curriculum and overseeing the planning and teaching for my Year group. I have also completed school-based training in Year 5 and have tutored children aged between 4-14 for nine years.

• My skills and experience working with families and children to help them unlock and reach their potential

I have worked with many families and children over the years, both when tutoring and as a class teacher. At the end of every tutoring session, I provide feedback of the lesson, and give targets for parents and carers to work on, to ensure we are all working towards the same goal, in a consistent manner. It is also important for the family and I to understand the strategies we will jointly use and to create the sense of a ‘team’. Families know their own children so well and any information becomes invaluable knowledge for tutors as understandably, good and trusting relationships take a little time to develop.

• My skills and experience helping students to develop focus and concentration

Having worked with children in specialist settings and lower KS year groups, developing attention, focus and organisational skills is something that is part of my every day practise. I encourage independence where possible and use visual cues frequently to engage learners. I also have a bank of resources that are used to develop attention skills. I tailor lessons to suit the interests of the child and I find this is a very effective way to maintain the learner’s focus and concentration.

• My skills and experience developing motivation and engagement in learning

I am an animated and energetic teacher! I motivate the children I work with, through a variety of ways, including praise, rewards and friendly competitions. I am passionate about helping children to develop a growth mindset, a can-do attitude and a love of learning. This is the core of all my lessons, including the development of resilience and perseverance. All of these things need to be consistently built into a lesson, which I believe I achieve, in every lesson that I teach.

• My skills and experience boosting students’ self-esteem and confidence

My favourite classroom motto is ‘Mistakes are proof that you are trying!’ I welcome mistakes with open arms and often thank children for their ‘boo-boos!’ I believe it is highly important to show children that it is ok to make mistakes and often deliberately make them myself to show that it is something to embrace. Learning without mistakes is not really learning after all! From my past experience, I have encountered many children who are quite harsh on themselves, which in turn has affected their self-esteem and confidence. Through consistent approaches and praise, I have seen and witnessed children develop a growth mindset and assertiveness. There has been incredible moments in my teaching career, but the growth in confidence is definitely one of the most special ones.