KellyF

My specialist experience working with students with Autism: During my teaching career to date, I have developed extensive skills working with students with Autism. This has ranged from providing specialist support in a formal classroom environment to leading and running a complete home-school environment. I have worked with students to develop their social interaction using social stories programmes and co-ordinated with ABA therapists to ensure our academic learning has been complemented by ABA behavioural techniques. My teaching experience has allowed me to develop clear communication techniques and this forms the basis of good relationships with my students. During a particular home school assignment, I enabled my student to access the curriculum using a range of kinaesthetic learning tools and we worked on building confidence with new ideas whilst reviewing regularly past work. I have used PECs with students to assist their understanding of the world around them and also ensure we use a range of regular established routines to help comprehension of social and academic skills. I ensure my lessons with students are paced correctly to reflect the needs of the learner and enjoy using a range of different tools such as ICT and practical hands-on examples of abstract concepts to support my students with Autism.

My specialist experience developing trusting and meaningful relationships with students with SEN and Autism: When processing information takes students longer than average a crucial role of the teacher is to provide patience and ongoing support. As a teacher with rich experience working with students with processing delays, I am naturally nurturing and supportive when it comes to scaffolding learning. I am empathetic and always have time to listen to my student's concerns providing a reliable and solid person for them to interact with. Routine and regular daily events are key in supporting students with special needs and autism and I make a point to keep to planned structures while assisting understanding of change. Being a naturally friendly and sensitive person, I enjoy building these relationships of trust and reassuring my student that my support is unconditional, and I endeavour to celebrate every success regardless of size. Celebrating the success of each individual student demonstrates to a learner that I am willing to support their learning journey and take the time and care they need to progress to their next stage in learning. A smile goes a long way and my warm nature is key in building long lasting relationships. My resilience allows me to pursue strong relationships and I am keen to work with my students through any challenges they may face.

My experience providing homework support to students, including those with autism, anxiety and ADHD, across the curriculum: Having worked as an in home tutor for a number of years I am skilled at providing support to students with the completion of homework. I find it useful to provide students with a model for organising their home learning and ensuring they have a clear timetable and goals for each after school session. It is an important balance to ensure homework is completed independently and yet provide the necessary support to allow my student develop independent study skills. I am confident across the curriculum which allows me to move with the demands of the curriculum and provide the necessary information and resources for my student. Ensuring my students understand the purpose of homework and working alongside them as not only a tutor but a companion really allows the positive experience of home learning to develop.

My skills and experience teaching children with speech and language delay/ disorders: Having worked with children who have speech and language delay, I have developed a range of fun and engaging techniques to support development of language skills. Bringing subject matter alive and linking a range of visual images to words is a fun way to develop language. Using a range of multi media experiences and immersion in contextual based activities supports development and ensures engaging lessons. I use a multi sensory approach to ensure language is developed in a fun holistic manner and plan student centred learning experiences which are accessible and individually tailored to my students.

xMy skills and experience developing motivation and engagement in learning: My experience to date creating homeschool environments has allowed me to gain an insight into the needs and challenges of the homeschool student. I have the skills to create a personally tailored curriculum that ensures the best academic programme to engage a student in learning tasks whilst motivating them to reach their goals. Mixing longer and shorter activities allow my student to have the satisfaction of a goal met whilst inspiring them to become engaged in the learning process.

My skills and experience working with children with anxiety to boost their self-esteem and confidence: In my teaching experience, positive reinforcement has proven key to unlock a student's confidence and ensure they are best placed to be happy and succeed at school. I celebrate every achievement with encouraging words and rewards. I feel my approachable nature means my student are happy to ask me questions when they face difficulties. My approach is to ensure children reflect upon their process as a crucial part of the learning process and set their own goals in addition to their teachers. My experience has taught me that having high yet achievable expectations for my students raises their confidence in their abilities.

My experience teaching exam and revision techniques, specifically ISEB and 11+: A vast majority of my tuition experience is based around preparing students for entry exams at the 10 and 11+ entry points. I have a detailed knowledge of the methods of assessment and the curriculum that the ISEB sets. I have a strong track record of success at 11+ entry with ISEB students and have developed a strong understanding of how to prepare a student for the competitive exams. I spend time ensuring the building blocks of the curriculum are in place and then progress to the reasoning side of the exam papers. I ensure I identify each students learning needs and tailor a personal programme of revision, practice papers and regular study check-ups to ensure they are well prepared for the exams.

My skills and experience helping students to develop organisation, concentration and memory skills: During the current global pandemic, my teaching skills have evolved to enable children to access their learning online. I plan interesting and engaging lessons using a range of resources that spark their interests and foster a love of learning. Using methods such as screen movement breaks and active learning tasks, I am experienced in helping students of all age groups work towards longer periods of concentration and focus. In terms of developing memory, I use a range of stimuli including graphical organisers, note taking and different mind maps that have been proven useful for extending working memory. Regular repetition and planning a cyclical curriculum that is bespoke for the student have all reaped rewards when developing working memory skills. I have extensive experience working with students who need at-home support to develop areas of confidence and general academic skills. I am skilled in introducing study routines for students who have trouble organising themselves and need general study support in order to organise their academic life.

My experience planning and delivering fun enjoyable sessions: Having worked as a one to one tutor for over 15 years, I have developed a range of interactive and stimulating activities that build a passion for learning for my students. I am creative and enjoy linking a mixture of resources to plan both short and longer topic based sessions. The relationship between tutor and student is crucial to ensure sessions are engaging and I really work with my learners to use their own personal interests to develop and plan my sessions. For example, a student with a passion for Lego, created a workshop to look at area and perimeter calculations based on the size of their models. Taking part in physical activities such as scavenger hunts and creating board games really involves my students and they often comment on how much fun they have had during our session. Communication skills can be studied by creating radio shows and working towards audiovisual presentations that can be celebrated by the student and their family. In the current shift to online learning, my creative skills have been challenged to find new ways to ensure my sessions are engaging when learning virtually. Particular success stories have included allowing the student to produce learning fact sheets using images and codes, building online quizzes together and creating interviews based upon web based learning programmes. My experience has taught me the key to engage and stimulate a student is to be passionate and positive about my own learning journey and share the learning challenges alongside the learner.

My work as a specialist autism consultant: I have worked with a number of families to provide educational support and activate plans for students with Autism. I am well versed with the options available for students and am able to recommend specialist organisations and professionals that can provide additional support for each family. My role in the formal education system allows me to provide the necessary information about academic goals and ways to intervene to boost progress. I am also happy to advise on holistic and alternative ways to work with students with Autism.

My specialist experience managing a multi-disciplinary team: I have managed a range of teams in educational settings comprising of: in-class support workers, ABA teams, SLTs, OTs and generalist teachers. In managing a range of professionals, it is crucial to have excellent communication between the team to ensure everyone is committed and working towards the same goal. I set up online communication books for professionals to communicate and share ideas and progress reports. Encouraging an open and regular dialogue with the team and parents is also a milestone for a successful home-school team. Using each specialist’s individual skillset, is a key way to ensure the best outcome with a home school programme and regular one to one check-ins ensure that every team member is able to contribute to the overall learning goals.

My experience teaching Maths: Teaching maths in the classroom and as a one to one tutor I have developed the skills to break down topics and present them in a clear and concise manner. Focusing on the fundamentals such as times tables and basic operational methods for addition and subtraction, I believe it is vital to ensure the basic skills are in place to build upon when advancing through the key subjects. Patience is vital at this early stage and regular repetition and interactive activities bringing numbers alive are part of my tools when teaching. As with most subjects, understanding the practical side of maths is key to understanding and as well as traditional text book methods, I enjoy setting up practical situations for students to explore maths concepts. These could include measuring items, working out the weight of items using scales and as further concepts develop, finding areas of different shapes through using squared paper to draw out shapes. Maths is a subject that often scares students and being a positive support during my students’ journey in this topic is vital to ensure they have the confidence and support to work through the necessary concepts.

My experience teaching English and story writing: I have been teaching English as a class teacher up to KS4 level and have a strong grasp of the current National Curriculum requirements. I enjoy working on a range of basic skills such as phonics, print making and developing a love of reading within my students. I have a range of resources to develop free writing skills, considering grammar and spelling and am particularly skilled working with reluctant writers to enhance their written work skills. When working upon story writing, I use visual prompts to allow my student to develop a creative world in their mind and assist the story writing process. We work together to build up characters and settings and I use images, virtual learning clips and other tools to scaffold the process from thoughts to the written word.

Reading is a core skill and I enjoy planning interactive sessions that develop my students’ confidence to tackle new texts and be able to engage with the subject matter at hand. Of particular interest to me is working with students to support their written work when faced with additional learning needs. Practical examples of writing and how they can be used in everyday life really stimulate my students and enhance their enjoyment of English learning. For example, writing instructions which they can then follow in a practical activity is a really interactive and fun way to engage a reluctant writer.

My skills and experience teaching study skills and independence: I have worked with many students to work specifically upon their study skills and independence. Many assignments have been based around allowing each pupil to equip themselves with the tools to be an active learner and really focus on their individual learning plans. I introduce methods such as using priority list techniques, calendars and to-do lists to ensure work is well organised and up to date. With younger students, we colour code work and use diagrams and images that will stimulate their memory and pride over their individual work.  I work with students upon their skim-reading skills to allow them to extract key information in a quick manner and then we work together to learn how to make notes in an organised fashion that allows them to be referred to during revision periods. I have assisted my students make clear revision timetables, prioritising areas that need additional support and model how to reward each completed task to celebrate success.Encouraging pupils to feel proud of their own achievements in a supported environment has proven key to foster independent learners who enjoy the process of learning.

My skills and experience working with teenagers and young adults: I have extensive experience working with young adults in both educational and informal environments. My work as a youth worker and programme manager for a social enterprise project, has given me excellent experience and developed my skills when working alongside teenagers and young adults. In a more formal environment, I have tutored and prepared students for both formal exams and informal conversation based sessions. In all cases, I believe it is crucial to get to know my students as individuals and make an effort to engage with their own interests and hobbies. Working with young adults requires an open mind and patience to pursue a strong relationship.

My specialist experience writing lesson plans, creating educational learning plans, and bespoke timetables in accordance with the UK National Curriculum: I have created a number of home-schooling programmes for students outside the British schooling system. I have an in-depth knowledge of the Curriculum contents, targets and complimentary resources. My meticulous approach ensures that I have the appropriate coverage of the core and foundation subjects whilst planning in any specialist focus lessons. When designing a home-school programme I use a range of techniques to plan engaging lessons. These are audio-visual, physical, and kinaesthetic and encourage the students to engage in a rich variety of activities. Examples include creating scripts, radio shows, posters in addition to traditional methods such as written tasks and drills. In my latest home school programme I worked with an 8 year old Autistic student, his ABA team and speech therapists to ensure he was catching up with the age appropriate curriculum goals and supporting his eventual integration back to mainstream schooling. We used general curriculum goals as a guide and tailored these to meet his specific skills and academic needs. The result was a fine tuned home-school programme that resulted in our student being reintroduced to his mainstream school. The key to a successful home school programme is analysing the existing skills of my pupils and complementing these with catch up lessons focusing on missing skills. My programmes are flexible and reflective of learning at any point in the programme. This ensures we can respond quickly to emerging needs and work towards a common goal.

• PGCE Primary Education focusing on History
• QTS Induction training
• Masters Level Credits Behaviour Management, Improving professional Practice
• Dyslexia and Dyscalculia in the mainstream classroom
• SEN access in the classroom and one to one support
• ABA Therapy mini course
• Innovative Teaching techniques
• First Aid at Work
• Child Protection and Safeguarding
• Using IT in the Classroom
• Foundation Studies Qualification in Youth Work