Kirsten

My experience includes supporting children with a range of needs including focus and concentration difficulties, SPD (sensory processing disorder), Autism, ADHD, PDA, anxiety disorders, sensory processing difficulties, speech and communication difficulties, Asperger’s syndrome, social and emotional issues, challenging behaviour, dyslexia, attachment disorder, early childhood trauma and global developmental delay.

I have extensive experience of working with children throughout the key stages. I always begin with the student's interests/ strengths and utilise games and strategies to improve focus and concentration. This includes breaking up tasks into smaller pieces and using visuals to support understanding and holding attention. I plan motivating tasks adapted to the child's learning style i.e. visual, auditory or kinaesthetic.

I teach phonics and reading through a multi-sensory approach to suit the learners’ needs.  I teach maths through meaningful context and through using concrete apparatus to build and consolidate understanding.

Above all my sessions are fun for the learner; I support my students to foster a love for learning through engaging and stimulating lessons. Furthermore, I believe teaching should start with the child’s uniqueness and strengths, and build on these.

My natural creativity drives me to make my lessons fun, engaging and multi sensory e.g. I love to teach English/ Maths through sensory activities such as cooking. I include music, movement and ICT, where appropriate, to motivate and inspire children. The ability to adapt, be reflective and respond positively to challenges is at the heart of what I believe makes a good teacher.

I understand how crucial it is to build the self esteem of children who have had moves in their early life and how with the right support, care and dedication they are able to reach their full potential. Securely attached children have a moderate level of self-esteem which enables them to navigate the pressures and social complexities of the school day but this can be particularly challenging for children with attachment issues.

I regularly deliver Attention Autism sessions for children and I am trained in the Picture Exchange System (PECS), Colourful semantics and Makaton, which is embedded throughout my teaching to support understanding.
I have had great success in fostering communication using these methods.

Throughout my career I have had a wealth of specialist training and have always worked alongside other professionals forming part of a multi disciplinary team.

Something that may seem trivial to a typically developing child, such as having a supply teacher, can completely throw a child with attachment disorder. It may provoke reactions that they have little control over and they will need help and guidance to deal with these big feelings.

Providing children with a toolkit to rely on can help alleviate some of this anxiety. I have found through my professional and personal experience that, although it comes from a different place, children with attachment issues and children with autism can often present similarly.

Learning strategies typically used for people on the autistic spectrum can also work effectively for children with attachment disorder e.g. use of visual timetables, social stories, sensory diet, zones of regulation, ‘now and next’ boards, movement breaks etc.

Every child has the right to feel safe and secure in their learning environment and this is what I strive to achieve continually as without this learning cannot take place.

Each student is, of course, unique and I take time to really get to know my students. I devise a programme and deliver sessions that will help build his or her confidence and love for learning through their strengths and interests.

This is also true of my personal life. Whilst going though the adoption process and later on when my son started school, it was necessary to work alongside social workers, speech and language therapists, play therapists, post adoption support team and closely with the SENDCO to ensure the best support for my son.

As well as working in schools for the past 15+ years I have also had experience as an Outreach support worker for children who struggle to get into school. I believe in creating win-win situations both professionally and at home with my own children. I maintain a positive behaviour approach built on praise, raising self esteem, modelling and coaching.

My 15+ years of teaching has equipped me with many experiences, skills, and strategies to be able to unlock students’ potential.

I resigned from my post as a member of the senior leadership team and mainstream class teacher in 2009 as I had always had an interest in working in a specialist setting. It was always the hard to reach children that had interested me and with whom I wanted to make a connection.

I initially became interested in SEN teaching when I worked at a special needs summer play scheme in 2000. It was the first experience I had had of working with children with autism and I found the whole experience to be deeply rewarding as I connected with individual children and watched them progress year after year. I made it my job to make the children smile each day and have fun!

Fast forward to 2009 and I was employed in my first job as an SEN teacher, I felt like I’d come home! I found the teaching and rapport building to be so much more fulfilling than working in a mainstream school. The smaller class sizes enabled me to really get to know my students and find their strengths and what made them tick. This is of course true of the families as well. I place a high emphasis on parental involvement and have worked closely with families and outside agencies in order to provide the best care possible to meet the needs of the individual children.

I am mum to my three, adopted boys, aged 7, 6 and 3, and I am an approved foster carer.

I have a wealth of experience in working with children with attachment disorder and its associated issues, both personally and professionally. I have had intensive training in this area via Coram BAAF and I utilise the skills and expertise on a daily basis.

In addition to supporting my own children with attachment issues, I also tutored a boy on a 1:1 basis with attachment disorder diagnosis via an outreach service. I understand the importance of preparation, predictability, stability, boundaries and raising self esteem through a therapeutic approach for young people who have had a difficult start to life and experienced moves in their early years.

I am experienced in teaching children with sensory processing issues. I incorporate a 'sensory diet' into sessions to support their learning. This may include star jumps, push ups, weighted blanket, deep pressure etc. I use these strategies on a daily basis at home with my son who experiences these issues.

In my Reception class at school the children engage in a daily 'Sensory Circuit'. It is a short, sensory motor skills progamme which sets children up for the day with alertness levels so that they are in the 'ready to learn' zone.

This enables me to then teach the young children (aged 4 -5) literacy skills including phonics. Again I use a multi sensory approach for this e.g. forming letters in shaving foam, writing with carrots in brown sauce!