Additional Educational Needs

All children are valued, respected and welcomed to our school.  Children with additional educational needs are supported in their learning and we ensure they are fully included in all school activities, making full use of externally provided facilities where appropriate.
Listed below is a brief overview of the various additional programmes we deliver to support some of our children.  If you wish to discuss your child’s support programmes please do not hesitate to get in touch with Miss Cullen our SENCO.

Dyslexia

Staff are regularly trained to ensure they are meeting the needs of dyslexic children in their classrooms.  You can read more about dyslexia by visiting the British Dyslexia Association and Dyslexia Action.

Toe by Toe

This is a highly structured multi-sensory individual reading programme which is specially designed for children diagnosed as having Specific Learning Difficulties.

Speech and Language

Speech and Language sessions are for children who have been referred, by the school or by a medical professional, to be assessed by the Speech and Language Therapy Service and have been diagnosed with a speech, language or communication difficulty.  These children may work with a therapist or follow recommended programmes of activities which can include speech sound production, language development, communication and social skills training.

EAL – English as an Additional Language

This is for children who have a first language other than English and may need extra tuition to improve their oral or written English, particularly checking understanding in order to aid their academic and social development.  Our EAL Administrator works with a few children each term on weaknesses identified by their class teachers.

Mentor Support / Behaviour Support

Learning support is sometimes arranged to boost children who are just below their target levels.  For more serious learning needs the Educational Psychologist can be invited into school to consult with parents and teachers.
Emotional support is arranged for individual pupils who may be experiencing difficulty with some aspects of home/school life.

In cases of difficult and persistent behaviour problems, a child may be offered individual sessions with  an outreach worker from the Lewisham Outreach Inclusion Service Team.

Social Skills / Friendship Skills

Social Skill sessions provide children with strategies to help them work with their peers in a positive way in the classroom and playground.  The focus of a session could be:- following instructions, listening, turn-taking, asking for help and resolving conflict.

Some children, particularly those on the Autistic Spectrum, experience difficulties making friends and find playtimes very stressful.  A group of children from the same class may be chosen to form a Circle of Friends to support a child.

Advice and support for children with social and communication difficulties can be arranged with an outreach teacher from Drumbeat School.

Fine Motor Skills

Fine motor skills are vital to the development of many competencies in young children.  Activities include warming up exercises for hand and finger strength, handwriting skills, eye-hand co-ordination training and scissor skills.  These groups and their targets are arranged when recommended by an Occupational Therapist.

Support for Wellbeing and Special Needs

9 Steps to  cleaning hands PDF

9 Steps to cleaning hands 2 PDF

Activities for parents/carers Word doc

Daily schedule Word doc

Managing Health & Anxiety PDF

Physical activities Word doc

Top tips for parents/carers Word doc