Autism, education

AAC Game: Squawk

AAC and Interaction Games There are many ways to inspire and motivate children to communicate. One way I have found effective is structuring a game/play session. It is important to enable reluctant communicators or those who rely on AAC to fully engage with their peers. AAC means Augmentative and Alternative Communication and can range from… Continue reading AAC Game: Squawk

Backpocketteacher bereavement and grief blog special education
Autism, Blogs, Guest Post, special education, special needs, Teaching, Wellbeing

BackPocketTeacher: Bereavement and Grief in SEND

The Birth of BackPocketTeacher Hands up, who returns from school with a bizarre range of things in their pockets? Stickers, symbols, bubbles, raisins, latex gloves…. they’ve all been found in my pockets and also been seen spinning around my washing machine! As a SEND teacher I learnt very early on that however amazing and detailed… Continue reading BackPocketTeacher: Bereavement and Grief in SEND

Transition printable resources
Autism, education, resources, special education, special needs

Transition: A New Class

Class changes in September are a huge source of anxiety for all involved. There is a range of activities you can undertake to make this transition easier. I have written a blog about supporting learners with day-to-day general transitions and this one on supporting Autistic children with class transitions.

Special education PE and Autism
Autism, education

Invisible Hurdles: PE and SEND

Some hurdles you can jump, you can see them, some are higher than others but generally the strategies and skills needed to complete the race are straightforward. Now for some of our students overcoming the hurdles needed to take part in that activity are huge and varied. When getting students with a range of needs… Continue reading Invisible Hurdles: PE and SEND

free transport topic SEN teaching resources
Autism, education, inclusion, resources, special needs, Teaching

Sensory Learning Activities: An A-Z.

Why sensory Learning? Sensory learning - Sensory activities are those designed by educators to facilitate exploration encouraging children to use all their senses while they, create, investigate and explore. This is usually conducted through play although in the settings I have worked in also through structured planned learning activities. The sensory activities allow children to… Continue reading Sensory Learning Activities: An A-Z.

My Awesome Autism book review
Autism, books, education, Guest Post

My Awesome Autism: Author Interview

Nikky Saunders wrote My Awesome Autism about a little boy named Eddie as he shares his findings about his autism and teaches his readers in a cheerful playful way! Eddie helps all children learn about their autism diagnosis and how “we are all different!”. This can be a huge relief for the child to understand that they are truly wonderful as they are.

Essential Phonics guide for Inclusive EYFS teachers
Autism, education, inclusion, research, resources, special education, special needs, Teaching

An Essential Guide to Teaching Phonics in Early Years

Written for us by an Early Years leader, this post outlines a suggested phonics session, the activities and routine will be appropriate for all mainstream settings, and with a little imagination to any SEN setting. The phonics session mirrors what I taught to my class. Keeping the same routine really helped my autistic learners and is the key takeaway from this post.

visuals support learning SEN
Autism, education, inclusion, resources, special education, special needs, Teaching

6 Ways Symbols Support Learning

Symbols can be used to support both receptive and expressive communication. They support word recognition in pre-readers and can be used in times of increased stress to communicate a need when word recall is impaired, for example showing an exit symbol for time out instead of having to ask or explain why.

challenging behaviour Debriefing and Post-Incident Support
Autism, behaviour, education, special education, special needs, Teaching

Behaviour: Debriefing and Post-Incident Support

You can call it challenging behaviour but these events really demonstrate is a highly anxious,frustrated or traumatic reaction to stress, Autistic children are not any more prone to behavioural incidents than other children so we need to look deeper if our interactions or environment is leading to issues.

sensory education resources
Autism, education, special education, special needs, Teaching

Top Tips for an SEN NQT

It is that time of year when trainee teachers are finishing their placements and looking for a school to begin their teaching career in. I hope some of you consider moving into the SEN sector. It is a great opportunity to build so many essential skills. It is also a great way to get to know the child behind the label, behind the stereotypes and textbook generalisations.

inclusive education quote
Autism, behaviour, Blogs, education, inclusion, research, special education, Teaching

Engaging the failed Autistic Learner.

this post is specifically focused on strategies that may be effective for autistic children. This post draws heavily on the work of Damian Milton from who's writing I have learnt so much from over the last year or two. This booklet has particularly shaped my approach to teaching. Most of these strategies are really just aimed at reducing stressors throughout the day. I would like to stress these are interpreted through by teaching experience and context is very important.

Recruitment headteachers senior leadership
Autism, behaviour, education, special education, special needs, Teaching

13 Questions to ask to ensure you are an inclusive school.

This is blog post is primarily school-based and SEND focused, but can any education or care setting that strives to be truly inclusive should be able to use this as an environmental and relational approach based checklist or simple inclusion audit tool. Before you start looking at strategies or labeling a child's actions as challenging… Continue reading 13 Questions to ask to ensure you are an inclusive school.

Recruitment headteachers senior leadership
Autism, behaviour, Blogs, education, inclusion, leadership, special education, special needs, Teaching, Wellbeing

The Mental Health crisis facing our most vulnerable children.

There are many many children out there who are crying out for help. There are many dedicated, enthusiastic, creative and compassionate people who are desperate to help. These people need help, we are increasingly facing highly complex issues that very few educational professionals are equipped to deal with. I am writing this as a teacher but I know there are CAMHS workers, social workers and support staff throughout the country who are feeling like this.

A book with calming stratagies Inclusiveteach logo in pink bubble
Autism, behaviour, education, resources, special education, special needs, Teaching

Inclusive Teacher: My Little Worry Book

I needed something quick and simple to support a young student through a difficult time. She was very reliant on staff to support her with very little idea ways she could help herself without getting overwhelmed. Her actions suggested she needed some prompts to think of ways to ask for help.

remeberence day teaching resources
Autism, Blogs, education, inclusion, resources, special education, special needs, Teaching

Remembrance Day: Free SEN resources

These are the resources I have made to use with my class to support learning about Remembrance Day this November.  Poppy themed with a UK focus all use similar images and symbols . I hope they are of some use with your children.

challenging behaviour books
Autism, behaviour, Blogs, education, special education, special needs, Teaching

Essential Education Books for Inclusive Teachers: Behaviour.

These books are only those I have read and can recommend. They all follow an inclusive and positive support ethos. They all also focus on the only part of behaviour support we can control - ourselves. If your school has a zero tolerance behaviour policy read these and make it your mission to get that rewritten.I will get around to doing a second post but I need to get reading first!