Maple Grove Head

@TalkingMats @Comm_nTrust ✋

Delighted to have received funding from @Comm_nTrust to develop a Talking Mats in #sensory processing. Making sure the child’s view is central to planning .Please read the blog & consider whether you would like to be involved talkingmats.com/our-new-talkin… #OccupationalTherapy

@bennewmark Absolutely. We have four different lunchtime clubs a day, every day, for this very reason!

In every school I've worked at there's been an unofficial lunch club run by a kindly member of staff. Those that don't want to be out in main areas sit and eat lunch. They play board games and scoff at wrong opinions about dragons and jedis. It is the Best of Clubs.

@gdmorewood @majestixconsult Thanks Gareth, it was lovely to meet everyone, enjoy the rest of the week!

Many thanks to @reading_ben and his amazing team for supporting a visit from our UAE delegates this morning. It was fantastic to see the school and talk about the work you are developing. @majestixconsult

@SimonKnight100 Many congratulations Simon!

@gdmorewood @EmiHowe Thanks Gareth, I will!

Hi @reading_ben hope all well? Defo think worth connecting with @EmiHowe Not far from you either, maybe worth chat about the curriculum ? Very best wishes G

Fantastic meeting with @EmiHowe this morning talking about her Body Image & Media Skills curriculum for primary schools. Definitely worth connecting & chatting with Emi about how you can use the curriculum in your schools or get Emi in to support this work directly. 👍😎💥

📩 We've sent out West Cheshire Autism Hub's very first ebulletin, which is a great way to keep up-to-date with our plans for the future. Haven't received a copy? Sign up to the ebulletin now 👉 bit.ly/2BNr960 #WCAutismHub

@TenaciousRk @gdmorewood @abaukdiscussion @TizardCentre @prof_standards 🥰 *blushes* Thanks 🤩 I’ll just leave this here... catmcgill.uk/musings/238-au…

@gdmorewood Really sorry to hear you sad news Gareth, thinking of you.

RIP mum ❤️ A super sportswoman (cricket & tennis), inspirational teacher, fab mother & grandmother. 1/3 #COVID19 #RIP #StayHomeSaveLives

@TheCFEY 👍 Keep up the great work guys, the videos look fantastic! #askaboutsend

Eek we are over our time limit! ⏰ @reading_ben thank you so much for being an absolutely brilliant guest Tweeter! Really interesting answers to all of those questions - we are very grateful to you for taking the time, as well as participating in our film! #AskAboutSEND

@Gabriellerowle1 Need to clarify a typo- works best when NOT done in a panic in Y6!! 🤦‍♂️ #askaboutsend

@Gabriellerowle1 Absolutely- it tends to work best when it's done in a panic in Y6. Really good practice in Cheshire recently, where all SENCos are meeting half-termly, and it's organised so that mainstream secondary schools are in the room with their feeder primaries 6 times a year.

@reading_ben do you have examples of good practice in mainstream schools where the primary schools have established effective transition processes to secondary (especially sharing the children's strengths as well as challenges with the new schools for instance?)#Askaboutsend

@Gabriellerowle1 sorry - when it's NOT done in a panic in Y6!!!

@TheCFEY 3) Invest time building relationships with individual pupils- all the best techniques/strategies/interventions are mostly a waste of time if used in the absence of a trusting learning relationship . #askaboutsend

@TheCFEY 1) De deliberate and economical in your use of language- mean what you say and say what you mean (use visuals as much as pos!) 2) Behaviours you find challenging are happening for a reason, start by reducing stress/triggers and then teach alternatives ways to meet that need...

We're coming up to 4pm and the end of our chat @reading_ben! So to finish up, what are the top three techniques you'd recommend that teachers bear in mind when supporting autistic pupils? #AskAboutSEND

@Gabriellerowle1 @AlixHRobertson @TheCFEY @HindertonSchool Definitely! I think any good profile/passport/summary of a child has to be the whole child, not a list of problem behaviours and learning deficits. Again, sets the culture in a really negative direction!

@reading_ben @AlixHRobertson @TheCFEY @HindertonSchool Emphasising positives as well as their needs. In my secondary in September we were told all the challenges which we would face with a new cohort of children with SEND n a packed yr 7 class. It felt overwhelming; would have been better if we heard their strengths too #askaboutsend

The films we have made are aimed at helping new teachers to learn about how to support their #SEND pupils - if there was one thing you wanted all NQTs to know about autism Ben, what would it be? @reading_ben #AskAboutSEND

@TheCFEY In less dramatic days ahead (🤞), we will be back to smaller scale changes to daily schedules. Address those explicitly and leave them up, but with a line or 'no entry' type sign over them, with the new activity alongside.

@TheCFEY Again, visuals! And know your pupils- some will need lots of detailed information ,some will struggle with that and just need the basic facts (like "school is closed"). A month-to-view calendar can be really helpful to communicate longer-term events. #askaboutsend

Another one for you @reading_ben - How can teachers support pupils with ASD when a school routine needs to change at short notice? Very relevant at the moment with routines being turned upside down by the #coronavirus ! #AskAboutSEND

@reading_ben is hosting @TheCFEY's first weekly Twitter surgery based on the 12 condition-specific videos made to help support NQTs in the classroom. Join the conversation using the hashtag #AskAboutSEND. The videos are available to view now at bit.ly/2Ujq4cM #Autism

@TheCFEY 1) Remember, however good TAs are responsibility for progress/curriculum stays with you... 2) Separate ay challenging behaviour from the child, and DO NOT take it personally! 3) Important as they are, avoid thinking English and maths are the only important progress measures!

What do you think are some of the potential pitfalls that a new teacher should try to avoid when teaching a pupil with autism @reading_ben ? #AskAboutSEND

@AlixHRobertson @Gabriellerowle1 @TheCFEY @HindertonSchool And yet I bet a lot of NQTs would mention meeting the needs of SEND pupils amongst their biggest challenges in their first year(s) of teaching #askaboutsend

@Gabriellerowle1 @reading_ben @TheCFEY @HindertonSchool I don't remember havign any specifical initial teacher training on teaching pupils with #SEND, I learned a lot from by Mum who was a SENCO and then the SENCO in the school where I was an NQT #AskAboutSEND

@Gabriellerowle1 @TheCFEY @HindertonSchool Would be delighted to be proved wrong though! I'm also aware of how much pressure there is to fit a lot of content into something like a PGCE. I think a lot of specialist settings would be very happy to offer dual placements with mainstream.

@Gabriellerowle1 @TheCFEY @HindertonSchool If it has it's still very patchy. ITT providers need to tap into the expertise of special schools more widely. And spend more time on SEND generally! My feeling is it's still an expendable extra that gets squeezed out in a lot of courses. #askaboutsend