SEND

We are determined that every child will learn to read. In order to do this all they need to do is  to learn to ‘crack the phonics code’. It is this code that allows us to read any unfamiliar words we come across. We cannot leave it to chance, all pupils need to be taught phonics right from the start of their educational journey. 

Some pupils with SEND may take longer to secure and embed important knowledge of GPCs. Ofsted state, SEND pupils ‘should experience the same phonics curriculum as all other pupils. It may need breaking down into smaller steps and repeating more often’ (NEYH region curriculum webinar series: a force for improvement, 13 May 2021).

Any adaptations of the scheme in order to meet the needs of the pupils needs to be advised by external, SEND professionals. 

If grouping children across classes, it is important all SEND pupils have access to the same high quality provision, resources and adjustments as they would normally access in their main classroom.  

This scheme really targets the needs of the lowest 20% including pupils with SEND. Its simple, clear and repetitive nature allows children to access the lesson with little or no cognitive overload. All aspects of the learning are modelled by the Phonics Teacher first, before the children do it for themselves. This allows for the children to have a clear expectation of what they are going to do. There’s a lot of repetition and revisiting (over teaching) which means children really have time to embed and master their learning. The lesson structure follows a strict routine meaning the focus is on learning and no learning time is lost. 

As part of our sessions, ‘Teacher Talk’ is kept to a minimum to allow the lowest 20% children to retain only the most pivotal parts of the learning. The children are sat in a ‘V’ shape, which ensures the ‘Spot Light Children’ (children that are a focus for various reasons including SEND) are always in the teacher’s eye line. 

The modelling also represents the ways we would encourage the children to independently tackle unknown elements themselves. For example, the spelling strategy used demonstrates to the pupils how to ‘say a word’, ‘segment it into sounds (1 finger per sound)’ and then ‘write it’. The child is then able to apply this to their own learning when they are stuck on how to write a word. 

Regular formal assessment and daily ‘in lesson’ assessment allows for gaps to be clearly identified and our vigorous, purposeful and specific interventions mean children are caught up quickly. Again, our variety of interventions are consistent, precise, pacey and purposeful meaning the focus is purely on learning.