Irresistible Invitation to Learn

Pupils attending the Nurture Resource at Woodlane may come to school with a range of barriers to learning, such as: difficulties with focus and attention, specific learning difficulties and/or previous negative educational experiences.  Therefore, it is the job of Nurture teachers to provide our pupils with what Gina Davies, designer of the Attention Autism approach, calls an “Irresistible Invitation to Learn”.  Although the Nurture curriculum is not taught through the Attention Autism approach, the key principles are a vital part of what we provide:

• To engage attention
• To improve joint attention
• To develop shared enjoyment in group activities
• To increase attention in adult-led activities
• To encourage spontaneous interaction in a natural group setting
• To increase non-verbal and verbal communication through commenting
• To build a wealth and depth of vocabulary
• To have fun!

(Middletown Centre for Autism)

Rix et al. (2009) stated that “Active student engagement is critical to academic success.” We ensure pupils are actively engaged through: exciting and memorable teaching, individualised activities, engaging and practical resources that provide for all learning styles, adult modelling and engagement, the explicit teaching of social skills and group interaction, and providing a range of communication aids.  Rix et al. (2009) found that effective teaching included viewing social interaction as an important way of developing the academic and social skills of pupils with SEN.

Individualised Teaching of Reading and Writing

The majority of pupils who attend the Nurture Resource are working well below their chronological age in reading (decoding and/or comprehension) and writing.  Our pupils are all individuals with individual needs, and the teaching of reading and writing is not a ‘one size fits all’. 

In primary mainstream education, phonics is currently recommended as the sole method for learning to read and spell.  However, McMurray, 2020, 2021 found that “When systematic synthetic phonics is used as the only method to teach reading, it does not work for up to 25% of children” including most children with dyslexia and other specific learning difficulties. The British Dyslexia Association (BDA) strongly recommend that phonics is used alongside a range of approaches.  The Downs Syndrome Association, in their training ‘Implementing Reading Strategies’, also states that pupils with Downs Syndrome are likely to learn to read through strategies other than phonics, such as whole-word approaches.

In the Nurture Resource, some pupils find success with phonics, some with orthographic strategies including whole-word recognition, and many with a combination of the two.

All pupils in Nurture get daily phonics provision.  Pupils are assessed in phonics at entry to Nurture, so that staff are able to quickly build on individuals’ skills and support them in their gaps in order to make progress.  As in the rest of the school, Nurture pupils are quickly placed into Read Write Inc groups and taught RWI phonics at their individual level.  RWI phonics mats are provided on tables at all times to ensure this learning is embedded in all lessons. 

In addition, Nurture pupils are given opportunities to use orthographic strategies to read and write if this suits their individual strengths and learning styles. During daily reading time, reading books are provided at an instructional level for pupils, and there are both phonetically plausible books and books with repetitive vocabulary available.

Difficulties in decoding, spelling and handwriting means that pupils can sometimes come to the Nurture Resource as reluctant readers and writers.  We aim to challenge this by providing engaging, high quality, highly visual texts that we share as a class, in order to provide opportunities for comprehension and enjoyment.  When asked to compose their own writing, pupils are able to do this through a range of methods, such as dictation or video recording, so they are not held back from the pleasure of composition because of difficulties with the physical act of writing.

The Centre for Literacy in Primary Education (CLPE) provide guidance for reading and writing for pleasure, and their principles are embedded in the Nurture Curriculum:

READING FOR PLEASURE WHAT WE KNOW WORKS

1. Developing an ethos and an environment that excites, enthuses, inspires and values

2. High quality texts with depth and interest in story, character, illustration, vocabulary, structure and subject matter

3. A read aloud programme

4. Teachers who are knowledgeable about children’s literature

5. Creating a community of readers with opportunities to share responses and opinions 6. Planning for talking about books and stories, providing structures within which to do this 7. Understanding the importance of illustration in reading both in terms of creating a text and responding to a text

8. Using drama and role-play to help children to understand and access texts

9. Working with authors and author/illustrators to understand the process of creating books

10. Using literature beyond the literacy lesson – cross-curricular planning with quality literature as the starting point

 

WRITING IN PRIMARY SCHOOLS WHAT WE KNOW WORKS

1. Understand the role reading plays in developing writers and the value of being immersed in high-quality literature

2. Ensure children have experience of a breadth of texts including those that are visual and digital

3. Provide a range of meaningful opportunities to write for real purposes and audiences and to respond to writing as a reader

4. Develop an understanding of the craft of writing by engaging meaningfully with professional authors and their processes

5. Understand and model the craft and process of writing authentically

6. Support children to identify as writers and to develop their own authentic voice

7. Give children time and space to develop their own ideas in writing

8. Use creative teaching approaches that build imagination and give time for oral rehearsal

9. Ensure the teaching of phonics, grammar and spelling is embedded in context

10. Celebrate writing through authentic publication and presentation across platforms

(Centre for Literacy in Primary Education 2018)

 

Repetition, Retention and Recall

The Word Aware vocabulary programme (Stephen Parsons and Anna Branagan 2016) states that children need 12 meaningful encounters with a word before they really know it, and for pupils with learning difficulties this can be closer to 25 or more.  In the Nurture Provision, we aim to provide as many meaningful language encounters for our pupils as possible.  Word Aware recommends the use of the STAR approach for learning new language, which we use in the Nurture Resource:

Select (the teacher and SaLT carefully select the vocabulary to be taught)

Teach (explicitly, using a variety of kinaesthetic strategies)

Activate (using the vocabulary in a range of contexts)

Review (ensuring the vocabulary is retained over time)

 

Another way we provide meaningful language encounters in the Nurture Resource is through our cross-curricular teaching and learning, where pupils are taught all subjects under a half-termly theme or ‘topic’, allowing the pupils to generalise and draw links more easily between subjects.  McLeskey et al (2017) state that for pupils with SEND: “High-quality teaching includes teaching pupils to generalise new knowledge and skills to different contexts and to maintain these over time” and that “Students learn to use new knowledge and skills in places and situations other than the original learning environment and maintain their use in the absence of ongoing instruction.” 

The Nurture Curriculum is designed to build and expand on previous skills and subject knowledge over an academic year and over a pupil’s time at Woodlane.  It also plans for lots of opportunities for repetition in order to fully embed knowledge, increasing the likelihood that pupils retain and recall information.

• To provide an outstanding education, which is personalised to the specific learning needs of each pupil in the Nurture Resource.
• To provide a calm, learning-focused environment, which is safe, caring and nurturing, in a small group with a high adult child ratio.
• To provide a holistic education, which incorporates guidance and strategies from support agency partnerships e.g. speech and language therapists, occupational therapists etc.
• To increase resilience and independence and develop pupils’ ability to self-regulate.
• To ensure Woodlane values are at the heart of learning.
• To develop pupils’ essential life skills, developing their knowledge and the ‘cultural capital’ they need to succeed in life (personal development).
• To promote physical and emotional well-being.
• To prepare pupils for the next stage of their education.
• To ensure all pupils leave Woodlane with outcomes that reflect the best of their ability.

Curriculum Delivery

• Pupils in the Nurture Resource have full access to a broad and balanced curriculum which is carefully differentiated to meet pupils’ individual learning needs and styles. The Nurture Resource curriculum is designed to be challenging and appropriate to each pupil’s stage of development.
• In the Nurture Resource, pupils are taught a broad and balanced curriculum, covering the following subjects: English, maths, science, art, PCSHE, food technology, geography, history, Spanish, PE, RE and computing. 
• Additionally, pupils in the Nurture Resource have timetabled sessions for music, drama (speech and language) and vocational studies (life skills).
• The subjects are taught through 25+ hours contact time a week.  Each Nurture Class is taught the majority of subjects by their class teacher.
• Pupils are taught all subjects under a half-termly theme or ‘topic’, allowing the pupils to generalise and draw links more easily between subjects. 
• A combination of phonics teaching and whole-word learning is used to teach reading and writing in the Nurture Resource, meaning that pupils can build upon their individual strengths to make progress in their literacy skills. 
• The Nurture Resource has close links with support agency partnerships, e.g. speech and language therapists and occupational therapists, meaning that opportunities to meet individual language and OT targets can be fully integrated into the curriculum, as well as in designated drama and vocational studies sessions.
• The Nurture Resource curriculum is designed to build and expand on previous skills and subject knowledge.  The curriculum also plans for lots of opportunities for repetition in order to fully embed knowledge, increasing the likelihood that pupils retain and recall information.
• The Zones of Regulation are used to support pupils to regulate their behaviour, thus removing barriers to learning and ensuring pupils can succeed.
• Nurture Resource pupils are fully included in the wider life of the school, taking part in regular whole school theme days throughout the academic year, and having the opportunity to attend extra-curricular activities at lunch time and after school.  Each year, a member of each Nurture Class is voted to be a member of our School Council.

Teaching and Learning

• The curriculum is differentiated broadly into three levels of challenge: ‘all’, ‘most’ and ‘some’.  Further differentiation and personalisation is implemented as appropriate.
• Homework is provided on paper on a standardised format, and uploaded onto the school website. It is differentiated as above to provide the appropriate level of challenge. 
• Written communication between Nurture Resource staff and parents/carers is provided through a daily ‘report’.  The report uses Communicate in Print symbols in order to support pupils to discuss their day’s learning with their parent/carer.
• Woodlane offers various parent-pupil workshops throughout the year to enable parents to best support their child and work in partnership with the school.
• In the Nurture Resource we have a 3-tiered approach to supporting a pupil’s learning, including:

Universal – this is the teaching your child will receive from the Nurture Class teacher and will include adaptations to match learning needs:

• • Daily English and maths teaching, with numeracy and literacy skills embedded across the curriculum
  • Access to a broad and balanced curriculum of 12+ subjects
  • A high ratio of adults to pupils
  • A maximum of 10 pupils in the class
  • Engaging and multi-sensory lessons
  • Dyslexia-friendly teaching resources
  • Communicate in Print symbols used for resources, to support understanding
  • A positive behaviour management system guided by the Zones of Regulation, supporting pupils to regulate themselves effectively
  • Integrated speech, language and communication support, under the guidance of a speech and language therapist
  • Integrated OT support, under the guidance of an occupational therapist

Targeted­ – it may be appropriate to consider making additional short term special educational provision to remove or reduce any obstacles to your child’s learning.  This takes the form of a graduated four part approach of a) assessing your child’s needs, b) planning the most effective and appropriate intervention, c) providing this intervention and d) reviewing the impact on your child’s progress towards individual learning outcomes.

Interventions may include:

• • Specific targeted interventions run outside the classroom. These will be limited to a number of weeks to minimise disruption to the regular curriculum
  • Individual or small group interventions designed in collaboration with SaLT or OT
  • Individual targets set twice annually from EHCPs and opportunities made in class to regularly work on these targets
  • Additional support for individual pupils as required around specific areas e.g. behaviour or transitions

Specialist – it may be necessary to seek specialist advice and regular long term support from a specialist professional in order to plan for the best possible learning outcomes for your child. This may include educational psychology support, speech and language therapy, occupational therapy, art/play therapy, sensory advisory teachers and the child development service.  The school may need to prioritise referrals to these services. However, for a high proportion of Woodlane High School pupils, access to these specialists is automatic due to specification a pupil’s EHC Plan.

Assessment

• Each pupil collates a Pupil Achievement Book, where they showcase their best work and demonstrate progress over time in a variety of subjects.
• The Nurture Resource teachers analyse data from a range of sources to effectively evaluate each pupil's performance, and plan for further improvement.
• The Woodlane bespoke Flight Path is used to track the progress of individual pupils and determine expected outcomes from different starting points.  This ensures that all pupils are challenged.
• Our Assessment Map highlights the range of qualifications available and how these can be compared to one another. 
• KS4 pupils in the Nurture Resource have the opportunity to gain a variety of qualifications and certifications, including, but not limited to: ASDAN, Unit Award Scheme (Maths, English, Science, Humanities, Food Technology, Vocational Skills), Entry Level and potentially GCSE Art and Design.
• A range of summative assessment procedures are used in the Nurture Resource to assess progress and attainment.  For example, pupils may access whole-school reading or maths assessments, as well as more individualised phonics or sight-word assessments. 
• Additionally, adults in the Nurture Resource are consistently formatively assessing pupils and adapting teaching accordingly so that all pupils are supported and challenged.

• In the Nurture Resource, the vast majority of pupils meet or exceed their expected progress, based on their starting points.
• The spiritual, moral, social and cultural development of pupils is outstanding. 
• Lack of confidence can often be a barrier to learning, and one that we aim to overcome in the Nurture Resource by ensuring pupils believe that they can succeed.
• The Zones of Regulation are used in the Nurture Resource to help to develop outstanding behaviour for learning and increase pupils’ ability to self-regulate. 
• The very large majority of pupils are on track to meet or exceed their expected outcomes in Year 11.
• When pupils transition from Woodlane in Year 11, they will have gained qualifications and certifications appropriate for their stage of development. Courses that pupils take will always consider the needs of the individual, be tailored towards building independence and functional skills, and will be designed to support an effective transition to a post-16 provision.
• Pupils are well-prepared for the next stage of their education.  No Woodlane pupil has left Woodlane Not in Education, Employment or Training (NEET) in the last 6 years.

* Please see our annual SEF/SIP for further details.