SEND in a mainstream school - my experiences

How to face SEND situations in a mainstream school was and still is a daunting process for me. Knowing that in September, I will be responsible for the Teaching and Learning for an entire class is hard to fathom, although a challenge I am going to relish. Most children spend from 8.30 - 3.15 at school (give or take those who arrive early or stay late for extra-curricular activities) and if you include the added time for them to get to school and back, it equates to roughly 8 hours of the day. We at school see these same children for most of the day, 5 days a week, 40 weeks of the year, and sadly for a few, we are the ones to teach them about not only Maths, English, Science, and the other subjects, but also how to go through life as model citizens and into adulthood.

Now in pretty much every school, there are children who are born with or develop Special Education Needs and Disabilities. These can range from mild to severe types covering anything from (not an exhaustive list) Dyslexia, Down Syndrome, Autism, Emotional and Behaviour Disabilities, Visual and/or Hearing Impairments, Epilepsy, ADHD and Discalculia. In the past two years I have worked alongside children with some of these disabilities and it provided me with an insight into their way of thinking and also what to say, how to react in difficult situations, differentiate learning, involve them with group activities and ensure that they feel safe in their learning environment.

My cousin was born with severe epilepsy and this has affected the processing of his brain resulting in the slow development of learning. He has 3 siblings including a younger one and the older two have been young carers for him for a number of years. He absolutely loves playing with trains, watching DVDs and whenever I visit he insists I join in with what he is doing. 

Last year I worked at during a Summer School programme and one of the group had Asperger Syndrome and he demonstrated some of the traits that are associated with this: having an overwhelming need for organisation and structure, tending to be on his own a lot, obsessed with certain subjects and knew a greater understanding about them. He was extremely intelligent and could hold a conversation that for someone his age would usually find difficult or simply uninteresting. Recently I visited a secondary school to see the transition from primary and shadowed a student who was very similar. He knew a lot about dinosaurs and in his DT lesson not only designed a stereo speaker stand in the shape of a T-Rex but made sure the plastic casing was as smooth as possible before moving onto the next stage of the project (part of the obsessive nature). 

During my role as a TA I worked in Year 6 class which had a boy and a girl with ADHD although both showed different symptoms. The boy used a blue spiky cushion to sit on because he has what is known as Hyperactive or Impulsive ADHD, where he liked to fidget in his seat, always seemed to be on the go, and playing with blu-tac seemed to be one way to keep him occupied and on task (this can also be a soft ball or something easy to squeeze and release pressure). The girl was similar and often worked herself up by listening to comments made of her both in the class and out in the the playground, resulting in the loss of temper and acts of defiance (linked to Oppositional Defiant Disorder and Conduct Disorder). 

Later in the same role I went into another year group and worked 1-1 with a boy who was going through the statementing process which would eventually lead to going to a different school where his needs would be suitably matched for his teaching and  learning. Gaining his attention for even a small space of time was difficult, he had a mixture of ADHD, ODD and CD; refused to go into lessons, do any work, complete many tasks, would often lose his temper, hide when he was avoiding me or someone else and throw things across the room if not getting his own way. Despite all of this he was; kind to others and always quick to apologise once he realised he was in the wrong; creative in his learning and he loved to paint, complete jigsaws and made lots of those loom bands that were all the craze this year;  and when he did want to learn he tried his best and didn't want to let me down. This I felt was one of the reasons I was asked to work with him because the school saw the healthy teacher-pupil relationship and felt that my time was best spent ensuring this boys school day was spent as productive as it possibly could be and to make him realise that school isn't a bad place to go. 

Recently I visited a Special School in my local area and spent the entire day with a group of 7 autistic children between the ages of 4 and 6 but were all similar in their developmental stage. The classroom leader and her colleagues knew these children inside and out- this included the children's Behaviour for Learning (Levels of Attention, Communication Skills and Social Skills), Strategies to employ to aid their learning, Timetables for each individual child were on a board, using PECS, which is a valuable tool developed in 1985 as a unique augmentative/alternative communication intervention package for individuals with autism spectrum disorder and related developmental disabilities. 

It was a special day for the class because the entire Primary school were taking part in their Christmas production in front of family and friends and even the local mayor. I helped make some costumes, dress children, even helped a boy dance on stage in the middle of a song, joined in with playground duties, made Santa Claus and his Elves out of milk cartons and tissue paper. It was an eventful day and it gave me a lot of ideas an insight into how I can adapt my approach to working alongside children with Autism. In my current school there are two children in KS2 and are both quite different. One is high functioning and I would consider a social member of his class whereas the second child is also high functioning but tends to be on his own during outside play. I have found his likes playing basketball and when it his year group's day to play, I often referee and make sure the others allow him to join in and have fun. He loves Formula One and this is one of his special interests that children with ADHD often develop. If I were to be teaching him, I would use this as a way to introduce learning, by giving him an article to read, discuss, write about, create a story based around the topic. 

I have to read and work through a series of modules using http://www.idponline.org.uk/ 
which is part of the government's strategy to improve outcomes for children with special educational needs and was first outlined in Removing Barriers to Achievement. This is part of both my school and University training, and covers the main 4 SEND areas: Autism, Behavioural, Emotional & Social Difficulties,  Speech Language & Communicational Needs, and Dyslexia.  In this learning I will assess what I already know, then read up on the research and carry out any relevant tasks, and finally assess what I have learnt. 

Ultimately my learning has only just begun and will never end especially SEND but I am glad that I am receiving training from a range of people including the schools SENDCo, University, the online learning, individual children themselves, and colleagues who have experienced similar situations.