BUILDING CONNECTIONS

BUILDING

MEANINGFUL CONNECTIONS

Trust forms the basis of a successful relationship between teacher and pupil, allowing them to have a positive learning experience. Creating connections is critical for the success of SEND education and development

Building meaningful connections with the children and young people in your classroom can create a greater learning environment, allowing each individual to thrive in school. Winner of the 2020 NASEN SEND Leader of the Year Award and head teacher at St Giles School, Matt Rooney, has a wealth of experience in SEND environments and believes strong connections are key to a school’s success.

Understanding each child’s needs and aspirations is the fi rst step to creating meaningful and long-lasting connections.

CHANGEOVER

“We’re never going to be the expert in this child, the child will always be the expert in themselves but do we know enough? Can we have the right relationship to get the best out of that child so that they thrive and reach their dreams?” asks Matt.

These are central questions at St Giles where a seven-step approach is used to ensure children and young people who attend the school get the most out of their time there. The transition period before a new child joins the school, or during the school holidays, allows teachers and support sta to gather any details, big or small, that are signifi cant to a pupil.

“Some things are tiny, but without having given conscious thought to them we might miss something that we think is insignifi cant but makes a world of di erence to a young person,” stresses Matt.

“We created a connectivity with parents that we never had in the sense that we have now”

Knowing these minute details helps teachers, support staff and other professionals in SEND schools to form the beginnings of a meaningful connection with young people.

“Before we even meet a child, we’ve done things with their parents, with the professionals who support them,” explains Matt. “By getting as much of that information as possible, it puts teachers and support staff on the right footing, and it also empowers them.”

MEANINGFUL

This process also gives teachers the knowledge necessary to best support pupils’ needs when they arrive at school.

“For me it’s about time, it’s about providing meaningful learning activities that will help us to get to know the children really effectively,” reveals Matt. “I think it’s a lot about giving staff the permission and the time they need to learn about those children, what it is that makes them tick and asking how we can get to know them meaningfully, but effectively and quickly.

“Don’t be afraid of getting it wrong because I think sometimes we put too much pressure on ourselves for everything to be perfect: I don’t think the real world is perfect, if it was it would be really boring. It’s ok to try one thing and then to try something different the next day.”

Matt would encourage other teachers to be flexible and thoughtful in order to create lasting connections with pupils, and to involve the child in the process whenever possible.

PROCESS

“We provide pupils opportunities to think about their own learning,” emphasises Matt. “I think the art of reflection in learning is really key, at the moment we’re looking at metacognition for children with SEN: are children aware of how they think and do they reflect on their learning enough?”

This mutual sense of reflection helps to build a lasting trust with each individual pupil, aiding both learning and teaching.

“Schools need to take a look at themselves to think: have I got in place as much as I possibly can to help these kids thrive and succeed? That might be around timetabling, around learning, about training or approaches,” adds Matt.

The environment these steps help to create will benefit children and young people long past their school years.

“We do stuff with kids that will help them to, hopefully, thrive in school, but we’re only ever doing it because we’re looking at where they’re going to be as adults,” reveals Matt. “There’s always another meaning for doing it, it’s not just because we want to know how they hold a pen best, it’s because we want to know that they can fill out a form when they’re applying for a house or when they need to get some medicine from the doctors.”

RELATIONSHIPS

Creating this trusting environment also gives pupils the chance to understand their own needs and emotions, and build friendships with peers.

“Some children with special needs will really struggle with that notion of what’s a relationship and what’s a friendship,” explains Matt. “Some autistic children may be far more interested in their relationship with a piece of paper that flaps than they will ever be [engaged] in the relationship with one of their mates across from them and what they did last night.

“We do a lot of work here on building rapport and relationships so that we teach children how to build relationships with one another.”

Parents are integral to understanding pupils and building successful connections. Creating this connectivity with parents has always been important to Matt and St Giles, but the challenges that came with the coronavirus pandemic have meant a stronger relationship between the school and families.

This has been possible through collaboration with parents on home and blended learning, and the creation of a private Facebook page to tackle a feeling of isolation that families with children who have special educational needs often talk about.

“We created a connectivity with parents that we never had in the sense that we have now,” admits Matt. “It’s really helped us to celebrate the importance of parents, to better support them but also to make sure they’re connected with the whole school community.”

Meaningful connections between teachers and pupils, pupils themselves, and parents and SEND schools, have never been more prevalent. As school’s begin to return to normal, these trusting relationships can help to create a smooth transition.

FIND OUT MORE

Resources from Oak National Academy (www.thenational.academy) and Gina Davies Autism Centre (www.ginadavies.co.uk) can offer activity ideas to build connections with pupils.

Learning new skills that transfer into the classroom, feeling inspired by the stories of others, or taking time out to relax and unwind – there’s a podcast to help. We detail our top picks to keep you informed, entertained and grounded

PLUGGED IN TO PODCASTS

LEARNING

The SENDcast www.thesendcast.com This weekly podcast focuses on a wide range of topics within the Special Educational Needs and Disability sector, making it a great way to keep up to date with policy changes and best practice. In each episode, host Dale Pickles is joined by an expert in their field to discuss everything from multi-sensory teaching strategies to healing the trauma of COVID-19.

LearningShared www.evidenceforlearning.net The LearningShared podcast, from Evidence for Learning, shines a light on creative, inspiring ideas and effective practice to support the holistic development of children, young people and adults with SEND or additional learning needs. During episodes, you’ll hear from colleagues who explore, discuss and debate ideas, practice and issues in the sector.

UNWIND

The Lazy Genius www.thelazygeniuscollective.com This podcast from The Lazy Genius Collective will leave you armed with hacks to get organised over the summer holidays. Offering advice on how to deal with little things like organisation, or big topics such as navigating political differences, each episode will leave you informed having learnt something new. Our favourites include How to Rally on a Bad Day and A New Way to Think About Money with Rachel Rodgers.

Untangle www.meditationstudioapp.com If you struggle to unwind at the end of a busy day, tune in to Untangle. Hosts Patricia Karpas and Ariel Garten interview authors, experts and thought-leaders in areas related to mindfulness, brain health, leadership and more. Sharing their true and heartfelt experiences, interviewees include psychologists, sleep experts and Buddhists.

OUT OF HOURS

How to Fail www.elizabethdayonline.co.uk The perfect listen after a difficult day, How to Fail with Elizabeth Day is a podcast that celebrates the things that haven’t gone right in life. With a new episode released every week, you can engage with high-profile interviewees, like Jamie Dornan and Dame Kelly Holmes, who explore what their failures taught them about how to succeed and work more effectively.

Grounded with Louis Theroux www.bbc.co.uk/sounds Like everyone else, Louis Theroux was stuck at home during the pandemic, but 20 years since his acclaimed When Louis Met documentary series, he utilised the time to speak with the people he’s been longing to. With 20 full episodes to binge, Louis speaks to the likes of Helena Bonham Carter and his cousin Justin Theroux in this series.