ShAKESPEARE FOR ALL

In this way, as can be seen in the table, DT projects in Year 3 will involve some new skills learning in the Design, Analyse and Refine phases whereas children will simply be revisiting and practising other parts of the process and having teacher-provided resources in lieu of yet other parts of the process (Investigate and Criteria in this instance).

In doing this, the time allotted to the teaching of DT can be more focused and deliberate and the iterative design process can be taught over time so that by Year 6 children are following the whole process and are beginning to complete some parts of it with a degree of independence. In reducing the amount of new content that is taught regarding the design process, there will still be ample time to teach the more specific skills, for example how to cut wood at an angle, how to join two pieces of fabric or how to make a bread dough.

Whose responsibility is this?

As what I have outlined is a whole school approach, it is clear that the responsibility to be strategic about the teaching of the iterative design process over time lies with whoever is in charge of leading Design Technology.

However, there are implications for teachers working in schools where no such whole-school strategy exists. For example, if you teach three DT units during a year, you could look at splitting up the phases of the process over those three units. If you work closely with the other year group(s) in your phase then perhaps you can coordinate the coverage between you.

Even if you don’t have the opportunity as a teacher to do this, it is still important to remember that you don’t have to burden yourself and the children with completion of the whole iterative design process in one DT project. Break it down, decide which parts of it are relevant, necessary and appropriate – use some assessment information here if you have it or can get it – and deliver a unit that allows children to experience at least part of the iterative design process.

“...the time allotted to the teaching of DT can be more focused and deliberate and the iterative design process can be taught over time so that by Year 6 children are following the whole process”

56. Spotting ADHD In Girls: The Hidden SEND

Spotting and supporting students who present with the symptoms of ADHD

60. Teaching In The Middle

What can we learn from middle schools?

SPOTTING ADHD IN GIRLS: THE HIDDEN SEND…

This year I was diagnosed with ADHD at the age of 39. So how did I get to this age, without a diagnosis, since my specialist described me as being a “A Classic Case“?

By Caroline Keep

For many, the idea of attention defi cit hyperactivity disorder is summed up by the myth of hyperactive young boys, something I’m familiar with as a teacher… so how could I have possibly missed this in myself given all those CPD training sessions too? On top of that, I have worked with some wonderful SENCOs over the years and nobody mentioned it – perhaps they were just being ‘polite’. Apparently not! Having spoken to several of them after my diagnosis they said, ‘Well, we assumed you knew…’ I did not. Neither did my parents, they assumed I was just ‘quirky’.

Now you would think my doctors may have spotted something during those endless sessions for depression in my youth. But again, no. My husband suspected I was ‘di erent’, but that’s just how he saw me…’di erent’ and it never dawned on him that all those hours of intense hyperfocus was anything other than a desire to succeed.

So, what happened? I fell between the cracks and it turns out that these cracks are well documented. We fail young women and girls all the time because of the male-centric ADHD stereotypes with which most of us are familiar i.e. boys bouncing of the walls, which itself is a terrible oversimplifi cation of ADHD. The myths surrounding it has moreover allowed me to go through most of my adult life confused.

So, here are a few tips on how to spot ADHD in women and girls in an attempt to dispel the myth that it is all about hyperactivity.

It isn’t a real thing.

Let’s get this out the way. It is estimated that 1.5 million adults have the condition, but only 120,000 of these have been diagnosed. It is a ecting as many as 5.3% of all children. So, if you have a class of 30, it is likely that at least one of them has ADHD. It is a neurological condition which, as shown by a study in 2017 in The Lancet, has profound e ects on the brain. Yes, those of us with ADHD are wired di erently – we’re not less as a result, just di erent!

You can’t possibly ‘have it’ – you’re too bright.

We do well at school, are quiet and study hard. We can’t possibly have ADHD, right? Wrong. I, for example, was top of my class and a “fi rst-rate student”. ADHD in girls can be a hidden disorder, with many having the inattentive presentation. The quiet girl (or boy, yes boys can have this too…) seems lost and cannot seem to pay attention. These pupils are often described by teachers as bright young people, who cannot seem to “get it together”.

But you’re not ‘bouncing o the walls’…

Correct. Most girls don’t – you’re more likely to see that in boys. When you do see hyperactivity in girls, it often manifests as ‘chattiness’ rather than physical disruption, and we don’t see that in the same light as hyperactivity in boys — it’s more of an internal mental restlessness rather than an external physical one. Our minds can be racing even though our bodies may be quite still and so therefore, we miss your conversation, struggle with too many instructions, or just ‘lose time’.

“When you do see hyperactivity in girls, it “When you do see hyperactivity in girls, it often manifests as ‘chattiness’ rather than often manifests as ‘chattiness’ rather than physical disruption, and we don’t see that physical disruption, and we don’t see that in the same light as hyperactivity in boys” in the same light as hyperactivity in boys”

“When you do see hyperactivity in girls, it “When you do see hyperactivity in girls, it often manifests as ‘chattiness’ rather than often manifests as ‘chattiness’ rather than physical disruption, and we don’t see that physical disruption, and we don’t see that in the same light as hyperactivity in boys” in the same light as hyperactivity in boys”