Virtual SEND Conference 5 – Quality First Teaching

The 5th Virtual SEND Conference will take place on the 21st May 2021. Download the full programme here.

Purchasing a ticket includes

• Access to the conference on the day, including live Q&A sessions and chat with other attendees.
• Access to videos of all the sessions forever through this website!!
• Download slide packs and other handouts through this website.

To find out more about our Virtual SEND Conferences, click here – https://www.trainingforeducation.com/virtualsendconference/

KEYNOTE SPEAKERS

Quality First Teaching: the role of all teaching staff

Lorraine Petersen OBE – Education Consultant, LPEC 

The SEND Code of Practice is very clear that every teacher is responsible and accountable for the progress of all pupils. High quality teaching, differentiated for individual pupils, is the first step in responding to pupils who have or may have SEN. Lorraine explores what this means in terms of teaching and learning for pupils with SEND.

School exclusion and SEND: identifying the risks for our children and young people and the steps required to mitigate and prevent

Jane Friswell – SEND Consultant and Parent Advocate, Jane Friswell SEND Consultancy

Students identified with a special educational need and/or disability are immediately 6 times more likely to be excluded from school. Jane outlines how to accurately identify the student risks to school exclusion; and what schools and settings must and should do to avoid it.

Building Capacity: supporting the work of teaching and learning assistants in the classroom

Margaret Mulholland – SEND and Inclusion Specialist, EEF Project Director for Whole School SEND, nasen

Teaching Assistants play a vital role in support of pupils and teachers, but schools don’t always use and develop support staff as effectively as they could. Margaret considers how to inform professional development for TAs and ‘grow’ their knowledge and skill – so they can make the maximum difference to the development of young people.

STREAM 1 – SPECIAL SCHOOLS

Building resilience and protective factors within children and staff teams – reflection at the heart of the process

Nell Nicholson & Nimisha Deakin – Head Teacher & Outreach Lead, Gloucester House School

Nell and Nimisha highlight the benefits of reflective approaches. They explore the importance of reflective processes within staff and pupils – in groups and individually. A potential framework and practical ideas are also provided on how to build resilience with limited time and resources.

Developing communication and interaction strategies for children and young people with PMLD

Marize Lawson – Head of Margaret Brearley School, Whitefield Academy Trust

Marize looks at the early development of communication and how this impacts children or young people with PMLD. She also explores strategies to support and develop communication in a functional and meaningful way.

The Building Belonging approach to school improvement and emotional wellbeing

Cathal Lynch – Education Consultant, Ethical School Solutions

Cathal outlines an evidence driven approach to improving schools and protecting emotional wellbeing, using examples from schools. His session covers psychological safety as a driver of organisational improvement and the characteristics of successful leaders. He also considers the research underpinning emotional wellbeing and high educational outcomes.

STREAM 2 – MAINSTREAM SCHOOLS

Inclusive High Quality Teaching within a whole school graduated approach to SEN support

Kate Browning – School Improvement for SEND Specialist Consultant

Kate explores some of the key approaches to adapting teaching to enable pupils with SEND to have the best possible chance of learning. This is considered within the framework of a whole school graduated approach and the role all leaders play in supporting this endeavour.

The role of the SENCO in supporting High Quality Teaching

Natalie Packer – SEND Consultant, NPEC Ltd

Natalie explains what High Quality Teaching (HQT) looks like and why it’s important for pupils with SEND. She discusses the role of the SENCO in supporting teachers to embed HQT. She also shares ideas on how SENCOs can provide CPD, support and monitoring of HQT in the classroom.

Developing a nurture provision to support SEND pupils in the mainstream

Liz Murray – SEND Consultant, Spotlight Education Support

Liz’s session facilitates reflection and learning around the idea of nurture provisions for SEND and non-SEND pupils in mainstream settings. She explores the term ‘nurture’ and reflects on the outcomes a nurture provision might enable. She also looks at practical examples and explores frameworks for a whole school approach.

STREAM 3 – SPECIFIC LEARNING DIFFICULTIES

Masking: what are we missing, and how can this behaviour impact communication between school and home?

Lana Grant – Autism Specialist and Author

How can we help if we don’t know what we’re looking for? Lana identifies the meaning of the term ‘masking’ and how common it is. She identifies when and why an adult or child may be masking, highlights the power of working with parents/caregivers, and provides support strategies.

Study skills for learners with Additional Learning Needs

Neil MacKay – CEO, Action Dyslexia Training and Consultancy

Neil highlights research validated strategies that have been specifically ‘tweaked’ to make them achievable for students with Additional Learning Needs (ALN) at Key Stages 2-4. Strategies include developing skills around active listening, multi-sensory note taking and recording strategies using ALN friendly templates/scaffolds, reading to remember, and revising for tests.

Neurodiversity ‘traits’ for children and adolescents with learning, behaviour and socialisation – challenges and opportunities

Fintan O’Regan – Behaviour and Learning Trainer and Consultant, Sf30 Ltd

Fintan focuses on understanding and celebrating differences and not deficits within neurodiversity. He demystifies the terms ASD, ADHD, BD, CD, Dyslexia, DCD and ODD. Concentrating on traits and not labels, he explains how to support and nurture the differences that non traditional learners present within learning behaviour and socialisation.