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Miles Coverdale Primary School

Unit for Children With Language Impairment


SPEECH AND LANGUAGE CLASSES FOR CHILDREN WITH LANGUAGE IMPAIRMENT
Teacher in Charge of Language Unit: Anna Nou
Principal Speech and Language Therapist: Sara Clark
 
The speech and language classes at Miles Coverdale are very much part of the mainstream school.
The classes provide for twenty pupils with speech and language difficulties, aged between three and seven years old, in two classes of ten children, with a full time Teacher and Early Years Educator.
The teacher in charge works in both classes for part of each week and there is a full time speech and language therapist who works with all pupils, either individually or in a small group.
 
What sort of language difficulties do the children have?
All the pupils in the speech and language classes have language difficulties, and some have speech difficulties, which are severe enough to prevent them from learning in a mainstream class – they have specific language impairment/ specific speech impairment.
Some have difficulty understanding language, others have difficulty expressing ideas and making themselves understood and others find it difficult to recall words they know and to order them in sentences. Some pupils may need help in several of these areas. Some children have significant difficulty producing speech sounds.
Many of the children in the speech and language classes speak more than more language and experience difficulties with language or speech skills in all the languages they are hearing and using. 
Each child has different learning needs and it is the responsibility of the teaching teams in the classes to assess their difficulties and strengths and to plan an individual educational programme for them.
 
Which children come to the Unit?
Some children come to the speech and language classes with a Statement of Special Educational Need, but most come before the Statement has been completed and the statutory assessment is carried out by staff and professionals in the classes (Speech and Language Therapist/ Educational Psychologist).
Children in the classes all want to communicate and do not have a sensory hearing loss or additional learning difficulties.
 
Are there opportunities for mainstream inclusion?
Children in Class E (the younger class) welcome 10 children from the mainstream Yr.1 class for an afternoon of cross-curricular activities and shared play once a week in their class.
Children in Class P (the older class) join the mainstream Yr.2 class once a week for Science, which is taught with high levels of practical experience, visual cues and opportunities to learn and rehearse relevant scientific language.
All the Unit children also have dinner, playtimes and assemblies with their mainstream peers, and participate in whole school events.
 
When do children receive Speech and Language Therapy?
The Speech and Language Therapist works in the classes with the whole class, small groups and individuals. She is involved in planning learning with the teaching staff at every level, as well as developing the classroom environment to ensure that children’s language and communication skills are supported throughout the school day.
 
Who else sees the children?
The Educational Psychologist attached to the school, visits the speech and language classes regularly to observe and work with individual children and advise staff and parents about suitable schools when children transfer out of the classes at the end of Year 2.
The school doctor carries out regular medicals, to which parents are invited and there is a school nurse specifically for pupils in the classes.
Children can also be referred for Occupational therapy if they have motor or sensory integration difficulties.
 
How are parents/carers involved?
We welcome parents/carers coming into school to meet staff or participate in classroom activities whenever they can. They can telephone the school at any time to arrange to talk to the teacher in charge, the class teacher or the speech and language therapist.
Each child has an Individual Education Plan, which identifies 2 or 3 specific targets for them to achieve usually in relation to their communication skills, in addition to the curriculum. These targets are reviewed termly by teaching teams and the speech and language therapist, and parents are invited to come in to school to discuss the targets, suggest others and share ideas about how to help their children at home. Copies of the agreed targets are sent home to families and each child has a ‘learning card’ in the classroom so they know their own targets. 
Each child has a ‘home school’ book which they can take home every day. Staff use it to write comments about the child’s school day and families use it to let staff know what children have been doing at home.
There is homework which the children take home on Fridays, which may involve specific activities or give some suggestions about how to support children’s communication and learning at home.
Every term there is an open afternoon in both the speech and language classes. Families are invited to come in and get involved in classroom activities, usually related to a topic, like ‘Healthy Living’ or a curriculum area. This is an opportunity to see what the children are doing and to meet staff and other parents.
Parents/carers are invited to statutory assessment meetings, Annual Review meetings and termly Open Evenings to discuss their child’s progress.
There is a class leaflet, outlining weekly routines in class and giving contact details for the staff, which is sent to families at the beginning of each school year. A class newsletter is posted on the school website informing families of the curriculum topics to be covered over the coming half term.
 
Where do children go when they leave the Unit?
Most children stay in the Unit until the end of Key Stage One/ end of Year 2, leaving in the July after their seventh birthday. They then transfer to their local primary school, with additional support in class and Speech and Language Therapy. On occasions children may go on to further special educational provision, for example a special school. Children with on-going and severe speech and language difficulties that continue to prevent them from learning without specific support, move into the mainstream classes in KS2 at Miles Coverdale, where they receive support from the ‘Integrated Resource’. The ‘Integrated Resource’ provides specialist support for the children within their mainstream class, through high levels of Speech and Language Therapy input and additional specialist teacher and support assistant time.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
September 2011 Sara Clark, Anna Nou