Page 75 - SEN114 September/October 2021

Autism
About the author
Lynn McCann is an autism specialist teacher working in schools across Lancashire. She is the author of “How to support pupil with ASC in Primary school”, “How to support students with ASC in secondary school” and “Stories that Explain” (a book about social stories).
Reachoutasc.com @ReachoutASC @ReachoutASC
rest of the population, with 9 in 10 disabled children socially isolated and 6 in 10 parents isolated.”
(Disabled Children’s Partnership (DCP) Left Behind: The Impact of the Pandemic on Disabled Children, their Parents and Siblings)
Paul Duckworth also says that what Head Teachers feel needs to be caught up is the community and wellbeing curriculum of schools.
Jane Smith, a secondary SENCO says that we need to be asking what are these goal posts that children are missing out on and are these realistic? At her secondary school she noticed that the year 7s had missed out on relationships and play. They were still playing like primary children, and they needed that bridge to help them make the transition that they missed out on because of the pandemic.
Dulcie Norton an early years teacher, who works with a number of autistic pupils said, “I can’t help but wonder if these periods of being locked down at such an essential stage of their early years development created a missed connection which will never be fixed (with regards to social understanding and skills) as, developmentally, they have moved on as they have got older and maybe missed small parts in their timeline of pre-school socialising that will never be repeated.”
SEND pupils may also fall under the other areas of disadvantage. They may live in poverty, they are more likely to be isolated and have missed out on support and therapies throughout lockdown. They may still be isolating because of medical conditions. And there are those who have not been able to return to school through anxiety or unmet needs.
The I CAN charity recently published a report ‘Speaking up fo the Covid generation’ which said: “An estimated 1.5 million children and young people could be left behind, if more action is not taken to support them with their speaking and understanding of language, after missing school due to the Covid-19 pandemic.”
What should we focus on to
help children catch up?
Children with SEND have missed out on therapies and essential support. Everyday skills and key communication points such as following routines, getting organised and managing the every demands of lessons are based on communication. Supporting communication could well be a vital focus, particularly as we go back after another 6 weeks off over the summer.
After months of being at home in a quiet environment and being able to manage the sensory input of their children, many parents are concerned that being back at school has heightened the sensory issues their child may have. The child’s sensory needs may be different since lockdown, having such a long period of changing environments, anxiety and different experiences may mean that many children are finding the school environment
overwhelming. Some schools are building sensory or wellbeing breaks into their recovery and catch up to support this.
Taking stock of the way the child learns and how engaged they were in learning through lockdown has provided many teachers with new and enlightening information about their children. Some thrived with the 1:1 attention of parents and being able to do work at their own pace, in a safe and quiet place. Others could not manage any work at home and are still dealing with the trauma of all the disrupted learning. We may need to adapt and change the way we teach our children. Using key strategies for dyslexia, autism, and other SEND learning strategies can help many more children than we may have previously realised.
We know that so many of our children have struggled with anxiety, fear, and overwhelming emotions during this pandemic. SEND children have been more isolated than ever before. Catching up on our community wellbeing is arguably the most important and long-lasting legacy that we can give this generation of children. In this way schools are planning catching up on creativity, community projects, music, drama and art. They are getting outside and learning in forest schools, and they are talking more about emotions, emotional responses and how we support one another through these times.
We need to remain focussed on the fact that SEND children are children, and not a separate group of beings. Sometimes all children need a different and additional approach or support. Our focus should be on bringing our school community together, supporting and understanding one another. Anxious times can lead to pushing others away, but this is the time to bring each other together. We can be open about differences and difficulties, whilst celebrating understanding and acceptance. We have the opportunity to help all our children catch up on being a community, to focus on their lost skills and help them with their emotional wellbeing... English and maths are included in that too.
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