What happens if my child needs extra help?

 

Children learn and progress at different rates. Many children experience periods of time when they need further, more specific support in order to continue making progress. This may happen for a number of reasons, and may be for a short time or over a longer period. A child may, for example show a speech and language delay and need a short programme of therapy or speak English as an additional language and require extra support to follow what is going on in school. A teacher may recommend small group ‘booster’ classes to help a child make the necessary progress. Others may have very specific needs identified by specialists such as dyslexia, or dyspraxia, or perhaps a medical condition which affects their progress in school.

 

It is important that identification of any difficulties is made as soon as possible, therefore every child’s progress is tracked carefully. When a teacher raises concerns or suggests that further support would be beneficial, this does not mean that your child will be ‘labelled’, or that they

are failing. Many parents worry that their child will be treated differently but there are many different forms of support going on in busy classrooms all the time and we never want to make a child stand out. Our aim is always to do everything possible to support their progress. The class teacher will keep you informed, and will discuss with you how you can support your child at home. An Individual Education Plan (IEP) is used for some children. This sets out the specific short term targets which the teaching team will be working on with your child and is reviewed at the end of every half term. These are overseen by the SENDCo (Special Educational Needs and Disabilities Co-ordinator).