At St George's we run many interventions to support your child's learning. These are always evolving and staff receive regular training on new and adaptive ways to support learner.
Here are some of our main interventions which may be referred to on your child's Individual Support Plan (ISP). The interventions are also offered for different reasons to those without plans. If your child is part of an intervention that is not listed please speak to your child's class teacher who will happily go through what the intervention involves.
Nessy
Nessy uses a highly structured, sequential, cumulative and systematic synthetic phonics-based learning program that progresses to fluency.
The 8 Essential Components of Nessy Reading and Spelling:
Nessy is completed by on a computer at your child's own pace and is matched to their individual needs.
Lexia – Core 5 Reading
Lexia® Core5® Reading is an adaptive blended learning program that accelerates the development of literacy skills for students of all abilities, helping them make that critical shift from learning to read to reading to learn.
What skills does Lexia work on?
The activities in Core 5 support and build on our classroom curriculum and focus on developing reading skills in six areas:
Lexia is completed by on a computer at your child's own pace and is matched to their individual needs.
Toe By Toe
Toe By Toe is a systematic, phonics-based decoding program that helps students struggling to read by de-mystifying the English language. By taking them back to the basics of phonic knowledge and consolidating their understanding of spelling rules and syllable division, students develop confidence in their reading. Toe By Toe, once completed or as needed, is followed by Word Wasp.
Word Wasp
Word Wasp is systematically punctuated with word lists, passages and poems for both reading and spelling. Wasp stands for: Word Articulation, Spelling and Pronunciation. From the initial exercises, words and passages contain only decodable or encodable words from elements that have been introduced and coached.
The Word Wasp/Hornet begins by teaching students to read and spell (decode/encode) simple sounds. From simple sounds it moves to simple words. Early exercises, in both texts, are concerned with vowel discrimination; these exercises are followed by VC, CVC and CVCC decoding and encoding exercises. Students are then introduced to digraphs, trigraphs, diphthongs and rules. Blending techniques are taught in these early stages and are encouraged throughout the texts.
Plus One
The intervention covers basic number work, such as counting forwards and backwards with numbers up to 10, adding and subtracting numbers up to 10, and introducing doubling and halving. It is for anyone who benefits from repeated practice and explanation. The Plus 1 book stems from the need of some people to have more reinforcement and practice than is often available.
Plus One, once completed or as needed, is followed by Power of Two.
Power of Two
Power of 2 begins with teaching number bonds to 10, and then moves on to introducing doubling, halving, addition and subtraction, rounding numbers, multiplying and dividing. It then introduces fractions and looks at worded problems and time. It covers:
Motor Skills United
The Occupational Therapy Programme - This intervention is based on the book Motor Skills United published by Special Direct. It is primarily for children who need to:
Many other core skills are also likely to improve, having a direct effect on learning, concentration and class participation
Merlin – Pets as Therapy
Taking care and spending time with pets can boost confidence and improve self-esteem. Loving displays of affection such as a dog wagging their tail or licking can make a child feel more positive, whilst taking care of an animal allows children to spend their time productively.
Stroking animals, such as cats and dogs, releases endorphins, having a calming effect and therefore reducing stress levels. This is especially beneficial for children with anxiety. Pet therapy has also been proven to help children overcome emotional disorders and overcome speech problems.
Having a pet visit our school encourages children to push themselves into social situations that they might otherwise avoid. Animals are loving creatures that offer comfort and reassurance, decreasing feelings of loneliness and contributing to increased feelings of happiness and enjoyment.
Lego Therapy
Playing with Lego in a therapy setting promotes social interaction, turn-taking skills, sharing, collaborative problem-solving and the learning of concepts. It can be used to target goals around social skills, language and motor skills.