We really need to get out of our heads that
#sen
equates to low ability and instead focus on different ways of teaching to meet all needs, use scaffolding and support appropriately. SEND doesn’t necessarily mean less able.
#anxiety
also plays a huge part as well.
#sen
#inclusion
This is my old care taker Dave. One of the nicest people you will ever meet. Always went above and beyond for everyone.
I promised to take him out for the day once he retired and he has now so here we are! Schools caretakers are V.I.P’s. Look after them 😊
My youngest is 11 today. He worked out that going to holiday club with 30 of his friends is cheaper than a party at home and it lasts all day. All I had to get is a bag full of cupcakes and doughnuts! Result 😅
I have twin boys. One goes to uni in Leicester, the other in Nottingham. Both due back today on the same train. One has just told me he can’t come back today because the trains are messed up, the other is standing right next to me.🤷🏾♀️🤔
The more I read on Twitter about
#differentiation
versus
#adaptiveteaching
, the stronger I feel that all mainstream teachers should have a compulsory placement in a special school as part of their training.
#SEND
He has admitted that he missed the train because he overslept. Just illustrates once again that just because you’re twins, that doesn’t mean you will be anything like each other. And also, he’s still learning that being a twin makes it harder to lie to your mother. 😅
I drove 87 miles straight home today, from visiting a school in the new forest, to watch my sons big moment in his year 6 production as…….scene changer! He told me it’s the most important part so I had to be there. 😅🥰
Love him! Made one of his brothers come to watch him too.
2 days in isolation?!
What’s hair got to do with it?
Personally, before I started headship, I was told being a headteacher would be more difficult with natural hair. 🫣
Fellow black educators, let’s start a photo essay. Please share your hairstyles. 🥰
@Nadine_Writes
NEW: A Black schoolgirl, 13, spent two days in isolation because of an "inappropriate hairstyle", her mum said. Mayla's mother, Kerry, accused Barr Beacon School in Walsall, Midlands, of racial discrimination & said her daughter was singled out.
Just had a dentist appt for a cracked tooth. Dentist said that if we all start thinking of each tooth as worth £2,500 to replace we’d all start taking better care of them. Average person has 28 teeth. That’s £70k 🤯
I wish someone explained that to me years ago. 😩
Does anyone know who was behind this campaign and if there are any updates to it?
Powerful 'school to prison' Tube map highlights impact of exclusion on pupils.
#artofprotest
If you meet my 2nd born you’d think he was street wise and confident but boy! Dropping him to uni was something else! Made every excuse under the sun to leave late then said he forgot lots of ‘essentials! so ended up coming back home! Going again today then visiting nextweek❤️
As black headteachers we are ‘leaders for race equality’ but when we see examples of race inequality, actual blatant racism, we must stay professionally silent? Not for me. I’d rather not be a school leader if it means I should be silent. Everyone should be speaking up.
#racism
Tmw I start a new job as SEND advisor & inspector across Hampshire and the IOW!An LA that still has a team of advisors offering support across all its schools! I get to support school leaders to ensure ALL our children thrive!And it’s part time!🕺🏿Can’t wait!😍
#SEND
#improvement
@AnnekaRice
After a much deserved lie in, I came downstairs to picture one next to picture 2 and they know I can’t say anything because they made so much effort! 😒
Boys always make you feel 2 opposite emotions at the same time!!! 🤯🥰
@Doctob
I had a colleague called Stepanida. She said the head changed it to Stephanie because she said it was too hard. She was known as Stephanie for years and no one knew. A name has meaning, so disrespectful to change it just because it’s easier for someone else to pronounce. 🙄
Just a reminder. There is a shortage of
#ADHD
medication. Your students will be struggling to self-regulate and will be extra tired.
Offer regular movement breaks, talk to them about diet and exercise. Do not issue break time detentions and most importantly please be kind.
#SEND
@JasonManford
“just because you’re struggling doesn’t mean your failing” wow! Well done for using your platform to raise awareness of depression and thanking you for making me laugh out loud😊👍🏾
Just had a catch-up with one of my 3 sons at uni.
He's done the minimal amount of work needed but he's just met a girl who spends all her time studying so now he going to start going to the library. 😅🙏🫣
I recently missed out on a leadership role in a special school because I can’t work full time. How mad is that? Missing out on exceptional talent and experience because they insisted on people working full time! Work life balance is my top priority now. I am starting to say no!😊
Reflecting on an interaction I saw on a school visit today. A child with
#SLCN
needs hurt himself. His teacher gently said “what do you need?” he answered through tears, “hug” so she did. So simple, so beautiful. I love special schools 🥰
#SEND
#education
#relationships
Just thinking back to when one of my boys, when he was in year 4, said that he was going to get into grammar school, then study maths and become an accountant. She told me at parents evening that she thought he was ‘arrogant’. He’s now at Uni studying accountancy and economics.
A really positive Ofsted visit today for one of my schools. A really experienced, child centred inspector who understood the importance of relationships for children with
#SEMH
profiles. So important to get someone who understands
#SEND
‘Each child receives an individualized plan. The child’s teacher and parents meet to discuss the child’s strengths, interests and needs for support and how they can be taken into account in the child’s learning journey’
#SEND
#Finland
The
@educationgovuk
report is out. It seems workload, bullying, discrimination, lack of equality and flexibility especially for disabled and minority staff are the main stressors for teachers & leaders, not pupil behaviour.
#education
#schools
#teachers
Very grateful for my 16 year olds school. When I told them he was going to football academy for sixth form instead of staying on, they moved his timetable around so that he could still access education with them.
It has been so stressful working this out but we’ve done it 🥰🥰🥰
I shouldn’t have had to do this. The people that were meant to care should have prioritised that over cost.
His family deserved better. His life did matter.
Head teacher says autistic student died despite family's plea for support
#safeguarding
#Autism
We need to talk about conferences that charge ridiculous prices but ask speakers to speak for free! Especially when we know that minorities groups are routinely paid less or not at all! We need more support to call this out.
@cyclingkev
The problem with this thread is you still keep excluding special schools. You did then and still do now. We were fully open throughout the pandemic but the narrative was that all schools were closed.
Yesterday at conference, someone said they didn’t recognise me so here I am with glasses on. I do tend to change my hairstyle a lot though so I might look totally different next week. 😅
Lovely day delivering
#neurodiversity
workshops to year 5 primary students. So important to give them space to talk about their experiences and share their
#neurodivergent
strengths. 🥰
A few years ago I was at a conference on
#racism
in
#education
put on by a large academy group. Lots of
#performanceallyship
noise was made and they wanted to hear our stories. When I asked what actions they were taking the CEO said “I’m here to listen & learn.” No action taken🙄
Just thinking of the fact that I went through school, university, teacher training, did my masters and rose through my career to become a headteacher of a special school without even knowing I was
#neurodivergent
!
Mind blowing how amazing that is!
I’ve been tasked with organising a
#SEND
conference.
One of the speakers has physical mobility issues and asked if they could still be included. Made me really think about the general lack of inclusion of disabled speakers and poor accessibility at SEND conferences🤔
Not good😞
First of 3 university room clear outs tonight and it’s nice to see these collection points. I hope everyone uni is doing this, so much gets thrown away 😭
@Unite_Student
My son just said to me “I like strike days, we get a black teacher”
Isn’t that sad?
Why are we more likely to see black teachers doing supply in schools and not on long term permanent contracts? This needs challenging.
A Whitehall source said: “A walk-out such as this is very unusual. Feelings are clearly running high, and the question is whether it will translate into further sustained action.”
Teachers stage mass walk-out as Education Secretary makes speech
@NAHTnews
“Why are we using
#SENCO
who are
#SEND
experts as administrators? To spend their time on paperwork that often gets refused”. Such a good point from Daniel Sobel.
#nextstepsforsendreform
I was just talking to someone about the BBC piece last week and they said it's very rare for anyone in education to speak out. Isn't that sad? Surely our students come first? What has happened to us? So many people forced to sign NDA's and not given the support to pursue things😢
My husband has gone to football. He thought he left clear instructions for my sons with no further explanation needed. “Take one of the two cards I bought, sign it and give it to your mum”.
This is how I ended up with this card from my boys! 😂
I’m feeling more and more conflicted about staying on Twitter. I have made so many great friends on here but it’s becoming increasingly more toxic with less filters. I’ve only lost 1 follow so it looks like everyone’s feeling the same but still here?🤷🏾♀️
My son just told me that for his summer internship at
@HSBC_UK
he’s working with the head of
#neurodiversity
on helping them be more inclusive 🥹🥹🥹
My heart 🥰
Just back from a special school that is truly outstanding in every sense of the word because they put their students and not their egos first. There are so many schools like that, quietly getting on with providing the best education for their pupils so that they can thrive.🥰
This makes my heart sing.🥰Earlier today my youngest had an argument with his friends on Xbox. I told him to sit with me and do some art. He said he felt better and went back downstairs happy. Now he’s come back in to do some more. Reminds me of me when I was younger.
#artheals
🥰
It was an honour to be selected to contribute to the
@BeyondOfsted
inquiry alongside
@CalmLeadership
and
@Thinkingschool2
As a
#SEND
specialist I was able to voice my concerns around accountability and ensuring education is truly inclusive for our most vulnerable students.
What is true
#allyship
? Speaking out and using your voice to support other people. It’s not performative, it’s real action. Thankyou to everyone who has truly shown up for me over the last 2 years. It’s been so hard but I’ve learnt so much that I can now share! Author!😳😱🤯🥰🤗
Every word. There are two moments in that video that made me cry. The first was her child screaming and crying in fear. The other was the man filming that took the moment to be an ally, not a bystander. When asked why it mattered to him, he said, "That's my sister". Heartbreaking
Good day today. Training for 30 SENCO’s in the morning, attendance review with an AP in the afternoon. I love the variety of my job. A year after leaving headship I could never imagine what I’d be doing now. It works out in the end. Most imp lessons learnt- Stay True to you! 🥰
Not education related but I’ve got an MRI scan tomorrow see if nerve damage caused my
#HearingLoss
&
#tinnitus
A bit nervous. 😬
Has anyone else ever had one?
Don’t know what to expect and don’t want to Google it 🙈
No horror stories please 🙏🏿
I was meant to go to a 2 day SEND conference but when I checked the line up, it wasn’t diverse enough.
I’m fed up of with large events that just have one speaker of colour or add you on as an afterthought. It’s so demoralising. No sessions that will help me support my community.
In 2020 I received this message and it filled me with
#shame
. I thought I’d managed to hide the fact I was
#care
experienced. Now as I step into 2023 I realise how important it is to be your authentic self and how sharing your experiences can help others. Thankyou
@lemnsissay
I can get my hearing aid on the
#NHS
! 🎉🎉
The relief!It would have cost me nearly £3,000 to get one privately. The audiologist said it costs the NHS a fraction of that because they buy so many. By the end of February I’ll have my hearing back. Can’t stop smiling. So thankful. 🥰
"She listened to me, which I really liked because at the time teachers didn’t... they just saw angry girl,"
Relationship building and listening = +ve behaviour support.
Don't Exclude Me - The Open University | BBC Partnership | BBC Partnership
Just writing about
#inclusive
#curriculum
for learners with
#SEND
. Always baffles me that we're willing to differentiate for physical disabilities we can see but not for neurological differences that we can't. Adults don't learn the same way so why do we expect our pupils to?🤔
I feel really blessed to have found the perfect role for me- part-time, flexible and allows me to still have time for my other interests/consultation work.
It's also within a lovely team who are all passionate about young people and education. Plus Hampshire is beautiful!🥰
‘Name 3 BAME people that you learnt about in school?’ The answer was none for me 😔 Excellent webinar from
@ChilternTSA
this morning. Really made me think.
@lorrainemking
@ZJObeng02
Thank you for this, heartbreaking.
On Friday I was fortunate enough to meet the creator of
#missingblackpeople
A young man using his expertise to highlight the lack of media coverage of missing black people.
@findmbp
I understand why people don’t want to hear about Harry & Meghan but as a black woman, the way one of us is treated affects us all. This rule sadly applies in any walk of life and in any industry. It’s why black educators seem to find each other, we need to share our experiences.
Absolutely chuffed to meet this legend in real life. We’ve been connected online for so long. Brilliant session
@neuroteachers
@OptimusEd
#oeSEND
As we move away from using terms such as
#deficit
and
#disorder
and more people are advocating for themselves, isn’t it time that all schools started to embrace a strengths based approach to support children & young people with
#send
?
#neurodiversity
My twins have just explained their loyalty to each other over their parents as due to the fact that they’ve known each other longer than they’ve known us. Logically, I can’t argue with that. 🤔
Seeing a few posts about timetables. I was always grateful for 1 of my sons school for sending out the timetable to us in the summer holidays so we could take a look rather than having it sprung on us the first day back. How many other schools do this for children with
#SEND
?
‘To lead on inclusion,you need a fundamental character.That character is a belief and a drive that you will do ALL you can for ALL the children in the school’ ☝️☝️☝️☝️☝️☝️☝️☝️☝️☝️Leading Inclusion in a Secondary School. Great book so far!
@PrincipalTASE
#inclusion
#send
#education
@autist333
I used to be until I got my hearing aid in my left ear. Although I forgot it on Tuesday and I had a banging migraine all evening. I have an app called WeatherX that sends me alerts when there's an atmospheric shift. It's always spot on. :)
This is an interesting read from a parent at the school. Surely we all need to do some reflection.😞
“I can’t lie: Ofsted’s inspection verdict of outstanding was an attraction for us to send our children to Caversham”
My 10 year old has just reminded me he has a residential next week! I thought it was in the summer term. 😩😩😩
Who does a year 6 residential in the 2nd full week back. I can’t decide if it’s genius or madness😩😩😩
Pupils with SEND, like all students, come from a range of ethnic and social economic backgrounds and may experience discrimination based on multiple social identities but in addition, parents may have also faced their own barriers to education
#intersectionlaity
#send
#inclusion
My workplace (LA) has a chat group for neurodiverse staff. Meets monthly and you don’t have to have a diagnosis! It was nice to chat to other people about their experiences. 🥰
Interested to know if this is common in any schools and academy groups too?
#neurodiversity
#networks