Skylarks
Welcome to the Skylarks Class! 
Communication
A Total Communication approach is used in the Skylarks including sensory cues, real objects, Signalong, photographs, and symbols.
A selection of these approaches, individualised to support your child’s level of communication (as detailed in their Communication Guidelines, where in place, or otherwise from teacher assessments) are used throughout the day to cue the children in to different activities, and enable them to make choices.
Organisation
Children work in groups of various sizes, depending on the activity. This could be whole class activities, groups of 4, 2 or sometimes 1:1.
Lots of emphasis is placed on physical development and the children have regular sensory breaks and time out of their wheelchairs/class chairs. We have at least one session per day where the children participate in a physical activity on the floor, such as Music and Movement, Jabadao or Physical Development (linked to Physiotherapy Guidelines, where in place). Class chairs and standing frames are also accessed frequently, as part of our physical development and access to learning approaches.
We have an outdoor learning environment accessible directly from our classroom, which we use regularly.
Learning Styles
The Skylarks are at the exploratory stage of their development. The children learn best when given real objects and experiences to investigate and explore, so much of our learning is based on active engagement.
Getting Ready for Learning
We use a variety of different approaches such as Developmental Movement Play, massage and sensory diet activities where children can use a range of equipment appropriate to their individual needs, which may be linked to their sensory profile if they have one.
Key Days / Activities
- Sensory Art – Tuesday
Staff
Teacher: Terri Unsworth (3 days – Mon-Wed), Kim Firth (2 days – Thurs and Fri)
TAs: Nicola Hicklin, Sarah Lees and Ann Stuart
Mid Day Leaders: Steph Grundy and Hayley Clayton
Sign of the Week
At Kingfisher we use Signalong as a part of a Total Communication Approach, we are constantly using core vocabulary with the children to support their language development and then through each of our topics we introduce new signs and language, which extends their vocabulary further. We also have two “Signs of the Week” which helps maintain and extend key knowledge and skills of everyday vocabulary.
Each half term we will be creating a short video showcasing and demonstrating our ‘Signs of the Week’ for the current term so that you can learn the signs and further this learning at home.
To view the signs of the week for this topic please watch the video below
Lunchtime
If your child has a school dinner, the school menus can be accessed by clicking here. For children who bring a packed lunch, please remember to provide healthy and balanced options. We are a Healthy School and will be focussing on healthy eating and how children can make healthy lifestyle choices.