Welcome to Willow Class, where we are following a Semi-Formal Curriculum.  The learning experiences the children have in Willow Class are matched to our stage of development and are highly personalised to meet our individualised needs.  Our curriculum will look a little different because it needs to be, we make sense of the world and process sensory information from it in our own individual ways.  We learn best when learning is related to our own experiences and is presented in a playful and fun way.

Willow Class children learn through play in a “hands on” and practical way because that is what engages us.   At times, you might see us doing a sensory circuit or getting messy to stimulate our senses, or to help us to regulate.  You may also hear our adults singing with us as this can help us to learn, or transition to another activity or location around the school.  We need to break down our tasks and learning into small steps, and to repeat learning to ensure it is embedded, before we try it out in different situations and contexts.  We like consistent routines in Willow Class, as they help us to feel safe and to develop independence in the things we do.

Some of us are very self-contained and focused on what we like to do, so we are learning how to play and interact positively with our friends too. During our day, there are frequent opportunities for us to make choices and to communicate them with both adults and other children.  We may communicate through our gestures, actions and behaviours.  Some of us use some verbal communication.   Our voice is important, so our adults support us and model communication using photographs, Makaton, PECs Symbols, Assisted Language Displays and Communication