TRUSTEES AND GOVERNORS WANTED | OFSTED REPORT

NEWSLETTER

 

Test Driving Swings and Roundabouts Two new additions to the outdoor play area are proving a hit with wheelchair pupils. Specially designed swings and roundabouts have been installed which, whilst allowing the chairs to be "secured" preventing the children from accidentally falling out, can still be propelled by the youngsters themselves.

Such was the excitement at the arrival of the new "rides" that one of the children asked: "Can't I go in a wheelchair so that I can have a go?"

Provision of the new facilities was made possible by generous donations - mainly from Railtrack.Test driving the new roundabout are Callan and Mhairi.

How do you describe an elephant to someone who cannot see?

“Communicating with other people is something most of us have been doing since the day we were born. We begin as new born babies crying for comfort and food and generally develop a sophisticated communication system through language. Most of us take our ability to communicate for granted until perhaps we find ourselves in a foreign country that doesn’t share our language and then we begin to realise that communication is not only just about language. We also rely on facial expression, body movements and gesture to try and get our message across.

COMMUNICATION
For a visually impaired child the route to establishing a good, two-way communication system is a much more difficult one. From the very beginning the visually impaired baby is deprived of the rewarding eye contact with its mother and many concepts are almost impossible for a blind child to fully grasp. How do you describe how tall a tree is or how big an elephant is without relying on vision? The pupils at The Royal School for the Blind all have a visual impairment and all have additional disabilities which makes exploring their world even more difficult. Helping them find their way through their particular world and developing their communication skills is our staff’s prime concern but the techniques, have, of course to be somewhat different to those of the conventional classroom.

First and foremost we start from the premise that every pupil in the School IS communicating. They may not use language or any recognised, formal system but they do communicate and it is our job to respond to their efforts and help develop them so that the pupils have some control over their world.

We have created, we hope, a communicative environment within which each pupil is given time to respond and make choices. Staff not only involve the pupils in everyday choices but respond consistently to their communicative attempts to make them aware that they are being listened to and to re-assure them the effort is worthwhile.

OBJECTS OF REFERENCE
To foster this environment we have adopted extra communication methods. An “On body” signing system is used with some pupils to help them anticipate events such as being picked up or having a drink. Other pupils use objects of reference which symbolise the activities of the day – a wooden spoon for cookery; an armband for swimming. Through the use of these a structure is given to the day so they are able to anticipate events, have more control over their environment and less fear of the unknown. Staff use personal identity symbols with some pupils so they know who is working with them.

Other pupils will use more specialised communication aids such as an Alpha Talker which relies on different combinations of symbols to produce words or a Big Mac which produces pre-recorded messages by the press of a simple switch.

Deputy head Clare Geraghty and Kirsty "explore" the contents of the "pudding mix."

Inevitably, outsiders might regard many of our pupils as having few communicative skills but to us the tiniest step forward is regarded as a huge success. That achievement might be identified in the little girl who no longer has a startle fit each time she is picked up because now, from the combination of staff identity symbols and on-body signs, she knows what to expect. Or by the boy who is beginning to make sounds for the first time in his attempt to communicate - and feeling absolutely delighted about his achievement! Then, we also have pupils who can chatter away for the whole day – and we value them and their communicative skills, equally highly!

back to previous page