Communication & Reading Strategy
Approaches to Communication & reading at MBA
At MBA we believe communication and reading are fundamental life skills that
can develop engagement in learning. Through communication we develop a
love of learning for all and we are committed to ensuring reading
opportunities(at the appropriate level) for every child, every day.
Everyone has the right to be Heard
As part of our safeguarding approach, we talk about hearing the messages, spoken or otherwise, that pupils share. An important part of this is ensuring pupils have the tools they need to be
effective communicators. Being able to communicate is one of the most important skills we need in life. Almost everything we do involves communication; everyday tasks such as learning at school, asking for food and drink, sorting out problems, making friends and having fun. These all rely on our ability to communicate with each other.
At MBA we commit to being a total communication environment where staff will be trained in the skills needed to effectively support pupils in their chosen form of communication. We use a range of tools and approaches to ensure that communication skills are gained and developed by all pupils here at MBA. Approaches include Makaton and Picture Exchange communication System (PECS).
During the Covid Lockdown of 2020/2021 we have made
communication a focus of our development of language. Remote teaching has included the support of parents with their use of these tools, this has taken a priority in the ‘My Journey’ curriculum and our languages focus has been the ‘My Communication’ aspect of this for all learners, including our most able pupils who have been learning to communicate effectively on line. Tools such as PECS and Makaton form part of an approach to reading signs and symbols, therefore reading in its earliest form.
Picture Exchange Communication System (PECS)
PECS is a unique alternative/augmentative communication system developed in the USA in 1985 by Andy Bondy, PhD, and Lori Frost, MS, CCC-SLP. PECS was first implemented with pre-school students
diagnosed with autism at the Delaware Autism Program. Since then, PECS has successfully been implemented worldwide with thousands of learners of all ages who have various cognitive, physical and
communication challenges.
PECS consists of six phases and begins by teaching an individual to give a single picture of a desired item or action to a “communicative partner” who immediately honors the exchange as a request. The system goes on to teach discrimination of pictures and how to put them together in sentences. In the more advanced phases, individuals are taught to use modifiers, answer questions and comment.
The primary goal of PECS is to teach functional communication. Research has shown that some learners using PECS also develop speech. Others may transition to a speech generating device (SGD). The body of research supporting the effectiveness of PECS as an evidence-based practice is substantial and continues to expand.
Makaton
Makaton is a unique language programme that uses symbols, signs and speech to enable people to communicate. It
supports the development of essential communication skills such as attention and listening, comprehension, memory, recall and organisation of language and expression.
With Makaton, signs are used, with speech, in spoken word order. This helps provide extra clues about what someone is saying. Using signs can help people who have no speech or whose speech is unclear. Using symbols can help people who have limited speech and those who cannot or prefer not to sign.
For those who have experienced the frustration of being unable to communicate meaningfully or effectively, Makaton really can help. Makaton takes away that frustration and enables individuals to connect with other people and the world around them. This opens up all kinds of possibilities. Staff have been learning Makaton since the school opened in April 2020. We learn new signs as a team everyday and share these, where appropriate, with our pupils. We also learn signs linked to our topics to support written word.
The Journey of Reading
Each pupil will have the opportunity to take part in reading activities every day, across the curriculum and with a
multisensory approach. For some pupils this will be the opportunity to enjoy sensory stories and for others this will sharing book with an adult or peer, pre-reading activities such as matching games, jigsaws, listening to rhymes and songs. For others this may be accessing texts from the reading scheme in order to develop their skills in decoding and reading comprehension. We also have an extensive library of books that pupils can access.
We want all our pupils to engage with reading in a multisensory way. (photo) opportunities to become
familiar with stories, re-visit the language, anticipate what is coming next, and the enjoyment that a story can hold. Equally, with poems, newspapers and other non-fiction texts, engage and enjoy as well as develop reading skills in vocabulary, inference and fluency. On our website we have our MBA story time where there are a wealth of stories to listen to read by our MBA staff.
MBA Story time
At MBA we believe that it is important for stories and books to be shared with pupils. We have our own remote library on our website, where staff share books and read aloud. Parents are supplied with the
password to this area and lots of our pupils love listening to these stories at home. We also value the sharing of stories and reading related activities in small groups at school. During Lockdown we shared stories with our pupils who were learning at home and they had the opportunity to retell stories they knew well.
Social Stories
For some pupils we use social stories which also
have pictures (widgits) to help explain transitions
Reading schemes at Martin Bacon Academy
At MBA we want all our pupils to have the opportunity to high quality reading texts that engage readers, create new worlds and help develop not only the skills of decoding and reading but that love of reading alongside their comprehension skills. We predominately use Oxford Reading Tree for this purpose. Pupils also have access to an extensive library of books
outside of the reading scheme which also helps them to
generalise their reading skills and further develop their love of reading.
Oxford Reading Tree is a reading scheme, a series of books that have been carefully written to help children learn to read. When your child is learning to read, it’s important to give them books that are at the right level of challenge. Books that are too hard can be frustrating and can risk putting a child off reading. With Oxford reading tree books are matched to the pupil’s level of reading to provide challenge, enjoyment and fun to have the most impact on their reading skills. Each day your child will read their reading scheme book with an adult in school and their progress tracked in order to build on skills both phonic knowledge to decode and comprehension skills to develop understanding and enjoyment of the text. Each pupil has a reading record (book or on EFL) where you can add your comments and read comments from staff in school about achievements and next steps so we can work together to develop each pupil’s reading skills.
The eBook Library for Letters and Sounds
The Class teacher can now assign specific books to your child and track their progress. This will make it easier for your child to find the book that they are reading. It also means that they have a record of their own work in the Progress area.
Logging in: Your child will be able to access the eBook Library for Letters and Sounds
resources by logging in to their individual student login. Your child’s teacher will
provide them with their login details. Once your child has been given their individual login details they should use these to access Oxford Owl for School from now on. They will no longer need their class login details as they will be able to access everything they need using their individual login.
Oxford Owls – eBook Library
There are a wide range of books in school that each pupil has access to.These books are also available online at Oxford Owl for School and Homeand each pupil has their own login in order to access the book they are doing and re-reread others or read the next book.
