Hi everyone

I am going to send home (physically or via email) a pack of ideas for learning activities to help occupy and engage your children while school is closed. These will be fun, practical, suggestions which should be easy to resource using things found around your home (no precious toilet rolls I promise!).You will also find a link to a website which contains a long list of free online resource to help support your child’s learning. In addition to this, I will also send home your child’s most up to date PLP, this is so you can see the aims we put together at the recent EHCP review meetings. This document may help you to work some of these outcomes into your child’s day and continue the learning that has been happening in school. Please do not feel you have to do anything in the pack I send home, they are merely suggestions to help fill your time.

Over the coming weeks, you may see an increase in dysregulated behaviour in your children. Whether it’s anxiety, anger or frustration that they can’t do things as they used to. This is normal and expected under these circumstances. What our children need right now is to feel comforted and loved. To feel like it’s all going to be OK. For some children you may want to put all of the things I send home aside, play outside and go on walks. Bake cookies and paint pictures. Play board games and watch movies. Do a science experiment together or find virtual tour of the zoo. Start a book and read together as a family. Snuggle under warm blankets and do nothing. For other children, the lack of structure, routine and familiarity will be difficult. For them I have included a toolkit of symbols and schedules – it is from the USA but I think it’s really nice.

One thing my pack cannot provide is social contact so please use this blog to comment and share with other families in our lovely little class. If you would like me to facilitate the swapping of email addresses or mobile numbers to create a class WhatsApp group or to video call your child’s friends, please let me know.

At the end of all of this, your child’s mental health and physical well-being will be more important than their academic skills. And how they felt during this time will stay with them long after the memory of what they did during this time has faded.

Stay safe!

Ellen & team 2/3

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