Children always write stories and poems, but have you thought about songwriting? It can be a fantastic activity to enhance speech and language skills, communication and literacy. It makes a great alternative to creative writing as it's more inclusive and collaborative. Singing songs and music in school engages children in a different way. It levels the playing field with children with different abilities and is a really accessible way to get into a topic. Al Start is a singer-songwriter who spec...
Oct 21, 2021•51 min•Ep. 69
In this week's podcast, Dale Pickles from B Squared is joined by Dr Trisha Waters. Trisha is an educational therapist who began her career supporting pupils with emotional and behavioural difficulties, after that she led the MA in SEN & Inclusion at the University of Chichester and is now the director of the Centre for Therapeutic Storywriting. Story Links is a parent partnership intervention to support vulnerable pupils at risk of exclusion. It uses therapeutic storywriting to address emoti...
Oct 14, 2021•43 min•Ep. 68
In this week's podcast, Dale Pickles from B Squared is joined by Tessa Morton, one of the founders of Act for Autism, to discuss an approach she uses to help you connect and communicate with your autistic students. Tessa is the passionate mum of an autistic boy, and before founding Act for Autism, she had spent over 15 years supporting autistic kids in her community through drama workshops. Tessa is a trained counsellor, and has been supporting parents of autistic kids, helping them to manage th...
Oct 07, 2021•59 min•Ep. 67
Joining Dale today is Ginny Bootman. Ginny is currently a SENCO of 2 Primary schools, but has been a teacher for a very long time (in her own words), a senior manager and headteacher. She has also found time to write articles for TES and speak at a number of events. It is so easy in our busy world of schools to forget to find time to have the important conversations with parents of children with additional needs. In this episode, Ginny and Dale talk through simple, effective strategies to use to...
Sep 30, 2021•49 min•Ep. 66
Welcome to the SENDcast. The phrase 'Every teacher is teacher of SEND' is currently an ideal, not a reality. We created the SENDcast to try and help solve that problem, to help make schools more inclusive and to help teachers be teachers of SEND. The SENDCast is also a great way to get the same information to parents and other people working with young people with SEND. Dale's guest this week is Alison Knowles. Alison is an emotional therapist, she supports emotional resilience. In this episode ...
Sep 23, 2021•51 min•Ep. 65
In this week's podcast, Dale discusses supporting pupils with dyslexia and other needs using the Science Literacy Toolkit with guest is Dr Susie Nyman. Susie teaches a range of students in a post-16 environment. She uses multi-sensory teaching strategies to cover complex topics, to help students learn. Susie is the Curriculum Manager at The Sixth Form College, Farnborough. She is passionate about discovering how children learn and supporting them in ways which enable them to succeed. She has pro...
Sep 16, 2021•1 hr 10 min•Ep. 64
In this week's podcast, Dale Pickles from B Squared is joined by Al Start. Al is a singer-songwriter who specialises in music for children and schools through her company Go Kid Music. Al has worked with children through creative art organisations and local authority play services. Al has also toured the UK and East Coast USA performing her music. There are different types of sign language, British sign language or BSL is the primary language used for deaf people, and less than 1 in 10 people in...
Sep 09, 2021•52 min•Ep. 63
In this week's show Dale is joined by Fintan O'Regan are discussing how every school leader is a leader of SEND. Fintan is a trainer and consultant for schools and school support systems including, Social Services, Health, the Police and Foster carers. He has worked with a number of organisations including NASEN, Institute of Education, Leicester University, the UK ADHD Network and the European ADHD Alliance. And before this he was a headteacher of a specialist school for students with ADHD, ASD...
Sep 02, 2021•45 min•Ep. 62
In this week's podcast, Dale Pickles from B Squared is joined by Dr Trisha Waters. Trisha is an educational therapist who began her career supporting pupils with emotional and behavioural difficulties, after that she led the MA in SEN & Inclusion at the University of Chichester and is now the director of the Centre for Therapeutic Storywriting. The use of story writing to develop both emotional resilience and improve writing skills can supports pupil wellbeing while also developing academic ...
Jul 15, 2021•42 min•Ep. 61
In this week's podcast, Dale Pickles from B Squared is joined by Al Start. Al is a singer-songwriter who specialises in music for children and schools through her company Go Kid Music. Al has worked with children through creative art organisations and local authority play services. Al has also has toured the UK and East Coast USA performing her music. Songs get stuck in your head. We remember songs for years, we remember nursery rhymes from our childhood. They help in so many ways. It make sense...
Jul 08, 2021•57 min•Ep. 60
In this week's podcast, Dale Pickles from B Squared is joined by Georgina Durrant to discuss the importance of learning through play. Learning through play is so important for all young children, but perhaps especially for children with Special Educational Needs. Play can help children practise and develop a whole range of skills from fine and gross motor skills to creativity, emotional regulation and working memory. It can also help relax overstimulated children and help form social connections...
Jul 01, 2021•1 hr 4 min•Ep. 59
In this week's podcast, Dale Pickles from B Squared is joined by Dr Susie Nyman to discuss empowering mental health for students with SEND. Susie is the Curriculum Manager at The Sixth Form College, Farnborough. She is passionate about discovering how children learn and supporting them in ways which enable them to succeed. She has provided training to PGCE students at Kingston University, and in a number of local schools and colleges on teaching strategies. She also delivers talks on multi-senso...
Jun 24, 2021•1 hr 7 min•Ep. 58
Joining Dale today is Ginny Bootman. Ginny is currently a SENCO of 2 Primary schools, but has been a teacher for a very long time (in her own words), a senior manager and headteacher. She has also found time to write articles for TES and speak at a number of events. All too often the home school relationship can become strained for a number of reasons. This episode looks at the role empathy plays and the building of the spider's web of trust to pave the way for a real team approach when supporti...
Jun 17, 2021•53 min•Ep. 57
Dale's guest is Fintan O'Regan, Fintan is a trainer and consultant for schools and school support systems including, Social Services, Health, the Police and Foster carers. He has worked with a number of organisations including NASEN, Institute of Education, Leicester University, the UK ADHD Network and the European ADHD Alliance. And before this he was a headteacher of a specialist school for students with ADHD, ASD and ODD. Fintan is a regular here in our studios, he has recorded a number of ep...
Jun 10, 2021•50 min•Ep. 56
Joining Dale today is Lorraine Petersen. Lorraine has 25 years' experience in the mainstream school environment as a teacher and Head Teacher. From 2004 – 2013 Lorraine was CEO of Nasen, a charitable organisation supporting all those who work with children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities. She has been a chair, keynote speaker and workshop facilitator at many national and international events and conferences as well as a consultant for a number of national organis...
Jun 03, 2021•1 hr 14 min•Ep. 55
This week, Dale is joined by Alison Knowles. Alison is an emotional therapist who supports emotional resilience. In this episode we are talking about self preservation as a parent of a child with SEND. Alison is the creator of the Ollie Model, the author of the series of Ollie and his Super Powers books, trainer of Ollie coaches and an emotional therapist. Useful Links: https://www.facebook.com/OllieandhisSuperPowers https://twitter.com/bemoreollie https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCWDj-PRjboIg2c...
May 27, 2021•56 min•Ep. 54
This week Dale is joined by Al Start to discuss some helpful tips to help teachers use music and songs in the classroom. Al has worked with children for over 20 years in a variety of ways and over the last 15 years she has been creating, teaching and performing songs for children. Singing with children can be a scary idea if you're not musically trained, but introducing music and singing into children's daily learning routine will open up so many opportunities for learning, creativity, behaviour...
May 20, 2021•56 min•Ep. 53
Joining Dale today is Lorraine Petersen. Lorraine is an educational consultant with 25 years experience working in schools. Since 2004 she has been supporting Special Needs in a variety of ways: She was the CEO of NASEN and she is currently a consultant, director of a teaching school alliance and Governor. Being a SENCO now, more than ever is extremely challenging, so much to do with so little time and so few options. Today Dale and Lorraine discuss the SENCO Survival Guide to help you through t...
May 13, 2021•1 hr 2 min•Ep. 52
Every week on the SENDcast, Dale is joined by different guest to talk about a specific area. This week our guest once again is, Fintan O'Regan. Fintan has been a headteacher, lecturer for Leicester University and now works as a trainer and consultant for schools and school support systems. In this episode we are talking about how you don't need to wait for diagnosis to make a difference for children with SEND. The SENDcast is created and produce by B Squared. Over the last 25 years B Squared hav...
May 06, 2021•52 min•Ep. 51
The SENDcast is a podcast we started in 2020, to help improve knowledge around SEND. Every teacher is teacher of SEND, yet the training isn't there to support them. We created the SENDcast to try and help solve that problem, help make schools more inclusive. My guest this week is Alison Knowles. Alison is an emotional therapist, she supports emotional resilience. In this episode we are talking about supporting foster or adoption families and the specific issues those children might be facing. Us...
Apr 29, 2021•58 min•Ep. 50
On this week's podcast we will be discussing how to support children with emotionally based school phobia/avoidance. For this conversation, Dale is joined by Dr Tina Rae. Tina is a consultant psychologist with over 30 year's experience working with children, adults and families. We know that our children and young people who already have existing mental health issues will be finding the current lockdown experience particularly stressful and increased levels of anxiety will be the norm. However, ...
Apr 01, 2021•1 hr 4 min•Ep. 49
In this episode we are revisiting anxiety and simply asking the question what is anxiety? Alison Knowles returns to help us explore this. Alison is an emotional therapist. This does not mean that she often cries during therapy. She supports emotional resilience. In this episode we are talking about the reality you created and the impact this has on you. Useful Links https://www.facebook.com/OllieandhisSuperPowers https://twitter.com/bemoreollie https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCWDj-PRjboIg2cu-KZ...
Mar 25, 2021•49 min•Ep. 48
In this episode Dale is joined by Natalie Packer to talk about how to support NQTs to meet the needs of pupils with SEND. With very little Initial Teacher Training around SEND, they have a lot to learn in supporting pupils with SEND. Yet, they will be supporting pupils with SEND from their first day of teaching. Schools need to provide support and training. This is a special episode, it is our first birthday! We are a year old!!! I would like to thank everyone who has been involved with the SEND...
Mar 11, 2021•50 min•Ep. 47
In this week's podcast, Dale Pickles from B Squared is joined by Lana Grant to discuss supporting mental health in primary aged children. There has been a history of a lack of support for children's mental health. It needs to change. Lana has a diagnosis of Asperger syndrome and is also a parent of children on the autism spectrum Lana is a specialist SEN advisor and an advocate for SEN children and their families. Lana has worked Lara's first book "From Here To Maternity, pregnancy and motherhoo...
Mar 04, 2021•1 hr 13 min•Ep. 46
On this week's show Dale welcomes back Dr. Tina Rae. Tina is a consultant psychologist with over 30 year's experience working with children, adults and families. Dale and Tina discuss self harm, how we can understand and support our children and young people. Self-harm is an area of concern for all of us who support CYP in order to foster well-being and mental health. There are many myths and general misunderstandings about this topic so it is essential given the current pandemic and increased l...
Feb 25, 2021•1 hr 14 min•Ep. 45
This week's show is all about neurodiversity. What does it mean, is it a positive term or is it a negative term. Our guest is Fintan O'Regan, Fintan is a trainer and consultant for schools and school support systems including, Social Services, Health, the Police and Foster carers. He supports them by providing behaviour management strategies for children and families struggling with SEND and behaviour issues. Before this he has worked with a number of organisations including NASEN, Institute of ...
Feb 18, 2021•1 hr•Ep. 44
In this episode we are talking about the role of the Governing Board in relation to SEND with Kate Browning. Kate is an independent SEND Consultant who focuses on school improvement for SEND. She has been a SENCo, SEN advisory teacher, local authority school improvement officer for SEND and interim Education Development Officer for NASEN. She teaches the NASENCo course for the university of Northampton and lectures for the university of Warwick on their PGCE programme. In her spare time Kate fac...
Feb 11, 2021•1 hr 11 min•Ep. 43
In this episode Dale is joined by Alison Knowles to discuss breaking down limiting beliefs and how you can take control rather than be controlled by your emotions. Alison is an emotional therapist. This does not mean that she often cries during therapy. She supports emotional resilience. In this episode we are talking about the reality you created and the impact this has on you. Useful Links https://www.facebook.com/OllieandhisSuperPowers https://twitter.com/bemoreollie https://www.youtube.com/c...
Feb 04, 2021•49 min•Ep. 42
This week's podcast is discussing High Quality Teaching and how to ensure all children have access. Our guest is Natalie Packer, an independent education consultant, specialising in SEND and school improvement. Natalie develops and delivers a wide range of training and support to schools, multi-academy trusts and other organisations. She is a member of Nasen's 0-11 Advisory Group, and also supports the Whole School SEND review process. On top of this and being a Governor and Trustee Natalie has ...
Jan 28, 2021•54 min•Ep. 41
Joining Dale today is Lana Grant. Lana has a diagnosis of Asperger syndrome and is also a parent of children on the autism spectrum Lana is a specialist SEN advisor and an advocate for SEN children and their families. Lana's first book "From Here To Maternity, pregnancy and motherhood on the Autism Spectrum" was published in 2015. Lana also contributes to various articles, podcasts and delivers talks at various shows and events. She definitely outranks Dale when it comes to discussing autism. Th...
Jan 21, 2021•58 min•Ep. 40
