GESHER OPEN DAY UPDATE

2nd March 2023Website Admin

Hey everyone!

Just wanted to give you all a quick update about the Gesher School Open Day that was supposed to be happening in March. Unfortunately, we’ve had to postpone it until October for some unforeseen reasons. We know some of you were looking forward to it, but we hope you can bear with us on this one.

The good news is that we’re still going to have an amazing Open Day in October and we’re going to make sure it’s even better than we originally planned. We’re excited to show you what Gesher School has to offer and we hope to see you all there!

Thanks for your understanding and we’ll keep you posted on the details for the October event.

Cheers,

The Gesher School Team

Myths and Stereotypes about ADHD

31st January 2023Website Admin

Myths and Stereotypes about ADHD

There are many myths and stereotypes when it comes to ADHD. Even the name is misleading. People tend to think of ADHD as having a lack of attention but in fact they do not have a deficiency in attention, but an abundance of it! The difficulty is in not being able to control this attention. (https://mashable.com/article/what-is-adhd-myths-stigma)

It is important to acknowledge and fully understand the difficulties faced so that the necessary supports and accommodations can be in place but we must also recognise the strengths that having a neurodivergent brain offers.

Here is one ADHDer’s personal story of success – Jessica Mccabe has her own YouTube ADHD channel. Click on the link to hear her story.

Failing at normal – one person’s success story

ADHD and Autism

Research suggests that 50-70% of autistic people are also ADHD. There are characteristics that overlap but also that often contradict each other. 

Websites

https://www.additudemag.com/

https://chadd.org/

https://www.understood.org/

https://adhdgirls.co.uk/

Top Tips for Dyslexia-friendly Learning Environments

31st January 2023Website Admin

Top Tips for Dyslexia-friendly Learning Environments

  1. Backgrounds – Change your smartboard backgrounds and/or font colour to another colour to make it easier for everyone. If you have a child who already has a preference, use that, otherwise, opt for a whole school colour. Light blue is a popular choice. 
  2. Books and overlays – Some pupils may find it easier to write in books with coloured backgrounds and have a coloured overlay. 
  3. Dyslexic-friendly fonts – There are fonts specifically designed for dyslexia that everyone can read. https://opendyslexic.org/. Alternatives are Ariel, Comic Sans, Verdana, Century Gothic, Tahoma, and Calibri. 
  4. Visuals – All children benefit from visual processing. It improves retention and supports retrieval. We do this well and know to use a range of visuals.  
  5. Graphic organisers – Graphic organisers are fantastic to support learners’ thinking, processing, understanding and organisation. This includes using writing frames, but also mind maps and flow diagrams.  

Try this link for older students where you can sign up for free https://www.mindomo.com/ or to create simple to more complex ones for all students: https://www.canva.com/graphic-organizers/templates/

  1. Speaking – ensure we are breaking down information into smaller chunks.  
  2. Don’t ‘pick’ on them to read – This can be seriously demotivating and traumatic in a whole class situation and may be detrimental to their reading progress. They can read to you on their own or with a trusted peer at any time.
  3. The usual strategies – Such as natural brain breaks to avoid cognitive overload, memory aids such as word mats, a clear line of sight to the teacher and a seat close to the front to aid non-verbal communication.
  4. Mark positively – Start with what they can do and build on that. You don’t want to stifle amazing ideas on account of worrying about grammar and punctuation.
  5. Spelling – if students can’t spell a word, spell it aloud for them, and at the same time, write it on the board – provide key spellings for them to refer to. You can also use the RWI sound board so students can ‘try out’ spellings with alternative phonemes (ee, ea, etc). If using the computer, having the spelling and grammar aids on is good! 
  6. Limit the copying they have to do – give them copies of the learning that they can have in front of them and present with appropriate fonts, backgrounds and sizing in manageable chunks. 
  7. Technology – Explore advances in technology with your dyslexic learners. Is there a use for a reading pen, a smartpen or some text-to-speech software? Microsoft accessibility has many free features to explore. When using chrome books or iPads, there is accessibility software available with fantastic programmes such as ‘Immersive Reader’. 

Pupils with dyslexia also have skills such as a strong memory for stories, a wonderful imagination, great spatial reasoning and can think outside the box! You can find more details at Dyslexia Help.

Therapy Corner: Listening to My Body

27th January 2023Website Admin

Listening to my body: A brief guide to understanding the connection between sensations and feelings

Emotions aren’t only felt in the mind. Our bodies react to our environments just like our brains do, and it can be helpful to connect emotions with body sensations so we can better understand what’s going on within us. 

What is Sensation?

Sensation refers to the process in which information is taken and interpreted by the human brain. In order to take in information, the human body is equipped with five senses, which we are taught from childhood: sight, smell, taste, touch, and hearing. Even from a young age, we know to “use our senses” to investigate, enjoy and experience the world around us. 

What is Feeling?

Feelings can be understood as mental experiences of body states. Feelings can be of such diversity ranging from love, happiness, contentment to anger, bitterness and even rage. They alert us as to how we feel. If a person is feeling depressed, this feeling makes us aware of our situation. Feelings are connected to so many aspects such as our emotions, thoughts, moods and even sensations. Psychologists believe that feelings are often very subjective. They can be influenced by the memories, personal experiences, and beliefs that people have.

Learning How to Connect Emotions and Body Sensations

By teaching students that emotions are more than abstract concepts and can be perceived as concrete bodily experience, it can help them connect with their body and emotions more confidently. By practising identifying and naming what they are experiencing, they can better figure out what they need.

Below are a few strategies and activities intended on helping children develop an awareness of what their bodies are telling them. A list of sensations and feeling words is also provided below to give students the language to describe what they are experiencing. 

I recommend reading the book with your child: Listening to my body: A brief guide to understanding the connection between sensations and feelings by Gabi Garcia, from which some of the information and inspiration in this article is taken. 

1) There are many different ways you can continue to support your child to “listen” to their body. You can: 

  • Build a vocabulary of sensation words. Start with one from the list and build from there.
  • Help them connect their sensations and feelings. When they identify a feeling, you can ask questions like “How does your body tell you that you are happy, excited, angry, etc…?” or “Where in your body do you notice the calm, sad, nervous, etc. feeling?”
  • Model the process of “listening” to your body and showing care and kindness for yourself. 

2) Body scan intervention:

3) Below are a list of sensations that may be helpful to practise identifying and naming what they are experiencing:

4) Below are a list of feeling words that may be helpful to practise identifying and naming what they are experiencing:

References:

Books:

  • Listening to my body: A brief guide to understanding the connection between sensations and feelings by Gabi Garcia

Websites: 

  • What are Emotions, Feelings and Sensations? Composite or Hierarchical models? (https://emotionallyvague.wordpress.com/2014/10/23/what-are-emotions-feelings-and-sensations-composite-or-hierarchical-models/)

  • 100 Art Therapy Ideas and Prompts (https://www.alternativetomeds.com/blog/art-therapy-ideas/)

  • Learning How to Connect Emotions and Body Sensations (https://www.hope-wellness.com/blog/learning-how-to-connect-emotions-and-body-sensations)

  • Difference Between Sensation and Feeling (https://www.differencebetween.com/difference-between-sensation-and-vs-feeling/)