Language Unit Classes

Staffing of Language Centre

The Head Teacher of West Primary has overall management responsibility for the Language Centre (Mrs Lynn Ferguson)
The Principal teacher has responsibility for the day to day management of the centre (Mrs Jacqueline Carberry)
Two Class teachers (Ms Linda Fisher-Dougan, Mrs Jackie Dokter)
Additional Support Needs Assistant (Miss Margaret McInally)
Nursery officer (Mrs Alison Johnston)
Educational Psychologist (Miss Elizabeth Bryson)
Speech and Language Therapist (Mrs Grace Christie)
Speech and Language Therapy Support worker (Mrs Alison Tominey)

Purpose of Unit

Provide specialised teaching for children with Specific Language Impairment
Intensive speech and language therapy
Psychological assessment of children and advice
Provide 12 part time places for children with Specific Language Impairment (SLI)
Support at unit enables children to access the curriculum more effectively in their mainstream primary
Advice to staff in mainstream schools working with the children attending the unit
Provide an environment where children can develop social skills and a positive self image

Aims of Unit

To provide support to primary aged children with Specific Language Impairment (SLI)
To develop language skills and teach children strategies to deal with areas of difficulty
To provide integrated speech and language therapy
To encourage the children to become independent and motivated learners
To develop social skills
To return pupils to full-time mainstream placements as soon as possible

Unit Placements

Pupils should be firmly established in their mainstream school.
Initially pupils attend for a 6/8 week assessment block on a part time basis. During this time the language centre team work with the pupil and assess their needs and suitability for further input. After 6/8 weeks a meeting is held to discuss findings and strategies.
Pupils offered a place will attend on a part-time either in the morning or afternoon class sessions Monday to Thursday this enables them to maintain relationships within their own communities while benefiting from the specialist and small group setting of the unit.
Places offered to pupils are reviewed regularly in terms of impact and effectiveness.
An Individualised Education Programme (IEP) is developed for each pupil to develop language skills at the language unit and shared with pupil, parents and mainstream school
Every effort is made to encourage the pupils to identify with their mainstream school – take part in class/school outings, performances, parties, open days, events etc.
Pupils should return to mainstream as soon as possible but definitely by the end of primary 6.

Unit Classes

The morning (AM) class is predominantly made up of children from primaries 2 and 3 who attend Monday to Thursday mornings
The afternoon (PM) class is predominately made up of pupils from primaries 4 and 5 who attended Monday to Thursday afternoons. Primary 6 pupils remain at the language centre only if it is felt be the team that the pupil is still making progress and work being targeted is still having a positive impact on the pupils’ difficulties.
The unit classes remain at their own schools on a Friday.
Included as part of the class/school/community activities
Have a whole day in their mainstream school which gives them opportunities to extend their social situations and put into place the strategies being developed and worked on at the language unit.

Referral Criteria for Unit

Pupils will;
Have specific language difficulties which are significantly interfering with their ability to access the mainstream curriculum
Be within the average range of ability(from school observations, Psychologists report/information)
Be able to benefit from a significant part of their education being delivered in a mainstream environment
Have a level of behaviour which can be effectively managed within the resources of the unit.
Have seen a speech and language therapist – currently seeing and receiving therapy or seen a therapist in the past and been discharged.
(If the pupil has been discharged and is allocated a placement in the unit then a speech and language therapy referral form will be required to be completed by pupil’s mainstream school)

Specific Language Impairment

The language of a child with SLI does not follow a normal pattern of development – language skills are disordered.

Specific Language Impairment is a specific difficulty in the area of language (receptive and/or expressive) that is not caused by another disorder or impairment such as:
ASD
Physical Impairment
Learning difficulty
Hearing Impairment

May show up in children in different ways. Problems may be obvious like difficulties in understanding and replying to questions or understanding spoken language and expressing thoughts and ideas in a coherent manner. Less obvious problems occur when children cannot follow a sequence of instructions, have gaps in their verbal concepts, have difficulty retrieving a specific word they want to say. These difficulties impact on the development of all curricular areas but especially literacy, maths and social skills.
Child has significantly weaker skills in language then in other areas of cognitive development.

Language Unit Morning Class (AM) Priorities

To develop attention and listening skills
To extend use of language for conversation and discussion
To develop understanding of spoken language (Receptive Language/Grammar)
To develop understanding of more complex instructions and questions
To develop understanding of linguistic concepts (before/after/if/next)
To develop expressive language (organising and sequencing thoughts and ideas)
To develop vocabulary and word knowledge
To teach strategies for word finding and auditory memory difficulties
To develop and promote the use of phonological skills
To provide an appropriate programme to support reading and comprehension skills
To develop the language associated with maths including maths terms and concepts of position, shape and measurement.
To develop strategies for specific language difficulties identified for each child and outlined in Individual Education Programme

Language Unit –Morning Class (AM) Needs to be met within mainstream school

To reinforce the skills being targeted and developed at the Language Centre in the afternoon session through class activities whenever possible.
To develop vocabulary and concepts related to the general classroom/school and interdisciplinary learning contexts
Appropriate programme to develop reading and comprehension skills related to interdisciplinary learning contexts
Appropriate programme for the skills development in Mathematics
Appropriate programme for the skills development in Religious and Moral Education
Appropriate programme for the skills development in Science, Social Studies, Expressive Arts and Technologies.
Appropriate programme for the skills development in Health and Wellbeing (including physical education)
A programme for the development of skills in Literacy and English– Writing Programme (e.g. Big writing), Handwriting Programme, Spelling Programme
Support and maintain confidence and a positive self image of the child
Provide opportunities for the child to maintain and build friendships
Support opportunities for inclusion within own class, school and community

Language Unit- Afternoon Class (PM) Priorities

To develop attention and listening skills
To extend use of language for conversation and discussion
To develop understanding of spoken language (Receptive Language/Grammar)
To develop understanding of more complex instructions and questions
To develop understanding of linguistic concepts (before/after/if/next)
To develop expressive language (organising and sequencing thoughts and ideas)
To develop vocabulary and word knowledge through the context of a topic
To teach strategies for word finding and auditory memory difficulties
To reinforce the use of phonological skills
To reinforce reading and comprehension skills through the context of a topic
To provide opportunities for context based writing (expressive writing/poetry/persuasive writing/factual writing)
To develop the language associated with maths through the context of the topic (sequencing and ordering/time concepts)
To develop strategies for specific language difficulties identified for each child and outlined in Individual Education Programme
To develop health and wellbeing skills such as aspects of emotional health and turn taking and negotiating
To provide one session per week of each of the following areas through the context of the topic;
- science/technology
- drama/movement
- art and design

Language Unit –Afternoon Class (PM) Needs to be met within mainstream school

To reinforce the skills being targeted and developed at the Language Centre through class activities whenever possible.
To develop vocabulary and concepts related to the general classroom/school and interdisciplinary learning contexts
Appropriate programme for the skills development in Mathematics
Appropriate programme for the skills development in Religious and Moral Education
Appropriate programme for the skills development in Science, Social Studies, Expressive Arts and Technologies where possible.
Appropriate programme for the skills development in Health and Wellbeing (including physical education)
A programme for the development of skills in Literacy and English– Writing Programme (e.g. Big writing), Handwriting Programme, Spelling Programme, Reading and comprehension scheme, Grammar programme (e.g. Jolly Grammar/Nelson Grammar), Phonics programme.
Support and maintain confidence and a positive self image of the child
Provide opportunities for the child to maintain and build friendships
Support opportunities for inclusion within own class, school and community

West Primary School