• Talk to your child’s teacher if you have a concern.  The teacher will be able to advise you about the nature and extent of the difficulty, what steps are being taken by the teacher to assist the child and how you can best help your child at home.  Many difficulties are part of the normal process of learning and development and can be managed as part of the daily classroom routine.
• Some children require a more formal level of support to address their particular learning needs.  These pupils will be offered some time each day in a small group setting with a support teacher.  Support teaching will be offered following a review of teacher observations, parental concerns and the results of school assessments in literacy and mathematics.
• A small number of children will have very specific needs which will require a more individual response.  To access these services, the child will need to have an educational assessment carried out by other professionals such as: psychologist, speech and language therapist, occupational therapist and child psychiatrist.  The school can then offer support teaching on a more intensive level (1:1 if necessary) and the provision of a special needs assistant.

Remember:

You are your child’s first teacher.
Stay in contact with your child’s teacher at school.
(Parent/Teacher meetings, Homework Journal or appointments).

There is someone at school who can advise you about support services for pupils with additional learning needs.