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Introduction to DS

This session will introduce Down syndrome to people who have little experience of working with children and young people who have Down syndrome. It will cover society’s view of Down syndrome, health implications, inclusion, the specific learning profile of people with Down syndrome and strengths and weaknesses in the classroom; outlining ways to ensure your teaching meets their learning needs. Promoting positive behaviour and managing behaviours will also be discussed. Vital training for all involved in the education, inclusion and development of a person with Down syndrome.

Signing and DS

Session 1 will cover why we use signing with children with Down syndrome and the signs for manners, animals, food, family and other people, and the alphabet.
Session 2 will cover signs for the home, school day, colours, descriptions, time/days, questions and connective/link words. Followed by a discussion on how behaviour can be addressed through introducing signing.
Both sessions will include practice of useful phrases and familiar children’s songs. A book “Signing and Down syndrome”, covering the signs in this course, £7.

Teaching basic number skills

Basic number skills are vital to enable everyday social inclusion and independence. The training will commence with an overview of the learning profile of a child with Down syndrome; exploring working memory and how this impacts on learning numbers. It will detail how children learn basic number skills – recognising numbers, saying number names, counting to find ‘how many?’ and early hands on addition. It will explore the challenges faced by children who have Down syndrome and other learning disabilities and demonstrate how the use of Numicon as a visual representation of number can help to overcome these difficulties and lead to increased understanding and confidence.

Let's make it visual

The morning will cover why the written word is used as a visual tool to develop language skills. Methods to develop clarity of speech, grammar, vocabulary, and lengthen sentence utterance will be discussed and  illustrated.It will also detail visual timetables, conversation diaries and ideas to develop reading, writing and spelling skills.

Beyond 10, time and money

In the morning we will look in detail at tackling number skills beyond 10:
Rote counting in 10s, 5s, 2s, teens and counting through decades up to 100
Recognising 2 and 3 digit numbers, place value and order
Counting to find how many – beyond 10
Adding up and taking away – methods to succeed
Fractions, multiplication, division and using calculators

After lunch we will tackle time and money

Time: This workshop will equip participants with a
structured programme of activities and resources,
developed and written by Wendy Uttley, to help them teach the passage of time and then how, step by step, to teach a child how to tell the time.

Money: We will detail a programme written by Wendy Uttley which consists of 120 finely graded activities to help teach a person with Down syndrome or other learning disability to understand and use money. From the early stages of learning the names for the coins to working with pounds and pence this programme is suitable to use with a child from approximately 5 years of age.  

Reading Language Intervention

The RLI programme detailed in a teacher’s handbook and DVD developed and produced by Down Syndrome Education International, provides a systematic structured approach via daily activities that can be finely adapted to each child. The training days will cover the theory behind the programme, how to assess a child to find a starting point, how to monitor and record progress and how to deliver the daily intervention with examples from, and reference to, the teacher’s handbook and DVD.

The RLI programme comprises of two strands of intervention; a reading strand and a language strand. The aim of the RLI programme is to:                                             Improve spoken language and literacy skills of children with Down syndrome.         Improve teaching practice and support educators.

We have for a long time known reading is a strength for children with Downsyndrome but not all educators are aware of this or how to ensure the children reach their full reading potential.

The inclusion of children with DS - expectations of behaviour (ZOOM)

By considering the learning profile of a child with Down syndrome and looking at areas of need this course will aim to address areas where difficult behaviours may develop. It will look at expectations, appropriate behaviour, including self help skills and go on to outline positive strategies by focusing on wanted behaviour.

ME: my body, my friends, my life workshop                         How to teach children & young people with Down syndrome about their bodies, keeping safe, privacy, social boundaries and self help skills.The course will cover·                         How important such training is for young people with learning disabilities. Names for body parts. Privacy.                                                                                                Puberty for girls, puberty for boys,                                                                Feelings, personal hygiene, self help skills.·                                                Touching, hugging, affection, friendships.                                                          Safety in the community. Assertiveness. Abuse prevention strategies. How do we become our own protector?

Toilet training and DS workshop

Do you need help toilet training your child?

Whether it be a young child just starting or an older child who still needs to develop skills  towards independent toileting you are welcome to join us. Sessions will run over three weeks and cover how the bladder develops, skills needed to use the toilet, tips on toilet training, constipation, day and night time wetting and set targets for each child. There will also be opportunities to support each other, share ideas and resources and monitor progress.

six week behaviour workshop

The course will cover an overview of the learning profile of a child with Downsyndrome looking at how difficult behaviours may develop. Parents will then be encouraged to focus on a specific behaviour they wish to modify and we will discuss methods and ideas to modify the behaviour. Support staff working with the child are welcome to come along and be involved in the session in a bid to provide a consistent approach.       

Each week opportunities will be offered to discuss progress and learn from each other. Please note that this course is primarily for parents.        

Sleep and DS workshop

Drawing on the research by Michael Farquhar the workshop will start by discussing sleep and the difficulties that can be experienced with settling and sleeping through the night. It will then offer the opportunity to share experiences and aim to set action plans to help improve settling, staying in your own bed, and sleeping through the night.