Pre-Formal Curriculum
Our Pre-Formal curriculum meets need via a personalised approach. Its focus is on early communication and social and emotional and cognitive skills as the foundation of learning. It recognises the importance of movement and play in a child’s development and the need for sensory and multi-sensory approaches to learning.
Total Communication
The pre-formal classroom is a total communication classroom, designed for each child to thrive in their preferred method of communication:
Verbally ~ Makaton ~ Picture exchange ~ Augmentative & Alternative Communication (AAC) devices.
The 4 I’s
We use the four I's to follow our learners’ lead and best support their linguistic level:
Include- using learners’ interests
Imitate- playing/exploring alongside learners, copying their play
Interpretative- using words or phrases, verbal, signed, symbols to give language to what they are doing
Intrude- joining in with what learners are doing
We work closely with Speech and Language Therapists to create and follow tailored care plans, create language rich provision and design activities that promote communication.
Topics and Lessons
Pre-Formal follow the same topics as Semi-Formal, allowing these groups to access some of the same resources for specific areas of the curriculum and interact with different classes to build strong relationships with others, e.g., the hydrotherapy pool, music therapy, sensory room and some of the continuous provision activities.
Lesson objectives come from:
• Cherry Garden Branches 1-4
• Learners’ Education Health Care Plan (EHCP) milestones, broken down into SMART targets
• Other individual targets from physiotherapy, occupational and speech therapy programmes.
• We work to bespoke timetables, allowing health and care plans to be seamlessly incorporated into our learners’ day.
The Engagement Pathway
The ‘Engagement’ Curriculum is a multi-sensory approach, through repetition of personalised activities and experiences, i.e., morning routines, TacPac, sensory stories, rebound therapy and personalised sensory programmes.
Teaching is shaped by learners’ interests, how they engage, responses to learning, and what skills they need to become as independent and involved within their community as much as possible.
Activities incorporate elements from a range of curriculum areas, e.g., a sensory story session might focus on ‘My Communication’, but will also include work on motor skills, social skills and sensory cognitive skills. We look to teach key skills in every lesson, developing learning for life with the use of an immersive, motivating cross curricular curriculum.
5 Areas of Engagement
Based upon The Engagement Model, the 5 areas of engagement are:
• Initiation
• Persistence
• Exploration
• Anticipation
• Realisation
These areas are not hierarchical; there is no expectation to demonstrate progress in all fiveof them, but should be seen as the scaffolding which enables learners to develop new skills and their understanding of different concepts.
It is important for class teachers to build a multi layered picture of what each child needs and the intended impact of the curriculum long term. However, short term / daily planning is essential for all staff to know the purpose of the session with an individual child and have the ability to record and celebrate progress, often in small, lateral steps.
Learners on the Engagement pathway are continuously challenged in every area of their development, those with success in specific and discreet areas of the curriculum, that surpass Cherry Garden branches 1-4, would be expected to follow a similar approach to learners on the yellow pathway, but at an appropriate pace, in particular for core subject areas, e.g., where appropriate for them, a learner would be taught phonics daily.
