There are a number of key concepts within English. These concepts promote all pupils’ progress in speaking and listening, reading and writing:

Competence − communication through English in a range of contexts and using different modes

Creativity − making connections, creating new effects, using imagination and problem solving

Cultural understanding − gaining a sense of how ideas are portrayed differently in different texts and how English varies locally and globally

Critical understanding − engaging with ideas and how they are represented, exploring others’ ideas and developing their own ideas.

At Riverside we believe pupils should have the opportunity to develop all the concepts, regardless of their SEN or disability. However, we fully understand the need to approach these concepts differently with different groups of pupils. How we do this depends on the pupil’s age, their stage of development and their strengths.

Strategies in place to meet the needs of all pupils at Riverside include:

• setting suitable learning challenges
• modifying the curriculum to remove barriers so all pupils meet the same objectives.
• When appropriate we plan smaller steps to achieve the learning goal or provide additional resources.
• Use adults to support learning in and outside the classroom. 
• Ensure an inclusive learning environment for all. 
• Use multi sensory approaches including the use of ICT.