Colour Blindness by @Sue_Cowley

Name: Sue Cowley
Twitter: @Sue_Cowley
Sector:  Secondary
Subject: All
Position: Parent of child who is colour blind
5 Bits of Advice About: Colour Blindness

1. Colour blindness affects 1 in 12 boys and 1 in 200 girls so there is likely to be a child with colour blindness in your class.
2. Don’t assume that the parents or the child will be aware that they are colour blind. The check is no longer a statutory part of the NHS test.
3. Use symbols alongside labels, particularly for younger children. For instance, a ‘red’ ‘fire engine’ to show the ‘red level’ reading books.
4. Consider how the resources you create may impact on children who have CVD. Red/green colour blindness is the most common form.
5. Follow @colourblindorg on Twitter. See also the Oct 2015 edition of ATL magazine.

Learning Through Play by @Sue_Cowley

Name: Sue Cowley
Twitter: @Sue_Cowley
Sector:  Early Years
Subject:
Position: Preschool Committee Member
5 Bits of Advice About: Learning through play

1. Play is often messy. Let parents know that their children’s clothes will probably get dirty and have plenty of spare clothes available.
2. Don’t immediately interrupt or intervene in children’s play – step back and watch for a while. Be sensitive to when and how your input might be most valuable for learning.
3. Use open rather than closed questions to help the children build their thinking while they are playing. Google ‘sustained shared thinking’ for a great approach to use.
4. Offer plenty of multi sensory resources for the children to play with. The setting environment can ‘enable’ lots of valuable learning for the 0-5 age group.
5. Try using ‘provocations’ to encourage thoughtful and imaginative play. For instance, how can the children rescue an animal trapped in a tree?