PRIMARY NEWS
Mable Therapy launches tool to screen early years children for SLCN
Mable Therapy has launched a new tool designed to help
schools identify children at risk of developing Speech, Language, and Communication Needs (SLCN) – the Mable Early Language and Communication Screener (MELCS). MELCS automatically
assesses reception-aged children (4-5 years old) on critical language development areas such as phonological processing, memory, and expressive language skills. Children are assessed on a range of core differentiators, including non-word repetition, sentence repetition, and grammar comprehension, enabling the MELCS to provide educators with a comprehensive overview of each child’s capabilities. With a simple interface, which clearly flags any problem areas for each child, MELCS enables teachers to accurately and rapidly assess and identify children who may require further intervention, without taking teachers away from full classroom management. Developed upon a strong foundation of evidence-based SLCN
research, MELCS not only highlights areas where each child may need additional support, but where required, provides next-step suggestions such as teacher-led intervention and therapy referral. MELCS has been designed to integrate seamlessly into a school’s existing educational framework, making it a practical solution for early detection and intervention.
Martha Currie, Clinical Director and co-founder of Mable Therapy comments: “Language skills change the way a child experiences not only school but their entire life. It influences academic attainment, social connection, and personal confidence, yet research suggests that a growing number of children are struggling with communication skills. Schools are perfectly placed to identify children who may require additional SLCN support, but they currently lack the tools they need to do this consistently. MELCS has been designed to address that problem.”
MELCS has already been trialled by The Kemnals Academy Trust (TKAT). TKAT Director of Primary Education, Gianni Bianchi, said: “It has been really positive to work with Mable Therapy on piloting this scheme, and we are now implementing it in all 29 of our primary schools across London and the South and East of England. It’s great to have an efficient and effective speech and language screener that produces succinct reports for our school teams to use with children to help them progress.”
Final push for Asda’s Cashpot for Schools to raise primary
school funds Asda’s Cashpot for Schools initiative, fronted by Joe Wicks, has hit the landmark figure of £5.1 million raised for primary schools across the UK. With another two weeks left to go, and millions of pounds still available for schools to get their hands on, teachers and PTA’s across the country are urging Asda shoppers to sign up.
The industry-first campaign sees the retailer donate 0.5% of the value of its customers’ shopping to a primary school of their choice every time they shop using Asda Rewards – with £7.5 million up for grabs in total. Signing up for the initiative is easy with customers simply required to opt into Cashpot for Schools in the app and select their school of choice. As well as encouraging parents to sign up, schools are encouraging their entire community to support them as the initiative is open to all.
An incredible 98% of the 22,000 state-funded primary schools in the UK have signed up to date. 42 schools already have over £1,000 of funding in their cashpots and over 2,000 are boasting cashpots over £500. This cash will go direct to schools for them to spend on whatever they need, to make a genuine difference. The campaign comes on the back of research that some parents are asked to give up to £138 per year to support their children’s schools, with the most significantly underfunded needs being school trips (64 per cent), books and learning materials (52 per cent), and sports equipment (50 per cent). One of the highest school earners is Kilkeel Primary School in Northern Ireland who have a whopping £2,717.46 in their cashpot.
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www.education-today.co.uk
Chartwells launches educational video series on gut health
School and education catering company, Chartwells, has launched the latest instalment in its ‘Spotlight Session’ digital learning series, this time focused on gut health. Starring former
CBeebies presenter Katy Ashworth, the free educational videos and resources are designed for teachers to use in the classroom to educate and empower Key Stage 2 pupils to make positive choices on food and nutrition. The three-part, curriculum-linked video series teaches pupils engaging lessons on food preparation, digestion, and how to improve gut health by eating high fibre foods such as fruits, vegetables, and wholegrains. The Spotlight Session videos see Katy Ashworth, in collaboration with Chartwells’ Senior Nutritionist, Marnie George, make gut health education fun and accessible for children. Each video is supported by lesson plans, practical activities, worksheets, and quizzes, which teachers can download and use for free in the classroom.
Katy Ashworth comments: “Early education on health and nutrition is essential for setting children up with positive outlooks on food. This new Spotlight Session, developed in partnership with Chartwells, delivers fun, accessible lessons on how to take care of your gut. “Pupils will go on an engaging journey through the digestive system throughout a series of three videos, with supporting lesson plans, experiments and quizzes – providing hours of fun learning for children, packaged up in a way that’s easy for teachers to deliver. The sessions will inspire a real love of healthy food and ignite pupils’ passions for protecting their physical and mental health.”
Spotlight Sessions are an extension of Beyond the Chartwells Kitchen, a free, collaborative service for Chartwells’ partner schools. Working together with pupils, parents, and teachers, Chartwells delivers in-school workshops to teach children of all ages essential lessons on food, nutrition, wellbeing, and sustainability – including practical lessons on cooking. The Spotlight Session videos, along with lesson plans, practical activities, worksheets and quizzes, can be downloaded for free on Chartwells’ website.
December 2024
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