Welcome to Mylor!

     

Our Class:

Mylor is one of two Key Stage 3 classes based at our Upper School site and is made up of an enthusiastic, inquisitive, friendly, and sociable group of pupils who all enjoy the challenge and excitement of learning!  A class team consisting of dedicated, experienced, and knowledgeable teaching assistants support the pupils learning in class, led by Mylor’s teachers Sue Durrant (Monday to Thursday) and Jenna Leonard (Friday). The class team liaise and work closely with outside agency professionals who set personalised targets to further support the pupils' learning, communication, and physical needs. These include Physiotherapists, Occupational Therapists, Speech & Language Therapists, CAACAT and the Hearing Support team and are supported by the school’s Specialist Intervention Team.  Mylor class enjoys and embraces the opportunities that they have to participate in activities on and off site! They love nothing more than an outing on the mini-bus!  In Mylor class we pride ourselves on having high expectations for all our pupils, regarding their behaviour, independence and their learning.

  

Our Curriculum:

Our curriculum in Key Stage 3, is planned around a themed, termly topic-based approach to the National Curriculum involving engaging and exciting topics. Each term, through topic-based activities, relevant key signs and key vocabulary are taught helping to develop and extend our repertoire of Makaton  signing and vocabulary. Each  session and subject taught is fully differentiated and targets are personalised to meet the learner’s individual needs and potential at an achievable yet challenging level. Activities are varied, as is the environment, and they are  delivered and enjoyed through a multi-sensory 'hands on, experiential’ approach, allowing pupils to experience the world around them whilst developing core numeracy, literacy, communication, and social skills. In Mylor Class we work hard to promote greater independence in all areas of learning and strive to further develop confidence with communication skills, social skills and each pupil’s health and wellbeing.  

Pupil’s sensory and physical needs are enjoyably met through termly swimming sessions and weekly dance, yoga, music therapy and physical development sessions.  Supporting our curriculum, we use targets for core subject areas from our SPT Curriculum Assessment tool and short-term targets are taken from each pupil’s EHCP outcomes. These targets are broken down to create bespoke, individualised targets that ensure that pupil progress encompasses all areas of their development. Independence and effective communication skills are key areas that we focus upon to prepare our pupils as they transition through school and into the wider world.

       

Reading in Mylor Class

Reading is at the heart of the curriculum in Mylor class, and every opportunity to practice and apply our reading skills is exploited.  We have a daily phonics practice session, ‘Letter of the Day’ and also opportunities throughout the week with more focused individually targeted 1:1 sessions to consolidate previous learning, assess and to introduce new learning.  We love the structure and repetition within these sessions and are always very proud of the sounds, letters and words that we are able to read and write. 

The reading abilities of the pupils in Mylor Class range from sensory level learners, emergent readers and conventional readers. Pupils within the Conventional level will access our formal phonics scheme, the Phonics for Pupils with Special Educational Needs reading scheme (PPSEN). We also have some ‘fluent readers’ who are working on focused skill areas e.g.  inference and comprehension. We also use the online non-fiction Rocker Box Reading Platform which offers texts and articles differentiated to broaden pupils’ knowledge of non-fiction texts that cover timely happenings all around the world.

Each week, pupils are assigned a reading book which is appropriate to their phonics level but they also have the opportunity and are encouraged to choose a book or reading material to share at home and at school from our class bookcase or the library.  We promote their reading skills by developing their knowledge and understanding of the purpose and function of texts, story sequencing, introduction of new vocabulary, use of imagination, inference and comprehension skills. Pupils are all encouraged to read, recognise and use signs and symbols within the environment. Books, stories and non-fiction texts are used to support cross curricular learning and enhance topics and themes.  In Mylor class we all love a good book, and when we find one that really captures our imagination the teaching team will find ways to build this into our learning to keep us interested and engaged. Strategies include the use of sensory stories, puppets, music, movement and role play. 

Within KS3 we recognise that it is important that students start to take a keen role in understanding their environment in a more functional way.  They work on their reading skills in a variety of practical ways e.g. following simple recipes, understanding signs and symbols in their community and using their developing reading skills to promote independence through class jobs like writing the snack shopping lists, etc. 

Mylor Classes favourite author is Julia Donaldson and they love all of her stories, however they are always open to listening to new and different story texts.  They enjoy weekly timetabled library visits where they are able to extend experience of books and texts and love to use the systems in place to develop choice making skills. 

                         

Learning Environment:

We love the challenge of learning and the experience of learning  both in our vibrant classroom and in the areas around Upper School. We all love the outdoors, rain or shine and all the benefits that are associated with fresh air, nature and the outdoor environment.  At Curnow Upper School we are very lucky that we can access a range of learning environments which support and vary our learning opportunities. These include: outdoor play areas, a gardening allotment, a sensory room, a movement room, water skills pool, trampoline, large outdoor equipment, teaching kitchen, library and the school hall.  We can also visit the Lower School site where we can access additional outdoor learning spaces, including the Wild Woods and Jungle Gym trail. Additionally, we also participate in activities within the local community including swimming at Carn Brea Leisure Centre.

Getting ‘out and about’ in the local environment, socialising and making new friends are activities that we all favour, benefit from and really, really enjoy!

                                          

The pupils in Mylor Class are a joy to teach and they are a real credit to Curnow School. The close friendships that Mylor’s pupils develop with each other and their increasing level of independence and progress that they all make is inspirational and is very rewarding to witness!