All Things Autism – Joanna Gibbs, Director Of SENsational Tutors

[Speaker 1] (0:00 - 5:26) Hello, this is Anna Kennedy, and we're talking All Things Autism. We're live in Covent Garden, and it's a humid day today, and apparently it's going to be a really, really hot week, so I'm really looking forward to that. What have I been up to? Well, I was at Pentland School at the weekend, where we had our Special Educational Needs Fun Day. We had hundreds of children coming. We're working in collaboration with Hillingdon Dads, which was Kevin and Linda, who briefly spoke on my radio station show a little while back. And I think it was a few weeks ago. So, yeah, it was a fantastic day. Lots of happy families, lots of siblings playing with their brothers and sisters, nobody judging them, enjoying ice creams, you name it. They enjoyed it. So that was just so lovely to see. So it's our second one, and we're going to be doing them every year in the summer. So the next event that we're going to be doing in collaboration with Hillingdon Dads is going to be the Christmas event. Christmas. I can't believe I'm talking about Christmas. Christmas will be here before you know it, and we have had such a fantastic event last year. That's why we're going to do it again this year. So my guest this week is Joanna Gibbs. Hello, Joanna. Hello. Thank you for having me. That's okay. And we met at the Autism Expo, which is our charity, Autism Expo. It's been four years now. We've been at Brunel University, and you were one of our speakers, and you also had a stand. Yes, that's right. So tell me a little bit about who is Joanna. So my name is Joanna Gibbs. I was born in Coventry. My dad is from North London, and my mum is from Holland. And so I started working as a behavior advisor and a speech and language therapist assistant for the NHS many, many years ago after that qualified teacher. And I'll tell my story further, but that's really where it's all started. Okay, so you have been working with children with special educational needs and disability. So why did you choose that field? Well, I was inspired very much by my dad and my mum. So my mum is a nurse. She was a nurse. She's retired now. And my dad has had been volunteering for over 25 years as the director of the Rotary International Disabled Sports Championships in Coventry, which is an annual event. So 25 years. And he really started that before I was born. Right. So every single year I would go and support him and just be exposed to these amazing, phenomenal people. You know, they'd be wheelchair, botcher. I'd be surrounded by people with disabilities. It was so inspiring. And I really took that. And I wanted to explore that further. When we first opened the school, the Rotary Club near where we live, they're very supportive and they did a fundraiser. And I did a speech and spoke to everyone. And a few of them came along to volunteer to help us with the school. So they're a fantastic organization. So if people are interested in them, they might need some support. They're definitely the people to go to because they're very supportive. Absolutely. So you're internationally renowned. So tell me about a few of the countries that you've worked in and what I'm interested in. Because when I'm up in the middle of the night, when I call it myself in the wider weight club, I like to talk to different parents from different countries to find out what's the special educational needs disability? What's it like in the country that you're living in? Are they very supportive? What's education like? What's care like? So I'll be interested to find out which countries did you work in, first of all. Yeah, well, I first worked in India. So that was following working for the NHS. I was working for the NHS for about two years, let's say, as a behavior advisor and a speech and language therapist assistant, working as a member of a multidisciplinary team. So I really gained an understanding of how people should be working together as a team, really targeting our amazing children with SCM. The key word is should. Should, I know. And that amazing collaboration that, again, should be happening. And that's really what we should be providing our families and our children. So after working for the NHS, I was so inspired. I loved that job so much that I wanted to save the world, essentially. So I went to India. So why India? So what made you think about going to India? Because for me, in my mindset, that is the country that I wanted to help. That's the country that seems so deprived and so vulnerable. And me, you know, I was early 20s and I thought, right, OK, I'm going to I'm going to deal with this. I'm going to take it on. And I'm going to really support those families and those children in India. OK. So how did you make contacts or were you working in a school? Yeah. So I was working in a slum school in northern India, again, through a charity, you know, there for quite a few months. I was the only teacher in the middle of the slums. Wow. So these children, they would come to me kind of ad hoc throughout the day. Most of them would be begging during the day. So they wouldn't have very much at all. So at the very basic level, I'd be teaching in the alphabet. OK. But really from that experience, working in India and from my other international experience, what I came away with is that children just want to have fun. Fundamentally, children want to have fun. And long story short, Sensational Tutors is really all about that. It's about inspiring children through learning to have fun. So going back a little bit to my international experience after India, I did come back. I did come back to the UK, came back to London and I worked for the American School of London, which again was an amazing experience, again, working within the international circuit, although it was. Is that in Hillington? That's in St. John's Wood. [Speaker 2] (5:27 - 5:27) Yeah. [Speaker 1] (5:28 - 6:53) And then after ASL, I went to South Korea. I was going to be there for two years. I ended up being there for three years. OK. So I was the head of learning support there. OK. Started my my matters in social emotional behavior difficulties on top of my qualified teacher status. Then I moved to Australia for a year, worked as a mental health support worker in an adolescent unit in a school there. Then I moved to Indonesia. I worked as a year three and year four teacher there, again, working with children with additional needs, but also with the added ESL. So the children that didn't have English as a first language, ESL. What is that? Because sometimes English. Yeah. So there's English as a second language. OK. A.L. English as an additional language. OK. But really, the overall concept is children need a different approach. You know, it needs to be creative. It needs to be hands on. It needs to be multisensory, whatever it is. It's about a teacher being really creative in their approach to supporting children and ensuring that it's fun. Because fundamentally, children want to have fun and combining fun and learning. That's really what it should be about. So with the different countries, we had a little chat before we came in the coffee bar. And I was I'm always interested to find out what is the support like for children with autism in the country. So you've been to quite a few countries. So what did you find that was good? And what did you find that, oh, do you know what it needs to be? [Speaker 2] (6:53 - 6:54) Yeah. [Speaker 1] (6:54 - 8:28) So South Korea really does ring alarm bells, let's say, because within the three years that I've been there, if we think about physical disabilities, I did not see one single person in a wheelchair, let alone any children with autism. I mean, there's no diagnosis at all. I was head of learning support there. And I was training a lot of the teachers throughout the whole of the country of South Korea to really get an understanding of how to assess. And understand children with special needs. OK. All right, then. So obviously, you've got international teaching experience and you've got the business that you're working currently doing the work in the UK. So talk to me a little bit about who are their families that come to you? Are you going into schools? How does it work? What's where's the need? Yeah. So I guess it's quite unfortunate that it's the parents that have the needs. It's the parents that have phoned me, often very distraught, saying the teachers don't understand my child isn't supported. And then I talk through the process and how we can support. So it's all about me talking to the parents saying, look, OK, these are your child's challenges. These are their needs. This is what we're able to provide to really support them and to boost their learning. Let's say learning potential, but it's also can be about communication and behavior as well. So what sort of age range are we looking at? So between the ages of four to twenty five, having said that again, it's completely dependent on needs as well. So I have a private student myself who's twenty eight. So again, and he's functioning at a very, very low level. So when you're going into schools, are they willing to listen? [Speaker 2] (8:28 - 8:29) Yeah, absolutely. [Speaker 1] (8:29 - 8:57) And that's really, really amazing. In the beginning of the business, I was a little bit concerned or worried. And I thought, you know, here's another professional trying to get involved. But actually, when it comes to the parents and it's us together and I'm quite forceful, let's say, in my vision of what the business is. And it is about collaboration and teamwork. And I present it as that to the parents and to the school. And the school are more than happy to accept working together as a team. That's great. [Speaker 2] (8:57 - 8:58) Yeah. [Speaker 1] (8:58 - 10:21) With reference to special educational needs, when you're going into schools, what I'd be interested in, because obviously I was part of the send crisis march that was going across London. And the cuts and teachers are worried about, you know, cuts that happening, head teachers, you know, having to juggle. You've got families that are worried about what's going to happen to the support for their child transport. There's all these different various elements. What are you noticing recently, would you say, when you're going into school? Yeah, I'm noticing the distress from both the parents, but also the teachers, to be honest, because the teachers, you know, are worried about the impact that the budget cuts have. It really stems from there and therefore the lack of training and the lack of understanding. And we shouldn't be blaming the teachers. The teachers wholeheartedly, I do believe, are trying their best. But there's so much red tape that they're trying to, you know, deal with themselves. Therefore, I think it's really important that the teachers understand the parents. The parents also do understand the teachers and we do work together. But it's, it's, yeah, it's quite alarming what is happening. But I think that support can be really beneficial and it is available. So if someone's interested in looking at your website, where would they look and what's the process? So the website is www.tensationalteachers.co.uk. So is that all located? So it's sensational. Then, yeah. Without the D. Yes. Sensational. [Speaker 2] (10:21 - 10:21) Yeah. [Speaker 1] (10:22 - 12:07) OK. Yeah. And what's the process? And so my contact details are on there and there's a contact page there. I think it says Contact Us. And then people can email me, phone me, organize a consultation with me on the phone as well. And really the process is that a parent will phone me, discuss in as much detail as possible what their child's challenges really are. And then I will develop a program and a package for them and match them to a specialist who can really support their child. Excuse me. How many specialists do you have on the books? It's about 60 at the moment and recruiting all the time, but only obviously the very, very best that we're looking at. OK. And is that in the London area? It's London, predominantly, but it's expanding really rapidly, which is exciting. So if someone's interested in and if they're a teacher and they might like to work with you, so where would they contact you? Well, first of all, they need to submit their CV, of course. Then I'd go through, look at the CV and then I'd invite them to an interview. Then I'd do another second interview. Third interview is doing an initial consultation with the family. So there's quite a few steps that somebody needs to take if they want to become a sensational tutor. OK. Well, we're going to a more depth about what you do in the next quarter. So if anyone's interested in finding out and might like to ask questions of Joanna, you can contact us through the charity website and we can pass messages on just to remind you. It's www.annaKennedyonline.com. And again, if you'd like to be one of my speakers, please contact me via the charity website and just send in your details and we'll see what we can do. Welcome to Women's Radio Station. 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I can't wait, 11 of my volunteers are travelling down on the train from Houston to St Ives. I hope we don't get chucked off the train because I know what it's like when all of us get together. We just have such a good time and then we're going to be preparing on Saturday for the show. So we've got performers that are from local area in St Ives and we've also got performers who are from as far as Ireland. We've also got Harvey Price, who's Katie Price's son, who's going to be performing for the first time on stage. So we're all very excited to see him and there's a possibility that we might have an exciting guest that will come along. But we're not sure yet until the actual evening. So if you're interested, please check out the charity website. We still have a few tickets left to sell. The doors open at 6.30. The show starts at 7.30 and it's at St Ives Theatre. So again, check out www.annakennedyonline.com. So Joanna, could you expand a little bit to me like, for example, some of the families that contact you? What sort of stories? What sort of backgrounds? Where do they start from? How do you support them? So it would be interesting to hear that. So a lot of the stories that you start from the parents phoning me saying, my child really isn't progressing in their learning. They don't enjoy learning and they're really not fulfilling their potential. And that's really where it starts with regards to the academics. It could be the behavior and it could be the communication or fine motor skills as well. And we'll try to provide a package that can combine everything. And so a number of the students, if they aren't enjoying learning, what we really create is a bespoke tailor-made learning program which uses their interests. So for example, it could be unicorn or Legos or football. And whatever they are interested in, we will integrate that into the session. So it's really about combining the national curriculum standards, which can seem pretty boring, and combining that with what they're interested in. So for example, unicorns or football or even Lego or shaving foam and things. So talk me through something that you might do with a child that finds a particular subject difficult. So for example, there was a gorgeous girl called Elizabeth. So Elizabeth was in, or she is in, year one. And so year one is a really, really important year when it comes to phonics. So Elizabeth really didn't enjoy writing. She didn't enjoy reading, but she did love unicorns. So what we created with her was a unicorn puzzle, a unicorn jigsaw puzzle. And it was simply laminating two pictures of the unicorns and drawing and writing, sorry, writing phonics sounds onto the unicorns and cutting it out into a puzzle and then simply putting the puzzle pieces together and discussing the sounds on every single puzzle piece and then matching them. Which was amazing, was also really amazing for her fine motor skills as well and just for her processing and for her memory. The next idea we created for a boy called Raphael. So Raphael has ADHD and autism. He loves football. So for some reason, most of my students love Arsenal football. I don't know where that came from. But what we have introduced with him is multiplication football. So what we've done and he has a football goal in his garden. And we created a dribbling game whereby there'll be a question and answer and a question and answer and a question and answer. So he'll dribble from the question. So for example, one times five and he'll find the answer five and then he'll find two times five and then the answer and it goes on. And then at the end of the garden, there'll be his goal. And then he can really kick the ball really, really hard into the goal. And it's kind of a celebration of him having learnt counting in fives or the five times table. Plus it's about his enjoyment using football. So it's a celebration of really his success. I was also supporting a lovely boy called Sam. Again, he really had difficulties with his phonics and also his spelling. So lots of children when they're in primary year will have a spelling test every Friday. And a lot of the teachers will ask students to learn through sight or just through repetition, which again, for me, knowing that children should be learning through having fun repetition and just writing it and writing and covering it just isn't very fun. So we developed a Lego game. And with him, it's just literally writing the letters of the alphabet onto pieces of Lego. And then he created and he built his own spelling words and learned them that way. And he could build on them as well. So if he was learning a certain sound, for example, with a ch, we would write the sounds CH and one Lego piece. And then he can use that for the word chair or the word chin and develop his own learning and his own patterns. So it's really about developing the independence as well. An older gentleman who was working, he's 25, non-verbal, pre-verbal, autistic gentleman. And he loved going to Tesco. That was his interest. So Tesco and eating. And his parents phoned me about a year and a half ago now. And again, similar situation. He's not learning. He's not progression. Let's make sure that my child is really, really reaching and fulfilling his potential. And so really quite simply, I bought a Tesco magazine. And if you flick through the Tesco magazine, for example, if you see the word chocolate and I'm going down and reviewing the CH and so the ch, the digraph ch. And so you just literally write the word, the sounds CH on the piece of chocolate and then he's able to understand ch for chocolate, ch for chocolate. And if there's a picture of a chair, for example, or anything else, or if there's a strawberries or a cup or cake, cup or cake. And it's repetition. And again, it's about him really enjoying what he's doing and being inspired by what he's doing. So when you were at the expo, I saw you using something pliable that you were trying. [Speaker 2] (21:22 - 21:23) Yeah, that was it. [Speaker 1] (21:23 - 21:28) And you were really having a lot of fun with that. And I was watching one of the children that was in the audience was just, I am this life. [Speaker 2] (21:29 - 21:29) He was brilliant. Yeah. [Speaker 1] (21:29 - 22:38) Talk to me a little bit about, because you obviously, some of these things that you buy for our children, resources can be quite expensive. Yeah. But you make a lot of the stuff. So can you give some tips to parents that might be listening, might just think, Oh, I'm going to try that. Yeah. So, um, making slime can actually be a relatively cheap, let's say. So you just need some PVA glue, um, and glitter. If you want to use glitter, most children do use glitter. Okay. And then you need some borax solution, which is actually, um, Where would you get all this stuff from? Boots. Okay. So borax can actually, you can, you can spend quite a lot of money and you can get this special borax solution. And it's claims to be, you know, specialists slime, slime creating, um, liquid. But actually a contact lens solution has exactly the same chemical in it. And it only costs a few pounds. Right. So what you saw, that bucket of slime, that is huge. Yep. It's absolute bucket. I think it's about four liters worth of slime. Okay. Um, and that was literally just PVA glue, baking soda. Right. So a little bit of baking soda, just to activate it and then contact lens solution. Plus if you want to use glitter. [Speaker 2] (22:38 - 22:38) Okay. [Speaker 1] (22:39 - 26:31) Yeah. And then what you do, just like, ply it all together. Yeah. And then just literally, um, pour it quite slowly so you get the consistency that you want to. Right. Some children, so what I love about slime is that it really develops the fine motor skills as well. Again, it makes it fun. Um, and what you saw me do when, when I, when we met her, uh, previously, was I integrated the national curriculum standards in for the year one. So that's about learning and recognizing coins and adding simple coins and using simple addition. So I put the UK coins in the middle of the slide. It was amazing. There's amazing videos on my Facebook page about it. Um, so I put all the coins into the slime and we literally at the really beginning stages, when you're learning about and recognizing coins, you just take the coins out and you recognize the coins. So the adult is there prompting and saying, oh, what coin is this? And ideally you should take out the coins and in order. Yeah. So the ones, the twos, the fives, the tens, the twenties, the fifties, uh, in that order. So it really recognized, helps a child to recognize UK coins. And that directly links to the UK national curriculum in the math standards. So that's what your child will be assessed in as well. Um, and again, it's, it's about making it hands on multi-sensory and fun. Anything else that you can make yourself that might be useful? Um, yeah, I mean, it's really about being as creative as possible. So if I think about using egg containers, for example, again, you can put a variety of different, um, dice in their containers and shake up the containers and then throw them in place and games with that. Okay. Or you can put letters in egg containers. And then of course with an egg container, the certain letters will, will go into different slots. So then it's about putting numbers on the different slots and put an asking, okay, what number or what letters in that certain slot? Okay. So your agency, is it an agency? Do you have teachers, teaching assistants? Yeah. More or less we have, um, well, qualified teachers, lots of Cencos. Many will have, uh, their, their Cenco qualification. So people who don't know what a Cenco is. Yeah. So yeah. So it says SDN coordinator for school. So those are the people that will write and really oversee the EHTPs. They will put the training in place for the schools and for the teachers and that they will really oversee the structure of the school when it comes to supporting children with special needs. Ideally, also, they should be the ones that have the really amazing knowledge and of the interventions and the strategies that they can support the children in their own classroom and training the teachers. So from school to school, would you say that there's some good training going on? There's some amazing training. Yeah, absolutely. Um, but it's really making sure that that is continued and it is all about training. And again, coming, going back to my previous note, it's about collaboration and teamwork, trialing an area error as well, because every, every individual student is different. And that's what we absolutely love about them because we then can be creative ourselves. Um, and it's, yeah, as I say, it's about understanding where the training is occurring and really tapping into that as much as possible. So if someone's interested in you offering training, would you be able to do that? Yeah, absolutely. Absolutely. Just remind everybody, um, what's your website and where can they find you on social media? Yes. So the website is www.sensationaltutors.co.uk, um, on my Facebook as well. Just type in www.sensationaltutors.co.uk.uk, um, on Twitter and Instagram. Okay. All right then. So anyone's interested, they might like to join your team or they might like to ask for your services. Just check out and it's for disabilities. Is it autism? Yeah. So, um, it's really variety. So it's language and communication difficulties. [Speaker 2] (26:31 - 26:31) Okay. [Speaker 1] (26:32 - 26:42) Uh, as I say, behavioral needs, uh, dyslexia, dyspraxia, ADHD, ADD, autism. Um, okay. So a lot of special difficulties. [Speaker 2] (26:42 - 26:44) Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Absolutely. Okay. [Speaker 1] (26:44 - 32:34) So in the next quarter, I'd like to sort of go in a little bit more about your work in different countries because I'm really interested about what, um, you've been doing there and what the support is like. So again, if you'd like to be one of the speakers, please contact me on www.annakennedyonline.com. Women's radio station is all about diversity from opinions, career, ethnicity, education, and most importantly, women's wellbeing. We aim to celebrate the individuality of every woman everywhere, providing opportunities and the platform for your voice. Visit our website, www.womensradiostation.com for more information. I'm Tamina Zaman, founder of Empower and Enrich. 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Welcome to the women's radio station supporting women's radio stations supporting women's well-being. Women's radio station can give voice to your brand with a wide range of sponsorship opportunities, including individual programs. We can tailor your experience for you. For more information on how you can sponsor a show, go to womensradiostation.com. Women's radio station supporting women's well-being. Hello, this is Anna Kennedy and we're talking all things autism. My guest today is Joanna Gibbs and we're live in Covent Garden. At the weekend, I was talking to a speech and language therapist and she introduced me to a site that was called Talk and Play. Talk and Play every day is a series of leaflets written and developed by guys and St Thomas' children and young people's communities, speech and language therapy services. Wow, that's a mouthful. And she's saying there's too many children that are spending far too much time on their iPads, their computers. So some of the tips that she gave me was that limit the total time that your child spends looking at the screens such as phones, iPads, computers, TV and computer games. Make sure that what your child is watching on screens is appropriate for his or her age. Talk to your child during the day about what you're both doing together and about what you can see to help him or her learn more words and express themselves. Be aware of how much time you spend looking at your phone and other screens. Make sure that there are times when you turn off your phone or your screen so you don't miss out on talking to your children. I must admit, I've seen so many moms that are walking down the road with their children and they've got their phone in their hands looking at their phones and their children, you can see, that are looking at them trying to get their attention. And I think, oh, that's quite sad, really. So, yep, if you have a checkout of this website, it's called Talk and Play, and they have got quite a few advice sheets on various different topics for children that have got special educational needs. So, Joanna, when you're speaking to me, I can see you're so passionate about your work and what you do. So, talk to me a little bit more about what inspires you to work with children with special educational needs. For me, it's really, and you're absolutely right, I'm so incredibly passionate about what I do. For me, it's about the aha moment, you know, the fact that I know the difference that I'm making. I can see it with the children, I can see it in the parents, and it's that sense of relief that I'm providing both of them, especially the parent. You know, the parents work so hard to try to find the best support for their child, and then they look at their child, and their child, you know, there's that click, and there's that sudden understanding, and there's that smile, the smile of the child that's really just learned something new. So, for example, I was doing a session with, again, an incredible boy, and I will refer a lot to the primary years curriculum because I'm primary trained. Bear in mind that we do work up to the age of 25. This boy is autistic, and he loves trains, as many. [Speaker 2] (32:35 - 32:37) As my boys did. Thomas and Sam Kinchen. [Speaker 1] (32:38 - 42:07) Yeah, that's it. And with this boy, so I bought these amazing, and they, I think it's about 15 pounds, these wooden trains from Amazon. I buy all my resources from Amazon. So, these wooden trains, and he, again, he didn't have any understanding of coins, of money. So, what I really wanted to do, and what the mum really wanted me to help with, is to develop an understanding of money and coins, so that when it comes to the summer holiday, he can go to the ice cream pile at the ice cream shop, and he can buy his own ice cream and calculate the change. That was my target. So, I used these trains, these interests that he had. And, again, very simply, we looked at the coins, and we placed the different coins and increments on top of the wooden trains, and then we just had, we then, we moved the train around the lounge, around the kitchen, just talked about the amount of value that was on top of these wooden trains that were, you know, being moved all over the kitchen. And then on top of that, and he really, really progressed so quickly that the session after that, it started to introduce counting in twos, fives, and tens very, very quickly. So, that's the precursors of the twos, fives, and ten times table. So, we made coin towers on top of the trains, and then just counting out how many, how much money is on top of the trains as well, and then moving the train all around the kitchen, and just having a brilliant time, and who's connecting it with the magnets between the trains. Yeah, so it's really about that aha moment. And also, for me, I think, as a teacher, of course, any good teacher should demonstrate how, a model, how you should learn, and also love learning yourself. And it's the children that support me in learning and progressing, and I think personal development is absolutely amazing, and it's the students that I support that help my own personal development, to be honest. Do you think there's too much red tape in schools? Do you think that they're strangulated by all this paperwork, and it's not really about teaching anymore? And that's really the difficulty, and unfortunately, the people that are on my books now, when I first started the business, these teachers, these amazing teachers, they're working Monday to Friday, regular sessions in a school. And nowadays, the people that I'm working with, they're either part-time or they're working supply because they just don't feel inspired by the system anymore. And it's really catch-22, because if you don't have a teacher that's inspiring and loves their job, then you're not going to be inspired to learn at all. And that's really what our challenge is at the moment. So what differences have you seen with working in various different schools throughout your career? It's really the impact and the opportunity to develop a child's independence and confidence. That's really what it is. It's all about confidence. And once you can support a child to overcome one area that they're lacking in confidence. And so, for example, albeit spelling or multiplication tables, just taking those two examples, what I really fundamentally believe in is if a child becomes confident in one area, then they're going to believe in themselves in other areas. So even if we're thinking about that further, and we're thinking about swimming, for example, I was working with a boy recently who really didn't like swimming at all. That's like mine. With my sons, Angelo, it's almost like he's been scolded when he touches water where my son Patrick, as soon as they put the goggles on, he was away. And it was just something as simple as, put the goggles on and he's swimming backwards with his diving and then his confidence. So I don't know. There's just something about water, isn't there? Yeah, sometimes I think either children love water or they really don't. But what I do think is once you've really connected with a student and built a confidence, be it even swimming, and then really transfer that confidence, you can transfer that confidence and relate back to the math skills or the English skills or any other area that they need and just relate back to it. And it really boosts all areas. Have you worked with children where they've been bullied and they've lost their confidence? And sometimes they're bullied by teachers and saying they'll never amount to anything. We've had so many children that have come to our school where they say, oh, you won't get GCSE maths or whatever it is that they've said to them. They really knock their confidence. Have you worked with children that are in that situation? To be honest, not with the teachers saying it. The teachers that I've spoken to and that we work with are amazing. We work with a lot of very sensitive students themselves and for them it's about developing resilience and it can be social communication skills as well and using the growth mindset principle, which if your listeners are not aware of the growth mindset. Yeah, what is that? So the growth mindset is basically it's an idea that supports students and children who always say, I can't do it, I don't want to do it, and there's so many incredible games and strategies and there's lots of books that I will recommend to you as well. And it's really allowing a child to understand that mistakes are okay and it's something to learn from. And I know when I was younger, it was all about, yeah, mistakes are fine and practice makes perfect. Fundamentally, actually, I don't think practice makes perfect. I think, and I really don't, I think we need to twist that a little bit and we need to assess the fact that, okay, we do need to practice, but we need to get rid of the word perfect. Fundamentally, perfection does not exist. What we need to support our young children in being able to do is understand and really celebrate the process. So more and more so, and I'm thinking further as to why this is happening, but the number of phone calls that I receive from parents whose children are really resistant towards writing and then there's either fine motor skills that are needing to be developed or there's just a fundamental fear of getting things wrong and it's always about writing. And so when I was working internationally, it was one of the interventions that has kind of followed me for the last 10, 15 years, but it's really about supporting a child to understand the writing process. So it's about drawing a picture if they're really young and then drafting and then editing and then drafting again and then celebrating the published piece. The challenge that I think that we're having in schools is that the teachers need this amazing piece on the wall, this amazing piece that needs to be written and we've got only 30 minutes to do it and a child isn't able then to peer edit, to self edit, to discuss their work, to add some more adjectives and to really celebrate that process because they're so obsessed by A, perfect handwriting and B, that it has to be absolutely perfect from the onset. So with this program and the radio station, we talk about women's wellbeing. So you're talking to parents, you talked to me a little bit about, so are you finding that a lot of parents are quite downtrodden, if you like, by the system, by the local authority, by where their children have gone to school and it's failed? Every single one. Okay, so what sort of things are you seeing with parents? Again, it's the phone calls that are very, the parents are very upset about the school and the lack of support and I had a phone call yesterday about, and the mum just felt so guilty that she hadn't been there for her child because she'd been dealing with her own situation and now her child has regressed in quite a lot of her learning and so again, it's about fitting those gaps. So it's the guilt, it's the shame, potential embarrassment as well. But fundamentally, the parents want the best for their child and that's where we step in and we really aim to provide the very best and to really fill these learning gaps. So you celebrate their successes, so they can lift their mood for the child and then obviously for the parents. Yeah, and it's sometimes about highlighting their strengths and highlighting their successes because some children don't even realise how amazing they are and every single child and every single parent is absolutely amazing and it's also supporting the parent in knowing how incredible their child is. I always remember when I was based in the school, it was like something, it might seem something really small that this child achieved but it's huge for the child. It's huge for the teacher, it's huge for the family and it's just about those small steps of progression and to celebrate them. It's not about everybody. Don't cling on as well to my child getting GCSEs or whatever because sometimes that's not the be-all and end-all for our children. So we're going to talk a little bit more. I can't believe how quickly it's going already but again, if people want to check out your website just keep reinforcing it. What is it again? www.sensationaltutors.co.uk And then on social media they can follow you? Yeah, so on Facebook as well as Sensational Tutors and on Instagram it's thentutors. Okay, and we're going to talk a little bit about your summit that's happening very soon. So if you're interested in asking a question, please contact Joanna or you can contact us via the charity website which is www.annakennedyonline.com or call the number 01895-540-187 Welcome to Women's Radio Station. I'm Sarah Louise Ryan and welcome to Love Lessons Live on Women's Radio Station. [Speaker 2] (42:07 - 42:13) Hello and welcome to Future Classic Women Awards with me, Stefania Passamonde on Women's Radio Station. [Speaker 1] (42:13 - 43:56) Hello and welcome to Julie May is Listening. Hi, this is Anna Kennedy and we're at Women's Radio Station supporting women's wellbeing and we're talking all things autism. Women, the possibilities are endless, that's what makes us different. Go to brownheelgroup.co.uk for your free no obligation quotation. At Brown Heels we've got you covered. Hi, I'm Lauren Mishcon, I'm a birth doula and mum of three and I'm passionate about supporting women to have empowering and positive birth experiences. Please join me for my brand new show from Tummy to Mummy here on Women's Radio Station. Every week I'll be here with an expert guest talking about women's reproductive health, everything fertility, pregnancy, birth and baby related right through to the menopause and beyond. Please join us for an informative and fun hour. Hi, I'm Hazel Butterfield, a blogger, book lover and mental health advocate and you can listen to my show Get Booked here at Women's Radio Station daily at 5am and 5pm. Throughout my shows we'll talk about the books I've read, new releases, chapter authors, publishers and book enthusiasts, all with a theme and aim of supporting women's emotional wellbeing. If you have a book to tell us about, get in touch at presenters at womensradiostation.com. [Speaker 2] (43:57 - 44:30) Join me on my show and share my love of books and writing. Hi, I'm Valentina Barbachi and I'm the executive director of Media Matters for Women. We're a registered charity operating in Sierra Leone and the Democratic Republic of Congo and we produce and share podcasts via Bluetooth and mobile phones, focusing specifically on women and girls excluded from information due to extreme poverty. We empower those living in rural areas with media that transforms how they access, own and share information. To find out more and be part of this movement, come check out our website at mediamattersforwomen.org. [Speaker 1] (44:32 - 46:23) You're listening to Women's Radio Station supporting women's wellbeing. Women's Radio Station's creating a global network for the empowerment of women and we want you to be involved. Join us on Instagram and Twitter at Women's Radio Station, that's womensradiostn or Facebook Women's Radio Station to keep up to date with all our exciting programmes. Hello, this is Anna Kennedy and we're talking all things autism. We're live in Corbin Garden and my guest today is Joanna. So Joanna, summer holidays can be quite stressful for families. It always makes me laugh when people say, oh, have a great holiday. But when you've got two children, you know, on the autism spectrum, trying to keep them occupied because they like structure, you're trying to juggle being a mum, working, it could be quite stressful. So I understand that you've got summer, summer, is it called? Yeah, well, the summer boosts essentially for the children. So what does that mean and where can people find out about it and what's involved? Yeah, so the summer booster sessions are really, really incredible because they help children to combat the summer brain drain, and they can be called all the summer slip. So that is, and research has been developed, which identifies that children do regress in their learning during the summer holiday. And it's really, the summer booster sessions are to maintain a child's learning and also to really bridge the gap so that they're fully prepared for school in September again. And hopefully, if it's sunny, that we can use outdoor play and things like that to really, again, support a child's love of learning. Okay, and what about the summit that you've got coming up? Yeah, so the summit is going to be absolutely amazing, and it's actually just, it's this Thursday coming. [Speaker 2] (46:23 - 46:24) Oh, wow. [Speaker 1] (46:24 - 49:35) It starts at 8 p.m. and we have 11 SCN experts who are going to be talking. So it's a free online summit, virtual summit. So if people are interested, they just need to type in, sensational tutors, summer, some virtual summits, I'm getting muddled up, virtual summits, and it will pop up. So there's going to be, as I say, 11 speakers, 11 SCN speakers, and it's really to support parents who have children with special needs and parents who would like to have ideas or know more ideas about how to support their children at home and maybe at school. And ideas to boost their confidence and their self-esteem. And how long does it last for? So three hours. Yeah, completely free for three hours. So it's really, again, going back to what the parents will learn. So it's about how you can deal with your own emotions as an SCN parent. So as you all know, it's a rollercoaster of emotions. And a number of the speakers are SCN parents themselves, and they develop their own SCN businesses. So they're going to be sharing their expertise as parents, but also in their professional realm as well. Okay, and don't forget, time out if you're a SCN parent, because it's so important. You know, we always talk about, we talk about take five, no matter what it is that you'd like to do. So we talk about relaxation. So what do you do? Because you sound like a busy bee. What do you do to relax? Oh, I'm a busy bee. I like to listen to what people do and to relax. So for me, I'd say it was cooking. You know, I am very much behind the laptop for the majority, if I'm not with my private students, I'd be behind the laptop. And then it's just taking myself away. And for me, I think cooking and reading a recipe and following instructions and really having to think about what I'm putting, creating. So what sort of food do you like to do? Normally Italian food. Yeah, Italian and white. My mum being Dutch and my family, the other side of my family are Indonesian actually. So as you know, I used to live in Jakarta. So it's a lot of Indonesian food as well. So nasi and rice tables and things. Oh, cool. So where would you like to see your business in 10 years time? What would you like to see happen? Yeah, so going back to the team approach, that's really what is driving the business at the moment. And again, that stems from having worked for the NHS so many, many years ago and understanding that it is the team that we need to create and providing packages that we can combine, you know, a private speech therapist, if necessary, and an SCN tutor. So a child is supported in all areas of need. Okay, so you want to go across the UK? Yeah. At the moment, so the business really originated from North London, which is quite nice because my dad was born in North London. So after my international experience, what I really learned was that the need is in the UK. I mean, as much as though as me traveling the world, trying to save the world, for many years, I thought, okay, actually, all of this amazing skills and experience and training and conferences that I've attended in many, many countries, I wanted to bring it back to the UK. Would you say there was more children at home now? [Speaker 2] (49:36 - 49:36) Yes. [Speaker 1] (49:36 - 51:30) Do you think there's an increase? Yeah. So how much of an increase? It's Catch-22, I suppose, because there's so much amazing awareness as well. But my concern is that there's an over-awareness as well, and that therefore parents are really anxious. And of course, everybody wants a very, very best for their child, but a child is not going to progress the best if they are also anxious. So obviously, normally anxious parents produce anxious children as well. So it's about really supporting the parent as well. Have you ever thought about opening a school yourself? Yeah. That's actually, yeah. So before, I don't know, 20 years ago, actually, I was 14 at the time, so more than 20 years ago, I wanted to open a school for children with Down Syndrome. That was my absolute dream, and that stemmed from when I was in Holland on a family holiday, and I met a boy with Down Syndrome, and he had the biggest smile on his face. He was similar to myself. We went to this little party, and it was only myself and himself dancing, and everybody else that was sitting, you know, not very interested, and I just had a brilliant time. Yeah, and that's really where it started. So when children progress, do they ever sort of come back to you after they've finished being with you for a while and just let, you know, how we get, because I like to know how people get announced. So say, for example, we're celebrating 20 years of Helene de Manet School being open on Saturday, but we're doing another celebration in October, and a lot of past pupils, past teachers will be coming to the event. So I always like to know how they get on. Yeah, absolutely. So it's funny you ask, because the students that we support, I'd say 99.9% of the tutors and myself who I place them with, they've been ongoing, so they're still working with the students. [Speaker 2] (51:31 - 51:31) Oh, wow, okay. [Speaker 1] (51:31 - 52:24) So for two years, and it's really ongoing, because once the parents, I do appreciate, once the parents sees progress, and the specialists and my team will provide a report after every single session, so there is, you know, identified progress that's being made, a parent doesn't want to give up on that progress. No. So can I ask what age range of families come to you the most? At the moment, and I think this is because of my specialists, as I say, because I specialize in primaries, so ages myself, I'm an autism specialist. Okay. So I myself, I know exactly what I'm talking about when I'm talking about autism. Yeah. So it'll be mainly primary, but there's lots, more and more so, I'm getting requests from up to 30 years old as well now. Yeah, because there's a lot of adults out there that are really struggling, that have missed the boat. [Speaker 2] (52:25 - 52:25) Yeah. [Speaker 1] (52:25 - 53:13) Obviously, when they're at school, you know, they might have left when they're sort of 14, 15, or coming to the, let's say, to the most difficult times for some of them is the stress of it all. The extra homework. How do you tackle homework, actually? Oh, gosh. Yeah. Well, that's the other thing that parents always say, oh, my child is completely different at school and at home, and I just can't deal with the homework. Yeah. And I think every parent would agree with that, that the homework battle is a complete battle, but it's really about, again, developing a child's independence, and I'm not, I don't really support the rewards strategy at all. Why's that there? Because I don't really believe in external reward systems, and I've written a paper on this. So, as people who have had me as a teacher, I've never used stickers. [Speaker 2] (53:14 - 53:14) Okay. [Speaker 1] (53:14 - 53:39) And I have a fundamental dislike of stickers because I think that's external reward. And I think it's about boosting a child's wellbeing, and it's all about giving them specific verbal praise and saying, you know, well done. Congratulations. You've been able to remember three full stops, for example, in your piece of writing. Instead of a, here's a sticker. Have you ever written a book? I was thinking about writing a book. Thinking about it. I think you should. Yeah, I know. With lots of tips. [Speaker 2] (53:39 - 53:39) Yeah. [Speaker 1] (53:40 - 53:41) Because parents are always looking for good books. [Speaker 2] (53:41 - 53:41) Yeah. [Speaker 1] (53:41 - 53:43) With advice on there. [Speaker 2] (53:43 - 53:43) Yeah. [Speaker 1] (53:43 - 54:17) And I definitely think that's the way to go for you too. And what about advice sheets? Because that's something else that parents look for, anything like that? Yeah, I mean, I've done quite a few Facebook Lives as well. And I will be doing those again in September. And what I'm going to be inviting the specialists that work for me as a team, we're going to be doing a number of Facebook Lives and they're going to be free trainings for parents as well. So if I have a dyslexia specialist, for example, then they can do a Facebook Live with myself and it's going to be sharing lots of those tips. Oh, that's useful. So again, let's be sensational tutors. Sensational tutors. [Speaker 2] (54:17 - 54:19) Yeah. Okay. [Speaker 1] (54:19 - 54:48) And just to remind everyone, if they're looking, if they've just tuned in, it's www.sensationaltutors.co.uk. So, and again, if they're a teacher, what qualifications would they need to be on your agency? So you need, obviously, QTS. Ideally, the Sanko accreditation, dyslexia accreditation as well. Okay. And then at least four plus years experience. But the rates vary depending on skills experience. Okay. And a lot of parents end up in tribunals. [Speaker 2] (54:48 - 54:48) Yeah. [Speaker 1] (54:48 - 59:57) Have you got any specialists that might be able to help them? Say, for example, like an expert witness or anything like that? Yeah. A number of my team do attend the tribunals. So we can definitely provide support for that as well. So to finish off with some tips for parents. Come on. Give me some tips that are going to give parents that motivate them. The main thing that I always say to parents, and this is what I will do during the free phone consultations I have with the parents, is I ask them, what is their vision for their child? What is their vision? And where do they want their child to reach? And I had a phone call the other day, and the mum said, you know, all I want is to be able to sit next to my daughter so she has two daughters, sit next to my daughter and to read a book with her because this child has quite severe behaviour challenges and she's hitting the little baby. So I said to her, look, hold on to that vision. I'm going to work together with you to reach that vision. Okay. So just set yourself a goal. And then work towards it and never give up. Absolutely. And ask for the help. I mean, ask for the help and be really open and honest about it. I think the thing is some parents worry about asking for help because they think that they've failed. So you're going to be writing an article and we're going to be sharing it on the charity website about what you've been speaking about today and about some of the links that you've shared with us so people can actually look it up and also about your agency so that people might be interested in talking to you or being a teacher. I just want to say thank you so much. You've given a lot of food for thought for our parents, for adults, for teachers, whoever may be listening in and just say thank you so much. Thank you. Thank you so much. Okay. Again, if you want to be one of our speakers, please contact Anna Kennedy online. So it's www.AnaKennedyOnline.com. Our telephone number is 01895-540-187. I'm on Twitter at AnnaKennedy1, Instagram at AnnaKennedyOBE, AnnaKennedyOnline on Facebook. And I am so excited to be going to Third Eyes at the weekend for Autism Scott Talent. It's the best thing ever. So if you live in Cornwall, if you live in that area, please come along and support our performers. They are amazing and they get so much out of it. Thank you very much everyone and goodbye. Visit our website www.Women'sRadioStation.com for more information. Get in touch with me at empowerandenrich.org and let's change your future together. Please be the winner of a prize. Stay tuned for further details. It will be refreshing, honest and funny look at being a mum. Visit www.TurnToUs.org.uk Women's well-being.