quick guide - GL Assessment - GL Education

quick guide
56
EARLY INTERVENTION
WellComm: A Speech and Language
Toolkit for the Early Years
Angela Hurd and Diana McQueen, Sandwell Primary Care Trust
Age Range:
6 months–6 years
Suitable for:
Specialist and Non-Specialist
Early Years Professionals
Administration:
Individual
Timed:
10–15 minutes
early
years
only
Also Available:
New Group Reading Test See
pages 24–27 York Assessment of
Reading for Comprehension See
pages 28–31 and Teaching
Talking See page 39
Did you know?
In primary school
children, the most
prevalent type of
special need is
speech, language and
communication
DfE Statistical Release,
June 2011
Ideal as an initial screening tool, the WellComm Toolkit provides a
complete speech and language toolkit that can be used by all Early
Years practitioners.
An individual assessment developed in collaboration with leading
practitioners at the Sandwell Primary Care Trust, the WellComm Toolkit
is suitable for children aged 6 months to 6 years. The toolkit deploys a
unique traffic light system that clearly identifies children requiring
immediate intervention, as well as those who show potential language
difficulties. The innovative system has the additional benefit of banding
children by placing them into one of three categories, thus enabling the
practitioner to proactively respond to any needs identified:
Red = consider referral to a specialist service for further
advice/assessment
Amber = extra support and intervention required
Green = no intervention currently required
The Big Book of Ideas provides practitioners with over 150 bespoke
intervention activities to meet individual needs as identified through the
screening process. The activities are designed to be fun, engaging and
appropriate for use with both individual children and groups across the
entire age range.
They also provide a helpful guide
for parents to support their child’s
development at home. All
activities are photocopiable and
can be printed from the
Resources CD that is included in
the WellComm Toolkit.
The WellComm Toolkit includes a
comprehensive Training DVD to
help deliver in-house training. It
also includes an online Report
Wizard which allows both large
and small organisations, including
Local Authorities, to monitor and
evaluate the progress made by
children using the WellComm
Toolkit. The Wizard can report on
children across any number of
linked settings and can generate
individual, group and Local
Authority reports. The Online
Report Wizard is available at an
additional cost.
Early Intervention – in the spotlight
On January 19th 2011, Graham Allen MP published his
independent report to Her Majesty's Government: "Early
Intervention: The Next Steps". The report details the economic,
political, social and moral importance of helping future generations
of babies, children and young people before problems may arise.
It also emphasises using the best methodologies and scientific
research to inform intervention strategies and the significance of
tackling the causes of underlying problems rather than the
symptoms. In light of this, the WellComm Toolkit provides the
perfect tool along with our Measures of Children’s Mental
Health & Psychological Wellbeing: A Portfolio for Education
and Health Professionals. Further details of this assessment can
be viewed on pages 60–61.