January/February 2018

got to the stage where he really
doesn’t want to read at home as he
feels he is ‘useless’. I am finding it
really hard hearing him talk about
himself in this way. What can I do to
help him?
Reading is a complex process
which uses a range of strategies.
Children use the pictures within
the story to understand what is
happening, and then they tend
to learn by memory the words of
simple stories. They then learn
sight words and to these they add
their phonic knowledge and start
to sound out words as they read.
It would be really helpful if you
could have a conversation with
your son’s class teacher to discuss
which aspects your son is finding
difficult. If it is his sight vocabulary
then you could concentrate on that
using a variety of games at home
and not just reading his book. If it
is his phonics then this is the area
you can concentrate on.
Reading is something that you want
your son to enjoy again. Choose
a book and share it together with
you reading some and him reading
a bit. Write him notes and put
them on his bed or on the fridge.
Do some cooking together and
read the recipe together. There
are many ways to engage him in
reading in different ways just use
your imagination.
If you need to support his sight
vocabulary then chose 5 words a
week and work on those. You can
hide the words around the room
and if he can find them and read
them then he gets them. Put them
on the stairs so that you read them
together as you walk up and down.
Write them in the air whilst waiting
or going to school, make them out
of magnetic letters on the fridge
or when he is in the bath use the
foam letters. Most importantly
HAVE FUN.
If your son is struggling with
phonics then there are many
phonics games on the internet you
can find and play, or you can make
up your own. Sound out a word if
he can blend it together then he
wins a point. He then sounds out
one for you. You can make cards
together and then use those to help
you. Give him a picture of a CVC
word (Consonant Vowel Consonant
like cat, dog, pan etc) and then ask
him to segment it into sounds for
you to listen to and give the word.
Dear Alison
My daughter is in year 3 and is really
struggling with her handwriting. She
finds cursive writing difficult and says
her hand aches after just a few words.
Her teacher has told me that I need
to make her practice at home but she
hates it and we just end up having a
row which spoils our evening.
Handwriting is such an interesting
area. For some children who have
poor muscle tone it does make
their hands ache and so part of the
work is to strengthen their muscles
and develop their fine motor skills.
You can do this in a variety of ways
and there are some lovely apps
for the ipad that help children
practice letter formation. There
are a variety of fine motor skills
activities that you can Google to
support her so that you are not just
doing handwriting every night. You
can therefore do handwriting one
night, fine motor skills activities
another night, then tracing and
colouring – both good fine motor
skills work and then finally use the
app on the ipad. The other area
that you can work on is to teach her
to touch type – BBC Dance mat is
a good programme to use and is
free. By working on all areas you
will find that it becomes a bit more
fun and she will become confident
and competent in writing and also
typing.
For parents or grandparents whose children are struggling at school,
stuck in their learning, anxious or depressed, who have stopped
thriving or are acting out, life can become overwhelming, full of
worry and confusion as they try to find help for their children.
Educational Psychotherapy is a powerful approach to addressing
these issues. It is a way of meeting the child’s individual learning
needs, which in turn positively affects their ability to cope within
the classroom.
Educational Psychotherapy is a way of working with children which
combines teaching with therapeutic exploration of the emotional
factors triggered by learning. It is recommended for children and
young people who have become ‘stuck’ due to complex emotional
barriers to learning and development.
Barriers to learning and development may manifest themselves as:
Poor attitudes to learning based on attachment patterns,
• Failure to learn,
• Withdrawal,
• Difficult behaviour,
• Difficulty with social interactions and friendships,
• Violence or aggressive outbursts,
• Physical symptoms,
• Anxiety,
• Difficulties with transitions,
• Restlessness and an inability to focus,
• An inability to make good use of the learning environment or the
teacher.
Educational Psychotherapy produces real benefits in children’s
What is Educational Psychotherapy?
emotional well being and their capacity to learn and engage with
schools. By helping children and young people overcome these
emotional barriers to learning, their self esteem, resilience and
skills for learning are strengthened and engagement, positive
relationships and sense of well being are promoted.
For more information, contact Alison on:
01580 881 271 or alison@alisonwaterhouse.co.uk
Educational Psychotherapist
Qualified Teacher
and S.E.N.C.O
Is your child struggling at school?
Are they ‘stuck’ in their learning?
Behaviour causing concern?
Educational Psychotherapy is a specialised
educational and therapeutic intervention
recommended for children and young people
with complex emotional barriers to learning
and social development.
Phone: 01580 881 271
E-mail: alison@alisonwaterhouse.co.uk
www.alisonwaterhouse.co.uk
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