Summary:
The Art and Craft Workshop at CANTO Learning has been devised to enhance our students’ wellbeing and social skills when creating pieces of Art and Crafts.
The intention is to develop our students’ hand-eye coordination and fine motor skills, whilst encouraging social communication and conversational skills.
Students are supported to use listening, and auditory processing skills to interpret and follow instructions correctly. It is intended that they will be able to relate a practical task back to verbal and pictorial directions.
The students are supported to make independent choices but also work as part of a team, to promote their self-confidence and show mutual respect.
Art and Craft is delivered at CANTO Learning in a relaxed setting with background music of mainly the students’ choosing. The groups are small, which provides an exceptional and inclusive learning experience for each student. Lessons are individualized and levelled at the student’s ability, they are delivered in a friendly and calm manner. Praise and reciprocal respect are used to create a positive environment. We ensure the students feel equally valued, safe and foster positive attitudes towards themselves and others.
Topics covered include:
- Painting
- Clay work
- Jewellery making
- Drawing
- Model making
- Weaving
- Paper-bead making
Skills Learnt:
Art and Craft is a hands-on subject but also assists students with their social, communication and listening skills in a relaxed atmosphere. The premise of the sessions is to help develop self-confidence and promote resilience in our unique, young adults; encouraging them to become respectful, caring, self-assured and flourish in the wider world.
Summary:
Functional skills offer the students a chance to learn about the world they live in in a variety of different ways. Students are encouraged to build on their self-confidence and the belief that they can achieve what they set their mind to with support from both staff and their peers.
Each week there will be a different theme that the students explore using a variety of different methods. Some may be paper based, making items, following recipes, healthy lifestyle, working as a team or individually to complete tasks set at the level they can access.
It is important that the students enjoy the sessions and each half term, discussions are held as to what they might like to learn about and where possible these can be implemented into the planning of future sessions.
Skills Learnt:
The students enjoy the sessions, and they like the fact that they are asked about what they want to learn. Knowing the students, sessions are planned to encourage their natural curiosity about subjects and have a mixture of staff and student-led discussions. The sessions are relaxed and incorporate the many different needs that the students have. Making their learning fun, they are able to get the most out of each session without realizing how much they are absorbing.
Summary:
Gateway provides our students with a programme of activities to enhance their awareness and access of their environment and wider community around them. Gateway encourages the students to be active, curious and to ultimately achieve the Mencap Gateway Award from Bronze to Gold level. Students are encouraged to learn new skills which can boost self-confidence and help them to develop a sense of purpose.
Students have different categories to select activities from depending on the level of the award they are participating in. Students are responsible to research, plan and participate in topics from categories including:-
- Lifestyle
- Hobbies
- Challenge
- Cultures
- Communication
- Volunteering
- Healthy living
Within each area students have the opportunity to experience a variety of learning experiences including:-
- investigate different activities that they may wish to pursue as a hobby
- to promote a healthy eating and lifestyle routine
- research cultures across the globe and explore how different cultures celebrate events of significance to them
- research an organisation that they would like to volunteer for and commit to an agreed period of volunteering
- Produce a project on communication looking at the array of methods people use e.g. sign language, PECs, voice boards, Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC)
- Planning, booking and participating in different sports/keep fit activities
- Participating in a challenging activity that is unfamiliar and requires planning and training for.
Skills Learnt:
The Gateway students have shown a genuine understanding of how working as a team can make a positive impact on their motivation, their sense of achievement and their abilities to perform under pressure. They have participated in challenges that have tested them physically and mentally and with their ever-evolving peer support they have accomplished all of these. The awards are designed to be adaptable and diverse in their content reflecting the students who attempt and achieve them.
Volunteering projects within the community such as the Country Park have enabled us to establish new and strong links for future initiatives.
Summary:
Exploring and enjoying the natural environment is central to our Horticulture sessions in Spencer group.
We help grow, harvest, prepare and maintain the lovely gardens at CANTO. We also visit other natural environments such as parks and gardens to enjoy a wider variety of plants and structures.
Skills Learnt:
The skills we learn such as patience, willingness to have a go and being able to enhance a space enjoyed by others are transferable and of benefit in other sessions. We have planted sunflowers, shelled peas, watered and weeded as well as just enjoying the garden. Our tasks and jobs make the most of each season so we can enjoy them very much.
Summary:
At CANTO Learning we aim to develop our students’ confidence and independence. We intend to enable students to develop appropriate communication skills, both verbal and non-verbal, and to have an awareness & understanding of the impact of both good and poor customer service.
Students will develop knowledge & understanding of food hygiene & safety, the importance of keeping work areas clean and tidy and gain good customer service skills. The students will also have the opportunity to handle money, taking payments both in cash and electronically.
Implementation
Initially when students first commence their time in the coffee shop they will take part in an introduction to safety, food hygiene and customer service skills. This can be completed in a way that suits the individual students – e.g., workbooks, online, discussion or a method that the students choose. {This is not a long process as we are aware that the students want to start “working “in the coffee shop}
Once the students have the necessary knowledge, they will begin their hands-on experience. The activities will include: –
- Baking
- Researching recipes
- Preparing drinks
- Serving customers
- Cleaning
- Stock rotating
- Preparing shopping lists
- Keeping shelves full & tidy
- Cleaning the coffee machine
The experience will help to develop their confidence to meet, greet and speak to customers along with serving refreshments both over the counter and via table service. The students will help with serving afternoon teas too.
Skills Learnt:
The experience is a positive one for the students and with regular feedback the students are able to share where they have improved and what they have enjoyed. Students will gain the confidence to communicate with not just their peers and tutor, but also the general public in a safe environment. Customers regularly comment positively about their experience in the coffee shop which is an excellent form of feedback for the students.
Summary:
Our intent is for students to develop transferable skills, which will be enable them to become more independent with everyday tasks, and for the students to learn and develop new skills, which could also aid them in gaining employment.
Did you know;
‘Only 6% of adults with a learning disability known to their local authority in England are in paid work’ (NHS Digital 2018)
It is it is our vision at CANTO Learning that by accessing the Work Centre we are giving our students the opportunity to gain and develop essential skills which they then can then use when they progress onto external work placements.
Some of skills we focus on developing in the Work Centre are:
- Problem solving
- Communication
- Self-management
- Collaborative working
- Numeracy skills
- Digital skills
- Planning
- Estimating
- Resilience
- Drive
- Reflecting
- Confidence
Initially when the students start accessing the Work Centre, they work on developing a basic understanding of Health and Safety. We try to relate this to everyday situations at home and within the community but also focus on the safe use of tools and equipment with a big overview that, Health and Safety is everyone’s responsibility, and we need to ensure we keep everyone safe.
Following on from that, we use reclaimed pallets and sheet wood this allowing the students to make items. These range from something small and as simple such as a set of coasters, all the way up to picnic benches and storage systems. As part of the bigger picture at CANTO Learning we allow students to be involved in projects that we sell to the public. As well as physically making the items, students will be involved in costings and the advertisement process of selling. All profits are reimbursed back into the work centre to buy new tools.
It is during this process that using available resources such as the ‘Problem Solving Wheel’ and embedded British Values the students develop the skills previously listed.
The students are assessed regularly throughout their time with us. This is done via informal questioning allowing students to identify, reflect and explain what they have done so far and why. We also assess the practical tasks which they have taken part in, such as their drawings/plans, how they worked to achieve the finished product and the finished product itself. With regards to EHCP targets these are worked on via the students ILP folder that they bring to all lessons.
Skills Learnt:
There is no pressure for the students to become expert carpenters, but we want them to be proud of what they do and for them to of had the opportunity to learn and develop transferable skills, regardless of what they have made and the input they have had with their teams. Although this subject is not assessed giving a qualification, the skills that have been further developed support our students during their work experience programme.
Summary:
We run well-being sessions to provide alternative ways to look at how to cope with everyday situations and emotional challenges the students may encounter. We aim to encourage students to experiment with exercise and mindful activities to promote better physical health and mental well-being.
Sessions are designed for students to be able to experience different ways to relax including:-
- guided meditation
- online work outs
- nature walks
- learning to use sign language to accompany familiar songs
- noodle drumming
- nature bingo
- listening to audio books
Skills Learnt:
Students will be able to expand their knowledge and understanding of how to take care of their own well-being and raise their awareness of others around them. Through trialling different activities, we hope the individuals will continue to explore methods that will enable them to take responsibility for their own personal development and inspire them to be proactive with their health and welfare, promoting less reliance on parents/carers.
Summary:
Dance is a lively and physical session, largely driven by students’ individual music tastes. Each session begins with a warm-up. Then students take turns to choose music tracks that they enjoy and are free to listen, sing and dance as they prefer and as appropriate to their mobility. A music quiz is often part of the session. Students are also introduced to a music genre which they may be less familiar with, such as Disco or Brit Pop for example, which may broaden their musical interest.
Summary:
The backbone of the sessions currently is supported by an excellent Drama course produced by Oak National Academy, which is adapted to meet the needs and interests of CANTO students. Session topics include Myths from Around the World, Dragons and Giants. Sessions include storytelling and acting out parts of stories through improvisation and mime. Scripts are also used in some sessions. In the second half of the session, students often create a piece of art or craft related to the topic, using a range of materials.
Summary:
Sensory Science is a time for us to explore, find out, challenge and observe using many of our senses.
We do this through a series of experiments and tasks that encourage us to follow instructions, be purposeful in our actions as well as make mistakes and self-correct where we can.
All of this is done in a fun and inclusive class.
Skills Learnt:
We have completed tasks that explore – Saturation of liquids, the affect water has on coloured dyes, chemical reactions as well as having made a variety of sensory doughs which the students make from scratch.
Summary:
The Tuck Shop is ran by the students at CANTO Learning. The students are supported by the trainer to manage all aspects of the running and maintenance of the Tuck Shop. The students conduct the stock take weekly, they count every item in the Tuck Shop and make a record of all figures. The students also complete the financial take weekly, they count all money in the safe and take out the relevant amount of money made. The students work together to complete a Excel spreadsheet which logs all the stock and tracks the finances, they work together to figure out the differences in stock from the week prior. The students are also supported to go out and purchase produce to be sold in the Tuck Shop and are responsible for writing a shopping list, scanning the items and helping to bring them into the college.
Skills Learnt:
The Tuck Shop encourages the students to work as a group and work independently too. They learn money management skills and work towards understanding the value of coins and different notes. The students learn how to manage and control stock as well as work on their counting skills. They are also challenged by working on their mathematics skills and use of IT.
Summary:
In Library Club, the students often learn about and read different books. The students will often complete work tasks where they analyse the different books they have read and have group discussions about parts of books they have enjoyed. Books that have been read so far include, The Gruffalo, Fantastic Mr Fox, Going on a Bear Hunt, George’s Marvellous Medicine and so on. The students also learn a variety of other subjects in Library Club, including what are adjectives, verbs, nouns and different types of grammar. The students are also given time to access their MyOn reading accounts and spend time reading on there too.
Skills Learnt:
Library Club allows students to exercise their handwriting skills as well as practice their reading skills. The students often take it in turns to read out loud and practice their verbal reading skills too. The students often work together as a group but also work independently, so they continue to grow and develop with these skills too.
Summary:
In Charitable Projects, the students research and choose a charity they would like to learn about. This charity is then the focus of our learning for the next six weeks or so. The students research ways in which we can help the charity or local business, this could be by volunteering our time and service, it could be by having a collection for the charity or creating a product to donate. The charity work the students conduct is chosen by them. Some Charities and businesses we have looked at include a care home, charity shops and Animals In Need.
Skills Learnt:
The students learn a variety of different skills. The skillset they establish includes working independently, teamwork, conducting research and using analytical and problem solving skills to choose a charity of their choosing. The students learn how to brainstorm and discuss ideas as a group. Students get to exercise their people skills as they interact with many different individuals and work on their listening skills as they follow the instructions and requests of the charities when volunteering or organising an activity to help support a charity.
Summary:
Sing and Sign allows students to learn new signs in a fun way! Sing and sign incorporates singing and Makaton sign language together. The students have learnt to sign a large variety of signs and have learnt how to sign many songs too, such as Country Roads, Is This The Way to Amarillo, Don’t Stop Me Now, and multiple nursery rhymes too. The students of sing and sign have performed at different events including CANTO drama performances, which have included songs from Mary Poppins, School of Rock, Christmas Carols and Chitty Chitty Bang Bang. Through Sing and sign, each student has learnt and can recall a large number of Makaton signs, some students have remembered more than 400 signs!
Skills Learnt:
The students learn how to communicate using Makaton sign language, a skill that can be carried throughout their time in the college and can be used with peers. The students learn how to exercise and use their Fine and Gross motor skills. The students practice and exercise their memory recall skills and have demonstrated a clear ability to remember signs with only a small amount of help from the trainer. Sing and Sign encourages the students to be independent in their learning but to also help each other if they are unsure. Sing and Sign encourages freedom of expression and allows the students to exercise British values as they get to vote and choose for songs they would like to learn.
Summary:
In craft sessions we create, make and enjoy. Some projects have a particular end result in mind – such as creating a pot of clay to store something in whilst others focus more on the process. Some offer us both.
Summary:
We aim for the students to become as independent as possible. With support and the great facilities we have in the student flat we can facilitate this. The students take part in everyday tasks such as laundry, managing clothes, simple DIY, cleaning, organising as well as being able to make themselves and their peers drinks, snacks etc.
We might even try a bit of decorating!!
Summary:
In Spencer Group we aim to become an active part of the local and sometimes wider community.
The students experience travelling by bus, by car and walking to a variety of places. Places we may visit include – Library, shops, fruit farms, parks, theatre/cinema trips, shopping centres, garden centres, museums, forests and places of interest to the students.
Skills Learnt:
Community trips provide an opportunity for the students to practise their communication and social skills by talking to those they meet. They visit different environments increasing knowledge and gaining experience of new and different situations. This in turn increases self-confidence and gives the student a positive social interaction.
Summary:
In these sessions the students will learn food preparation, what a healthy diet could look like as well as cooking skills. Each week we will also practise good hygiene and learn how to work safely within a kitchen environment.
Just like the Bake Off we will have a focus each week which will be on a rolling programme but with different recipes used.
Pastry week
Baking week
Bread week
Veg week
Fruit week
Treat week!
Summary:
Stories and poems can be used to introduce or discuss a theme in a non threatening way and sometimes by stealth. This means sensitive topics can be introduced and an opening given for students to take if they want to.
They are of course also enormous fun.
We have currently looked at texts from Judith Kerr, Julia Donaldson, and Tom Percival. We have read, listened to, sequenced and illustrated books as a well as enjoyed looking at different characters.
Skills Learnt:
Stories and poems are so important in developing vocabulary and language skills. They also help to reinforce organisational and focus skills as they most often have a beginning ,middle and end.
Summary:
Currently we are learning about the Great Fire of London (GFL) in a lively and practical way. We watch films about the historical events and are making a small model of the houses by the river, complete with tissue paper flames on the buildings and model Londoners fleeing the blaze. We are also looking at what happens in a modern fire station to make comparisons with firefighting today. On a couple of sessions, we do cooking, as the fire started in a baker’s shop. We also complete quizzes and wordsearches and colouring related to the topic.
Summary:
In Phonics session we play lots of games which involve words and letters, such as Alphabet Bingo and I Spy. We also follow a theme for several weeks, and currently the theme is ‘Me and My Family’, so that reading, spelling, writing and drawing activities link to this theme. Reading is a regular part of the session. Students may enjoy reading independently or with support and sometimes I will read a popular book to the class. Art and craft activities can also be part of the session. We also complete wordsearches, worksheets related to the theme.
Summary:
Materials drawn from nature, often from the gardens around CANTO, are used to create a very wide variety of art and craft projects. These materials include, for example, flowers, leaves and twigs and are varied by the season. Students paint pictures of animals, create collages, make birdfeeders and make and decorate planters. There is plenty of scope for students to develop their own ideas and interests whatever their level of confidence and experience.
