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Structured Provision

The Structured Provision is grouped by key stage.

Post-16 students have opportunities to access activities at specified times throughout the school week.

We use a Total Communication approach that consists of:

  • Signing
  • Symbols
  • PECS
  • Communication boards/books
  • Body language
  • Thrive adapted Interoception Curriculum

All the students have access to a visual timetable and some students have personal schedules to help with processing, regulation and structure. 

The Structured Provision follows the Equals Informal Curriculums, alongside a bespoke ‘Wren Offer’.

Learners in the Structured Provision will have an autism diagnosis. They will present: 

  • Communication difficulties (most will use AAC) 
  • Difficulties in concentration and attention.  
  • Difficulties with both short-term and long-term memory. 
  • Slow information processing speed.  
  • Insecure general knowledge. 
  • Insecure play skills.
  • Difficulties with social interaction.
  • Difficulties with generalisation and problem-solving. 
  • Help with personal care. 
  • High levels of adult support or in task schedules to complete tasks.  
  • Access to a high level of structure, routines and a low arousal environment.
  • Difficulties in processing sensory information. 

Generally, the learners are ambulant and highly mobile and have reasonably sound gross and fine motor skills. 

The learning in the Structured department is designed to support students to develop the skills that will support them in later life. Students in the Structured department have an ASD diagnosis and the sessions are designed to support these needs through providing the right level of structure, communication aids and incorporating knowledge of the way that ASD students learn.

Students experience sessions and activities repeated over time. This is to support the working memory, which influences the focus of attention on objects of tasks. Sequencing of actions and events is supported through the use of schedules or backwards and forwards chaining (aided by in-task schedules).

At the heart of the Structured Curriculum is the teacher having the knowledge of each individual student. Sensory regulation, emotional regulation, and transactional support are taken into consideration when planning.

Structured: Communication

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My Communication Eq

The students are encouraged to use their preferred method of communication at all times. The school is committed to using a Total Communication environment, which includes the use of sign language, objects of reference, PECS, and communication books and boards, amongst others.

  • Call & Response – During call and response sessions, some students will verbalise their responses, while some others will use a communication board or sign language to make a choice. Some other students like to be immersed in music, and they will just enjoy the beat and rhythm of the session, communicating through music.

Wren Offer

Activity Description
Circle Time Students attend circle time in the morning and afternoons. The objective is to familiarise the students with their peers, their names and the names of the community workers/staff that work with the students. For those students who are able, we use a register to record the day of the week and the weather.
Communication Communication is practised throughout the school day. The students have access to low-tech AAC. They make choices of food, drinks, toys, and other activities. Alternatively, they use them to talk about people they like or places they enjoy. The adults model the student’s communication as well as their own using communication boards and books.
What’s in the box? This session is designed to help the students to use their communication skills to make choices about something that they would like to engage with. This communication can be verbal or use symbols or colourful semantic sentences.
Structured Play (with communication focus) The students have access to a structured play session, where communication books and boards are modelled in order to develop communication skills. The students at PECS levels are encouraged to conduct exchanges at various phases, depending on their abilities. The adult will model both the student’s communication, and their own communication.

Structured: Good Health

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My Physical Well-being Eq

  • Sensory Circuits – Some students from the structured provision had a sensory assessment from an Occupational Therapist. This was also used to create a personalised sensory circuit plan. The object of the circuit is to help the students to regulate and be ready for learning.
  • Ball Games – During ball games, the students are encouraged to take part in a structured session, where taking turns and listening to instructions is encouraged. Gross motor skills such as catching, throwing, rolling are developed. Songs are sung.
  • Parachute Games – As part of the Equals Curriculum, it is recommended that students engage in structured play activities to learn social skills, play skills, tolerance of the proximity of other students and turn taking skills.

My Creativity Eq

  • Music – Music is a medium that is used by some of the classes to cover the RSE curriculum. We sing body-related songs to enable the students to familiarise themselves with their body parts. These songs relate to the Steps to Relationships booklets. The booklets contain photos of different categories of people, and at the back of each page there are the social rules related to each one of these categories.
  • My Body – The students are encouraged to use some of their senses in order to explore different textures and scents. They are encouraged to listen to various sounds or look at interesting items. They do relate these actions to different body parts. Songs are sung in order to explain the link between each sensation and the body part.

Wren Offer

Activity Description
Relaxation Relaxation is practised on a daily basis to prepare the students for a quiet time before lunch.
Physical Play Two classes join together in order to play with p.e. equipment such as scooters and bikes. If it is raining, they will have access to therapy balls, tunnels, trampolines, various ribbons, scarves, yoga mats, and weighted blankets.
Free Choice – Transport Free choice is practised at the end of the school day. Students are able to use their individual communication skills; speech, symbols, or communication boards to make a choice about an activity or toy they would like to engage with. This settles the students before transport so that the end of the day is happy and relaxed and students are more able to successfully transition home.
Relax Kids Relax Kids takes place on a Friday afternoon before assembly. This involves the students having opportunities to relax to soothing music in a quiet, dark, safe space. They can also participate in hand and foot massage if they want to. The process boosts their mental health and wellbeing.
Soft Play During this time, the students are encouraged to practice their gross motor skills. Vestibular and proprioceptive activities are introduced to students in a fun and relaxed way.

Structured: Friends, Relationships & Community

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My Independence Eq.

Travel Training Eq.

At the beginning of the school year, students are taught to familiarise themselves with the school and how to get from A to B inside the school. The skills are further broken down to analyse the type of support a student may need. As confidence grows and skills are mastered, the students then access the minibus and practice getting on and off the bus safely and then accessing the community.

Wren Offer

Activity Description
Playground Students access the playground to give them opportunities to self-regulate but also to gain skills at socialising with their peers. They have opportunities to share equipment and play alongside their peers.
Sensory Experiences During these experiences, some of the students explore sensory stories in the sensory room. The leader of the session uses visual, auditory, gustative and olfactory and tactile stimuli. Proprioception, emotional and imagery patterns are also incorporated into the delivery of the story.
Break There are times during the school day when students may find that the demands of the classroom become overwhelming for them, and they require a break. They can indicate the need for a break by pointing to, or exchanging, a break symbol. Staff will then give the student opportunities to go for a walk or to engage in an activity that helps them to either self-regulate or co-regulate.

Structured: Independent Living

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My Independence Eq

The topic of my independence is linked to all aspects of the learning journey at Wren. Students are encouraged to become as independent as possible and step into adulthood with a variety of skills and abilities.

  • Food Tech – Students make simple snacks such as toast, toasties, angel delight, milk shakes etc. A variety of teaching strategies are employed to enable students to become independent and eventually generalise their skills. Task analysis is used on this occasion as well, in order to monitor and increase progress.
  • Dressing and Undressing – The students are encouraged to get ready to go outdoors by putting on their shoes and coats as independently as possible. The students are encouraged to recognise when it is too hot and begin to undo their coats, or take their coats off. The adjectives and sensory experiences presented in the interoception sessions will be linked to this practical situation.

My Shopping Eq

To practice shopping skills, students take a coin into a local shop and will use it to buy an item. Students will use the process of one coin for one item.

My Thinking Skills Eq

Thinking skills are incorporated into activities such as dressing and undressing, cooking, shopping, cleaning etc. Thinking skills follow four stages: memory building, sabotage and recognition of memory, independent solutions and generalisation.

Wren Offer

Activity Description
Free Play Students are encouraged to play in different activities in a low-demand environment. The adults model how to play with these items and plan to expand their play skills with a gentle and personalised approach.
Focused Work During this time, our students practice life skills on a 1:1 basis. The aim is to slow down and focus their attention on certain targeted skills in a low distraction area.
Interoception Interoception is a lesser-known sense that helps you understand and feel what’s going on inside your body. Kids who struggle with the interoceptive sense may have trouble knowing when they feel hungry, full, hot, cold, or thirsty. Having trouble with this sense can also make self-regulation a challenge. Staff work with students to explore and eventually identify different sensations. The link to feelings is complete when the child is able to determine what is going on inside their own body.
Choose Choose is similar to free play but presented in a slightly more structured way. The students use a preferred method of communication to make choices during this session.
Life Skills Students complete jobs such as wiping down tables, hoovering and completing the washing up. Staff support and look to encourage as much independence as possible. The teachers use task analysis in order to target small steps of each of these skills.
Independent The students are encouraged to complete a range of activities with different levels of support; hand over hand, visual schedule, verbal or gestural support. The aim is for the child to become independent at performing these tasks, as well as maintaining and generalising these skills.
Personal Care Students are encouraged to complete personal care by themselves, using task analysis to monitor progress. A prompt fading procedure is used to promote independence.
Lunch Students sit together eating their lunch. At lunchtime, students are encouraged to collect their lunch and utensils from the cupboard themselves. They are encouraged to open packets and drinks themselves, or ask for help using symbols or speech. When they finish, they are encouraged to throw their rubbish away, put lunch boxes back into their bag and wash any dishes used. Other social skills are encouraged, such as sitting appropriately at the table, using utensils rather than hands, and washing their faces and cleaning their tables.
Drink Students will use their preferred method of communication to ask for a drink.
Snack Students will set their snack table up, get the plates and cups out, and ask for snacks and drinks, using their preferred communication method. They are encouraged to tidy away afterwards.

Structured: Future Destinations (Employment)

Wren Offer

Activity Description
Sensory stories Sensory stories convey simple narratives using a mixture of text and complimentary sensory experiences. Each section of the story (normally just a short sentence or two) is accompanied by a sensory experience to help bring the story to life. For example, in a story where a boat is crossing a sea, water may be sprayed. When telling sensory stories, we incorporate all the senses where appropriate, so touch, smell, sounds, taste and visual stimuli are utilised.

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