CYPOP 15 and Unit 303:
Supporting positive practice with children and
young people with speech, language and
communication needs
Learning Outcome 1
Understand the concept of positive practice when working with
children and young people with speech, language and
communication needs (SLCN).
Revising Speech, Language and Communication
This unit is based on a good understanding of:
 What speech, language and communication are
 How we support everyone’s speech, language and
communication development and skills
 What Speech, Language and Communication Needs (SLCN)
are
 How common they are and some factors which may
contribute to SLCN
 How we can spot children and young people who may have
SLCN
Revising speech, language and communication 1
Says ‘sop’ for ‘shop’
Stops what they’re doing
if told to ‘hold your
horses’
Asks ‘what’s that over
there?’
Follows instructions
Adds ‘ed’ to finish when
they’re done – ‘I’ve
finished’
Babbles
Names lots of different
vehicles
Looks at the person
talking
Waits for their turn to talk
Waves good bye
Identifies that daddy
starts with ‘d’
Describes what they did
at the weekend
Revising speech, language and communication 1
• In small groups, look at the following examples.
• Decide if they describe ‘speech’, ‘language’ or
‘communication.
• You may have some differences of opinion and
some may overlap.
• You may wish to make a note of these discussions
too.
Revising how you support speech, language and
communication
• In small groups, share 3 different ways in which you support
speech, language and communication in your work. Talk about
how you use them and how effective they are.
• Try to include an example for each of the following:
 Supporting speech, language and communication through
everyday activities or routines
 How the environment supports speech, language and
communication
 How you use or adapt your own language to support speech,
language and communication
Revising SLCN
• In pairs, write a definition for Speech, Language and
Communication Needs
• List 3 different factors which may contribute to a child or
young person having SLCN
• Look at the following two statements and decide if they are
TRUE or FALSE
For some children who have SLCN, there is no known
reason
Children and young people learning more than one
language all have SLCN
Revising SLCN 2 – what can contribute to a child or
young person’s individual pattern of SLCN?
What is positive practice?
Knowing them
well
Working well
with others
Planning
Monitoring
Evaluating
Building on their
strengths
Building on
existing good
practice
Positive Strategies:
 Ensure that social and emotional well-being, including
confidence and self-esteem are supported alongside speech,
language and communication skills
 Are based on a child or young person’s strengths
• Where strategies focus on a specific area of difficulty, these
should be used in ways which ensure confidence and selfesteem are supported throughout.
• Examples of different strategies will be looked at in learning
outcome 2
Activity 1a - Comparing strategies based on strengths or
difficulties
• In small groups, look at the following strategies
• Firstly, choose any strategies that you think use a child or
young person’s strengths and why you think this.
• Highlight the strategies which you think are based on a child
or young person’s difficulties.
• Discuss what is different between the two types of strategies
• For the strategies targeting a child or young person’s
difficulties, how could you make sure these are positive
practice
• Are there any strategies which you feel are negative and
should not be used?
Activity 1a
Reminding them not to interrupt
Teaching new words using all the
senses
Keeping your sentences short
enough for them to understand
Correcting their mistakes
Telling them they are standing too
far away when they’re talking to you
Using a visual timetable
Adding one word to their sentences
Asking questions to help them join
in
Asking them to repeat what you
have said
Helping a child to practise saying ‘s’
Using a feely bag for them to
describe an object inside
Praising them for waiting for their
turn
Activity 1a – Possible answers
Strategies based on strengths
Teaching new words using all the senses
Keeping your sentences short enough for them to understand
Using a visual timetable
Adding one word to their sentences
Praising them for waiting for their turn
Using a feely bag for them to describe an object inside
Activity 1b – Positive practice in action?
• In pairs, choose one of the case studies in your learner
handbook – either Danny or Shellah
• How would you find out about their strengths?
• Identify any positive strategies which are already being used
to support their SLCN
• Are any strategies being used which seem to place more focus
on their difficulties?
• Choose another two positive strategies which you think may
be useful
Evidence for positive practice
• As part of your portfolio, you will need to give examples of
evidence for positive practice
• Your tutor will give you examples based on the strategies and
approach they show you
Portfolio task 1.1
• Develop a brief presentation, either for colleagues or parents
• This could be a written or verbal presentation
• Explain how to recognise and build on a child or young
person’s strengths to support their SLCN
• Give examples of some positive strategies and how these
compare to those based around children’s difficulties
• Include examples of evidence describing positive practice
Learning Reflection 1
• Identify one thing which you think has been interesting
and/or useful from Learning Outcome 1.
• How will this change your practice?
• In your portfolio, reflect on how your practice has changed
and the impact this had on the children or young people you
work with.
Learning outcome 2
• Know how to work alongside speech, language and
communication specialists to use appropriate strategies and
targets to support children and young people.
A model of support
Specialist
Targeted
Universal
Positive strategies include
Facilitating
communication
between peers
Adapting adult
language and
communication
Enhancing the
environment
Positive
Strategies
Focus on areas
of speech,
language and
communication
Using resources
and tasks
Supporting confidence
and self-esteem
Discussion point
• In small groups, choose one of the areas from the
previous slide
• Using your experiences, what might be different
when these approaches are used at universal and
targeted or specialist levels?
• For example, think about different SLCN, who is
involved, what their roles and responsibilities
might be, how target-setting and progress
monitoring are used.
Process of choosing and using supportive strategies
Gather evidence
and information
What are
the roles of:
YOU
Check what
difference it made
and what to do next
Decide what to do
TARGET
STRATEGY
Plan it and do it
SPECIALIST
CHILD/
YOUNG
PERSON
FAMILY
Target setting
• It is important to set targets for children and young people
with SLCN
• Targets can help focus specific support for children with SLCN
to develop their skills
• Effective use of target setting can help show progress
• Target setting is based on assessment – this can be informal or
formal assessment and may be informed by a number of
different professionals
• How targets are chosen will vary according to the child or
young person and the setting – working together is key
Questions to help select targets
Assess Where are they now and where do they need to get to?
Select
What’s the priority? (Child or young person’s may be
different to yours) What strengths can we build on?
Plan
How will we help them get there? What will we do.
When? Who will do what? How long will it take? How will
we know when we’re there?
Use
Intervention – using a strategy or approach
Review Are we where we wanted to be? What difference has it
made? What next?
S
E
T
Target setting
•Specific
•Measurable
Targets •Achievable
•Relevant
•Time-related
Activity 2a Considering your role in using targets
Target setting
Using and
Monitoring
Evaluating
Activity 2b Target setting
• In small groups, choose one of the following children: Artem,
Josie or Pete.
• From the brief descriptions, first decide if their needs seem to
relate to speech, language and/or communication.
• Discuss how you would go about setting a target for them.
• If you can, draft a possible target for them, remembering to
make it as SMART as possible.
• Share your ideas with the rest of your group
Portfolio task 2.1
• In your portfolio, draw a diagram which shows
the process of how targets are set, monitored
and evaluated for children or young people
with SLCN in your setting
• For each part of the process, explain your own
role and the role of the specialist.
Strategies to support children and young people’s
SLCN
Many different strategies e.g.
 Adapting adult language
and communication
 Enhancing the environment
 Using resources and tasks
 Supporting confidence and
self-esteem
 Facilitating communication
between peers
 A focus on areas of speech,
language and
communication
Will vary according to
Child or young person’s:
Age
Needs
Interests
Targets
Priorities
Setting
Level of support in place
Sources of information
There are many accessible, practical guides to supporting
children and young people with SLCN.
The Inclusion Development Programme also has valuable
information, resources and learning activities focusing on
children and young people with SLCN in primary and secondary
school.
Local services will also have specific information, advice and
support if you are working with children and young people with
SLCN.
Strategies to support children and young people’s
SLCN - General areas to cover
1. How can good universal strategies effectively support SLCN?
2. Some targeted strategies focusing on particular areas of
speech, language and communication
3. Points to consider for specialist strategies and interventions
Strategies to support children and young people’s
SLCN - Building on universal strategies
• Many universal strategies are really useful to support SLCN
• However, there are key things to consider when using them at
a targeted or specialist level
Target
setting
Why and how
strategies are
chosen
How the
strategies
are used
Strategies
Who is
involved
and how
How progress
is monitored
and shared
Activity 2c – Developing universal strategies to
support SLCN
• Choose a universal strategy which supports all children and
young people’s speech, language and communication
• It should either be about:
 Adapting adult language and communication or
 Activities focusing on speech, language and communication
• Outline how you would use this strategy to best effect in your
work with a child or young person with SLCN
• What is different when you use it to support SLCN?
• You could use an example from your practice
Activity 2d Using structured interactions to support
SLCN
• Interaction is an important way for young children to learn,
for example children playing imaginatively together, role play,
and working together on creative projects.
• Older children also benefit from having structured
opportunities to discuss their learning.
• These approaches support communication development
generally– however, you will need to consider ‘extras’ to
support children and young people with SLCN to access these
opportunities effectively. You will also need to teach or
demonstrate skills explicitly
• Look at the following examples of structured interactions.
How could you make them accessible to all?
Examples of structured interaction
Structured interaction
Feely bag pairs
Role play
Show and tell
Interesting object
prompts
Paired discussion about
a task or activity
Ideas to support SLCN
Thinking time
Give lots of time to respond
• Our natural instinct is to leave less than 1 second after asking
a question, before jumping in with another question or
comment.
• Try leaving 3 to 5 seconds after a question, to give children or
young people plenty of time to respond.
• What do you notice about their response?
• This is useful for all children and young people and essential
for children with SLCN.
Adapting and modifying adult language and
communication to support SLCN










Label actions and objects with one or two words at a time
Use new or target words frequently
Model to support their language
Minimise words that they won’t understand
Chunk information
Pause after important points
Use gestures or signs to support what you say
Give instructions in the order that they need to happen
Use reminders
Avoid idioms which may be confusing
Activity 2e - Adapting adult language
• Working in pairs or small groups, look at the following
examples of adult talk.
• For each one, highlight any potential difficulties you can see
which may be problematic for a child or young person with
difficulties understanding language.
• Then, suggest a way that the adult could change their
language to help support understanding better
Activity 2e - Adapting our own communication
Adult talk
Once we’re all sorted and we’ve tidied up the bricks especially, we’re
going to go outside and have a run around before we settle back in for
painting.
What were you thinking this morning, walking around like that?
The purpose of the people’s reaction is clear under the circumstances
Get your coat after you’ve finished your drink
I expect more of you
Activity 2f – Observing your own communication
• Ask a colleague to observe or record an example of yourself
interacting with a child or young person with SLCN. Make sure
you have the appropriate permissions
• Using your observations:
 Give an example of when and how you have adapted your
language or communication for that child or young person
 Give any examples of how you could have adapted your
language more or differently
Discussion - Enhancing the environment to support SLCN
A supportive environment for communication
 Has good light, space and minimal background noise
 Uses the opportunity to develop vocabulary and literacy by
labelling equipment and resources
 Has clear and consistent routines
 Has access to relevant and interesting books
 Has opportunities for activities led by the child or young person
 Has clear learning areas
• Why might these features be particularly important for
children and young people with SLCN?
Activity 2g - Enhancing the environment to support
SLCN
• Work in small groups
• You have an opportunity to redesign a setting to make its
environment as supportive as possible for children or young
people with SLCN.
• Draw and label what this would look like
• Alternatively, take photographs (with permission) of an existing
setting. Highlight ways it currently supports SLCN and identify
any ways this could be developed further.
Adapting resources and tasks
• As part of learning outcome 3, you will need to demonstrate
how you adapt resources and tasks to support children and
young people with SLCN. This includes:
 Everyday activities
 Specific resources or activities you use as part of your work
(e.g. within a curriculum)
 Daily routines
 Published resources and written information
Activity 2h - Adapting resources and tasks
• Work in small groups.
• Choose one of the case studies provided
• Think of a task that happens in your setting – it could be an
everyday activity, a daily routine or something specific to your
role (e.g. something as part of a curriculum)
• Bring in a resource you use – this could be a game, book, toy
or written materials for example
• For both the task and the resource think of how you will
adapt them so that they are accessible and beneficial for your
case study child.
Positive Strategies may focus on particular areas of
speech, language and communication:
• For example
– Listening and attention skills
– Developing skills in monitoring their own understanding
– Phonological awareness tasks (e.g. syllable awareness,
rhyming skills, blending and segmenting)
– Word learning and word finding skills
– Vocabulary development
– Narrative abilities
– Sentence building
– Social communication skills
Activity 2i - Strategies focusing on areas of speech,
language or communication
• Choose one of the areas of speech, language and
communication from the following slide
• Describe a strategy you have used to support a child or young
person’s SLCN in this area.
• Include:
 Why that strategy was chosen
 Who it was used with
 How it was used
 What the benefits were from using this strategy.
• Explain how this was a positive strategy
• Share this with your group
Strategies focusing on areas of speech, language or
communication
Speech
Attention and
listening
Learning new
words
Building spoken
language
Social
communication
Telling stories
Strategies to support learning new words
•
•
•
•
•
•
Teach new words using a range of techniques
Label objects and actions often
Use real objects to introduce new words
Use words often and in context
Relate them to what they already know
Once words are learnt, relate them to categories , with lots of
sorting tasks and discussions around odd-one-out.
• Try and involve all of the senses if possible
• Represent words visually – use pictures, symbols, fonts to
make them memorable
Positive Strategies learning new vocabulary 2
• Use techniques such as mind maps, spider diagrams, concept
maps to highlight and organise information about:
 Meaning
 Sounds
 Similar words
 Different contexts
• Use questioning to get children and young people to use the
words and apply their own meaning, such as:
 When might you...?
 How might you....?
 Have you ever....?
Activity 2j - Learning new words
• Working with a partner, choose 2 words that you need to
introduce to a child or young person with SLCN who you work
with
• Make a brief plan outlining the different ways you will
introduce and support the child or young person to learn
these new words.
• You could include illustrations to show how you might do this
too
Research evidence for targeted interventions
• Practitioners and researchers are working hard to increase the
evidence about ‘what works’ in terms of supporting children
and young people with SLCN
• Some evidence is from robust research projects
• There is also more informal evidence available – where
practitioners have tried out interventions and reported
positive benefits, although these may not have been so
scientifically planned or evaluated as rigorously.
Specialist support
• Some children and young people have significant
SLCN and require specialist support
• Those specialists will have detailed knowledge of
the child or young person’s strengths and needs,
based on thorough assessment
• Strategies and approaches would therefore be
chosen or developed for individual children and
young people and their use would be supported
by specialist practitioners
Specialist Assessments
• Specialist professionals such as speech and language therapists
and educational psychologists will often assess children and
young people and write reports on what they find out.
• These assessments may be based on:
–Standardised tests,
–Structured observations
– Interactions with the child
–Informal assessments
–Discussions with adults who know the child.
Alternative and Augmentative Communication (AAC)
• Some children and young people have particular difficulties
with speech, have limited speech, or physically can’t speak
• Augmentative and Alternative Communication describes the
different ways of communicating, either to
 support speaking (augmentative) or
 instead of speaking (alternative).
• AAC describes a wide range of techniques to support spoken
communication.
• These include gesture, signing, symbols, word boards,
communication boards and books, as well as Voice
Output Communication Aids (VOCAs).
Discussion – Working alongside specialists
• Why is it essential to work together with others to support
children and young people with SLCN?
Activity 2k - Working alongside speech, language and
communication specialists
• As a group, think of the specialists who work with children and
young people with SLCN
• Choose one of them and outline the different ways you work
alongside them
• Share your different ways of working with your group
• Consider if there are any new ways of working with specialists
which you feel would be useful for you and the children and
young people you work with
Working with specialists
• If you have concerns about a child/young person’s speech,
language and communication skills, your setting may have a
process in place to follow up such concerns.
• You can use your observations of the child/young person to
gather information about their skills, so that you have specific
examples to support any concerns.
• It is important to keep parents informed of any concerns you
may have, discussing their views and discussing potential next
steps. Your setting may have guidance on how to keep parents
informed and involved.
Portfolio task 2.2
• Produce some simple, easy to read leaflets or posters which
describe some different strategies and targets to support SLCN.
• These could be aimed at colleagues in your setting or parents,
carers and families
• Include an explanation of how these strategies are chosen and
used.
• You will also need to compare different examples of how
strategies and targets have been used
Learning Reflection 2
• Identify one thing which you think has been interesting and/or
useful from Learning Outcome 2.
• How will this change your practice?
• In your portfolio, reflect on how your practice has changed and
the impact this had on the children/young people you work
with.
Learning Outcome 3
• Be able to place children and young people at the centre of
professional practice when working with children and young
with speech, language and communication needs.
Discussion
• Why is it important to put the child or young person in the
centre of our practice?
• As a group, highlight the reasons why this is essential.
Child-centred practice
• Each child and young person has a unique profile of strengths
and difficulties.
• The circumstances around the child’s strengths and difficulties
also vary.
• Factors such as the environment, support and resources,
other life events and experiences will all impact on how best
to support a child.
• There can be no ‘one size fits all’ package of support.
Activity 3a Issues and implications in settings
• In small groups, think of a setting you know well.
• Choose one of the areas below
• Identify any possible issues there could be for children with
SLCN.
Adult language
Activities and tasks
Social
opportunities
The environment
Opportunities for
children and
young people’s
views
Children and young people’s views - discussion
• Children and young people have insightful and unique views on
their own strengths, difficulties, how they can best be
supported and how they learn most effectively.
• There are different approaches to finding out the views of
children and young people.
• How does your setting currently find out the views of the
children and young people that you work with?
• How does this work for any children and young people with
SLCN?
• How effectively does your setting use these views to
inform practice?
Approaches to gain children and young people’s views
• Ask them!
• Use a standardised questionnaire
• Work together to develop a strategies advice sheet (or
communication passport)
• Talk with them about strategies you may use – when you’ve
tried it, ask them what they think – how did it help; how did
they feel about it – was it fun, interesting; what difference did
it make? What else and what next?
• Using simple rating scales to get feedback
Activity 3b - Strategies Advice Sheet
Work with a child or young person in your setting to create a
strategies advice sheet for adults to use with them.
1. Spend time chatting to the child or young person about why
you’re making the advice sheet.
2. Decide on what to put in it the advice sheet, with suggested
sections on ‘About Me’, ‘Things I find difficult’, ‘Ways I can
help myself’ and ‘Things you can do to help’.
3. Decide on who to share the advice sheet with.
Activity 3b Example Advice Sheet
About Me:
•
•
•
•
•
•
I am 7 years old.
I like dogs. I have a dog called Pansy.
I like playing on my x-box and
playing outside with my brother Joe.
My favourite lesson is Music.
My favourite film is Kung Fu Panda 2.
I am good at making flapjacks and
drawing Stork from Kung Foo Panda.
Things I find difficult:
• I find it hard to understand teachers
when they talk for ages and ages.
• I can’t learn new words very quick.
• I get shy talking in class.
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
I can help myself by:
Asking Miss White when I get stuck.
Looking at the teacher when she talks
Using my fingers to remember what I
have to do.
Put my hand up if I can guess an
answer.
You can help me by:
Don’t ask me unless I put my hand up.
Talk to me about the things I like.
I like drawing mind maps of new
school words.
Tell me what to do one bit at a time.
Check I understood what you mean.
A simple rating scale
Use a simple rating scale with a child or young person you are
working with





Portfolio task 3.1
• Identify any issues and implications in your work setting for
children and young people with SLCN. For example:
 Is the environment ‘communication friendly’?
 Are activities and tasks accessible for children and young
people with SLCN?
 Are social opportunities also accessible?
 Are staff able to support children and young people with SLCN
confidently?
 Are there effective opportunities to listen to the views of
children and young people with SLCN in your setting?
• Develop a simple action plan to outline how these
can be minimised or overcome
Portfolio task 3.2
• This task will be assessed in relation to your work setting and is
an opportunity for you to show how you have put your learning
about supporting children and young people with SLCN into
practice.
• Keep a reflective diary of some different ways you have
supported children or young people with SLCN. In your diary,
you will need to include examples of how you have adapted
and modified:
 Your own communication
 Resources and tasks
Learning Reflection 3
• Identify one thing which you think has been interesting and/or useful from
Learning Outcome 3.
• How will this change your practice?
• In your portfolio, reflect on how your practice has changed and the impact
this had on the children/young people you work with.
Learning Outcome 4
• Understand how to work with others to support the social,
emotional and cognitive needs of children and young people.
Learning Outcome 4
• Speech, language and communication skills are associated with all
aspects of development, at all stages of development:
 Cognitive development and learning
 Social skills
 Emotional development
 Behaviour
• Because of these very close links, SLCN can impact on any or all of
these areas of development
SLCN and social development
Understanding
social language
eg jokes,
sarcasm
Making new
friends
Being able to
join in
conversations
Dealing with misunderstandings
Confidence in
social
situations
Social
development
Linking causes
and
consequences
SLCN and emotional development
• Understanding and using
emotion vocabulary
• Understanding causes and
Possible
consequences
impacts of
• Building relationships
SLCN on
emotional • Perception of own
development
communication skills
• Confidence and self-esteem
SLCN and learning
• SLCN has the potential to affect many aspects of learning eg:
– Accessing new information and concepts
– Finding information difficult to follow can lead to children and
young people switching off
– SLCN is sometimes associated with reduced short term and
working memory
– Reduced word knowledge can be a further barrier to learning
– Language is required for ‘thinking things through’
during problem solving
– The ability to demonstrate and develop
learning through giving explanations
Activity 4a - The possible impacts of SLCN
• Think of a child or young person you work with
• Briefly summarise their SLCN
• Consider how their SLCN may impact on each of the following
areas of development
 Social
 Emotional
 Cognitive
• You may wish to consider short and long term impacts.
• You could use one of the brief case studies provided if you prefer.
How can social, emotional and cognitive needs affect
speech, language and communication?
Possible effects
on speech,
language and
communication
Social, emotional
or cognitive need
Potential impact
on further social,
emotional or
cognitive
development
Activity 4b - Social, emotional and cognitive needs and
speech, language and communication?
• In small groups, choose one of the following case studies
• For each, think about the possible impacts on their speech,
language and communication
• Then think of any possible subsequent effects on their social,
emotional or cognitive development
• You can record your ideas on the diagram in your handbook
Activity 4c - The roles of other professionals
• Other specialists will have roles in giving additional support for
social, emotional and cognitive needs. Who might these be?
• Choose one and find out about their role in working with children
and young people with SLCN and how to access their support
• Share your findings with your group.
Portfolio task 4.1
• Prepare for a short professional discussion on speech, language
and communication and social, emotional and cognitive needs.
• This discussion could be either with work colleagues or other
learners. Your tutor will let you know if you will be assessed
through your notes or through an actual discussion.
• To support your discussion, make some brief notes to explain:
 How SLCN can affect children and young people’s social,
emotional and cognitive development
 How social, emotional and cognitive needs can affect speech,
language and communication
Portfolio task 4.2
• Draw a diagram or complete a table to show other professionals
who may be involved in supporting children and young people
with SLCN.
• Include some information on each of their roles.
• Identify how they may support the social, emotional and
cognitive needs of children and young people with SLCN.
• Highlight any professionals who are particularly relevant for the
children and young people you work with and explain how you
would access additional support from them
Learning Reflection 4
• Identify one thing which you think has been interesting and/or
useful from Learning Outcome 4.
• How will this change your practice?
• In your portfolio, reflect on how your practice has changed and
the impact this had on the children/young people you work
with.
Hello
2011 is the National Year
of Communication
‘Hello’ is a national campaign run by The Communication Trust,
complementing the Government’s commitment to support children
with speech, language and communication needs.
Please visit www.hello.org.uk for more information on how you and
your setting can help improve the communication skills of children
and young people – so that they can live their life to the full.