Carla's Classroom

Did anyone get this critical thinking post? 🤔 I didn’t 🙈🙈

PALS = FRIENDS
PINNACLES = HIGH PLACES

Therefore, PALS highlighted inside PINNACLES creates the famous saying “friends in high places” ☺️☺️

Far too cryptic for my little brain 🤯🤣

Hmm...you may need your 'friends' to help you work this one out :)🧐

Some puzzles are visual, and bypass our usual ways of processing language.

Crack this visual puzzle by thinking about whether there are multiple words and what their meanings could be - can they be combined? 🤔🤔

Good luck! The answer will be posted tomorrow! 👏🏾👏🏾

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Our Wonderful Word of the Week is 'lugubrious'. Chosen by Lauren from the book she was reading over half term, this shows you that once you’re a teacher, you’re always a teacher. You cannot simply read a book anymore without thinking, “that would be a fantastic Word of the Week,” or “That’s a great example of parenthesis.” In Lauren’s book, the word Lugubrious has been used with personification; the author has cleverly used it to give the sea an emotion of sadness. It instantly shows it’s not summer.

This less commonly used adjective stands out from the crowd as ambitious vocabulary in creative writing as it has such a depth to its meaning.

Lugubrious describes the intensity of the sadness endured. When coupled with pathetic fallacy (the weather reflecting a character's mood or tone) the reader senses how heavy the feeling is to carry.

A great word to use as a contrast with a happy or joyful character or scenario in your story.

If your child is finding extended writing a challenge why not get in touch with our experienced, dedicated eleven plus tutors today? We're here to help! [email protected] 🩷

Great news- Johannes is our Star of the Week 🥳🥳🎉🎉 I am so pleased to hear this, especially after he changed tutors; it shows it was the right decision and he’s built up a good rapport with our lovely Lauren 🥰🥰 Occasionally, the chemistry isn’t right between pupil and teacher and it’s my job to make changes. And Lauren and Johannes had great rapport straight away. She wrote some fantastic comments:

“I have chosen Johannes for my star of the week because his English homework is so impressive. I asked Johannes to create an informative poster based on our lesson on The Titanic. As you can see he really went the extra mile showcasing his resplendent research skills, by carefully crafting a dynamic piece of work that involves the reader kinetically!

Well done Johannes, you are always striving to do your best and let your authentic, positive character shine through your work. ☺️”

I was so pleased to read this as it showed Lauren really understood his style of learning. The work demonstrated he was clearly enjoying the topic and wanted to do well. He wasn’t always keen to do his homework before, so it just shows you that when you get the right teacher and pupil combination, children really thrive. SEND and additional needs don’t need to be barriers to learning when educators unlock the way you learn ☺️☺️

When revising for eleven plus exams, unpacking a riddle is a useful but lighthearted way to really stretch a child's problem-solving skills, especially in the areas of critical thinking and linking ideas.

For an extra mental agility workout why not try and create your own riddle based on an image?
How would you create a riddle for a mole for example? A mole is an interesting creature as it is nearly blind, digs tunnels in the dark and creates hills - where will your imagination take you...?

Feel free to share your own original riddles in the comments or even your favourites to get those brains buzzing! 🥳

Does this sound all too familiar? 🤔

Feeling anxious or worried after mock exam results?
Comparing themselves to siblings or peers? Feeling stressed about the next academic year with new topics and new teachers? 😣
These can be natural human reactions or responses to school and exam pressure, but we are here to help alleviate this.

Having a child with SEND can feel daunting and isolating, especially if they are being compared with their peers, learn differently, never seem to 'just get it' or constantly run out of time completing work. It can be even more challenging if their teachers don’t see their difficulties due to their masking, and cannot grasp that behaviour is different at home. You may be dealing with daily meltdowns and getting homework completed is an impossible task 😔

We are patient and skilled at supporting children with SEND; many of our tutors are neurodivergent also so have been through the same battles. Our director Carla has nearly 20 years of teaching experience which the last ten years being dedicated to working and training in SEND. It was extremely important to her that she remained up to date with the latest research, and participated in courses led by neurodivergent people, or who had previous lived experience. Having completed training and certification in Autism, Dyslexia, ADHD, Dyspraxia, Dysgraphia, DCD, RSD, PDA, SPD, Global Developmental Delay, OCD, Ehlers Danlos Syndrome, PANS/PANDA, burnout, anxiety disorders, to name a few, she continues to update training every week, ensuring all staff are briefed and prepared to be able to successfully teach ALL children.

At Carla’s Classroom, our curriculums are bespoke and tailored for each child. Our staff know how to break lessons down into bitesize chunks, understand how being neurodivergent can affect executive function and short term memory, meaning we need to develop strategies that train the brains to commit to long term memory. 😊

So, don't feel worried, get in touch with us for a chat to see where we can help. 🧡

Our Word of the Week is 'evoke'.

From the Latin 'evocare', this verb can add dynamic depth to your creative writing!

You can use the word evoke when creating olfactory (sense of smell) imagery, for example:

'Pine needles crunched under Robin and Marian's boots, releasing a sharp scent that evoked the thrill of the hunt, campfires and sunlit forest glades.’

Creative writing and sensory language techniques go hand in hand so we love showing our students how to weave the five senses into a setting, through a character's thoughts or to bring alive a story arc.

The eleven plus writing paper does not have to be daunting for our students, we take our time in lessons to teach structure, description and of course - how and and when to include only the very best elevated vocabulary.

If your child is finding extended writing a challenge why not get in touch with our experienced, dedicated eleven plus tutors today? We're here to help! [email protected]

A great opportunity to speak to a local MP who actually understands and cares about what’s happening in SEND. If your local authority isn’t complying with statutory law, or a school, this is your time to garner support and gain advice.

I’ll be joined by a senior Lib Dem as well as Steve Wotton and Paul Follows – the new leaders of East and West Surrey Council for our next SEND coffee morning. This will be in Horley on the 5th June (exact location TBA) between 9:30am – 11am.

All attendees must sign up by the 3rd of June via this link: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/send-meeting-with-chris-coghlan-mp-senior-lib-dem-tickets-1989642683827

A very happy and restful half term to our lovely students, parents, carers and guardians.
Well done for all your hard work and dedication to your studies!

Of course, we will keep your brains whirring during your break - can you solve our rewarding riddle?

Pssst, if you have read the epic fantasy classic 'The Hobbit' by J. R. R Tolkein you may just have the upper hand, or should we say, 'fin'.

Think back to the chapter where the tragically transformed Gollum poses this riddle to Bilbo Baggins, the heroic hobbit and protagonist of the story...

The answer will be out next week!