Hereford and Worcester SEND Advisory Services

Touch typing allows you to type without looking at the keyboard, helping you work faster and more accurately. It improves productivity by letting you focus on your work instead of finding keys, reduces typing errors, and makes note-taking and document creation more efficient. It can also encourage better posture by minimising unnecessary hand and head movement. As a valuable lifelong skill, touch typing is useful for students, professionals, and anyone who uses a computer regularly.

☀️ Get Ahead This Summer with Touch Typing!

Looking for a useful skill to boost confidence before the new school year? Our Introduction to touch typing course is the perfect solution. This is especially helpful if handwriting is a challenge.

🗓 27–29 July 2026
⏱ 1.5-hour sessions each day

Morning session (Ages 6–11)
🕤 9:30am–11:00am

Late morning session (Ages 10–teens)
🕦 11:30am–1:00pm

Over three days, learners will:
✅ Master all letter keys
✅ Build confidence with punctuation & numbers
✅ Learn through multi-sensory techniques
✅ Gain a strong foundation for speed & accuracy

💬 “I think the course is pretty good because now I’m a lot better at typing than I first was. It is also an effective way of learning.””

Spaces are limited—book early to get ahead this summer!
https://helenarkell.org.uk/events/introduction-to-touch-typing-for-children-july-2026/

The constant effort to fit in at school came at a cost. Masking led to overwhelm, anxiety, and autistic burnout at home. Rest, acceptance, and time are essential parts of the healing process.

When it's your own child, it can be heartbreaking. There are moments when you feel completely lost, emotionally drained, and exhausted. During these challenging times, it's important not to forget the siblings. They are navigating their own emotions too - watching, worrying, adapting, and often carrying more than we realise. The whole family is affected, and every member deserves support, understanding, and space to be heard.

Be kind to yourself; reach out for support as you're not alone.

Masking is exhausting.

Many autistic children spend their entire school day carefully watching, copying, adjusting and holding themselves together so they can appear “like everyone else”. They may rehearse what to say, force eye contact, hide stimming, suppress overwhelm, and constantly monitor how others respond to them.

To the outside world, it can look like they are coping.

But inside, it often feels like acting in a play that never ends.

When a child is masking, they are using enormous mental and emotional energy just to get through the day. By the time they reach home, their nervous system may be completely depleted. This is why many families see what looks like sudden meltdowns, shutdowns, or after-school restraint collapse.

What we are witnessing is not bad behaviour.

It is the nervous system finally releasing the pressure of a day spent holding everything in.

Understanding masking changes how we respond. Instead of asking why a child “loses control” at home, we begin asking what it took for them to hold it together all day.

If you’d like practical ways to support a child who is masking at school and crashing at home, my Masking Toolkit is designed to help parents and educators understand what’s happening beneath the surface and how to support nervous system recovery. Link in comments below ⬇️ or via Linktree Shop in Bio.

Hearing is important for literacy development because it supports speech, language, and phonological awareness. Children with hearing loss may have difficulties learning vocabulary, recognising speech sounds, and linking sounds to letters, which can affect reading and writing. Early identification and appropriate support can help improve literacy outcomes.

Not every assessment results in a dyslexia diagnosis—and that's okay.

Recently, I assessed a young person who performed well in a quiet, one-to-one setting and did not meet the criteria for dyslexia under the Delphi Definition (SASC, 2025). However, their experience in school was very different. High levels of anxiety were impacting attendance, learning, and their ability to demonstrate their skills in the classroom.

This is a reminder that assessment is about understanding the whole individual, not just determining whether they meet a diagnostic threshold. Recommendations may need to address emotional wellbeing alongside literacy development to ensure meaningful support is put in place.

Please check the comments for some of the resources I recommended to support anxiety and wellbeing. They have been tried and tested!

This will be familiar to some parents. The Contended Child is a valuable resource for parents and teachers. Explore their page or website for more information.

After school restraint collapse isn’t misbehaviour — it’s what happens when a child has held it together all day and finally feels safe enough to let go.

What you see at home is often the release of everything they’ve been managing quietly at school.

When we understand the “why,” we can respond with connection instead of correction — and that’s where real support begins.

If this resonates, my After School Restraint Collapse Toolkit is linked in comments below ⬇️ or via Linktree Shop in Bio.

Who would like to become the new owner of this incredible set of resources from our friends at Cuisenaire Company?! Just let us know where you are commenting from and sprinkle the post to your friends and colleagues!

A great resource for learners with SEND.

App Wheel update alert! 🚨

We've updated our popular 'iPad Apps to Support Learners with Complex Additional Support Needs' app wheel. You can explore and download a copy of the updated version of the wheel on the CALL Scotland website.

Don't forget you can click on the app icons to be taken straight to their download pages on the app store where you can find out more about them.

https://bit.ly/AppwheelCLN

Some useful considerations from the NHS for those who are sitting exams at the moment. For example, don't underestimate the need to eat despite how nauseous the person may be feeling ....

A passion of mine - ASC/ASD. What are the effects of masking?

Understanding The Effects of Masking Autism Explore how masking autism impacts mental health, relationships, and self-identity, and learn ways to support authentic self-expression.