Every star shines a little differently
Need someone to listen and advise?
Specialist teaching and support for early dyslexia.
About Andrea Green
Andrea has 30 years experience in 8 schools including working with SEND children.
She has a BA (Hons) Humanities (degree), P.G.C.E (teaching qualification), N.P.Q.H, (headteacher qualification) and is currently studying part time for a post-graduate Diploma in Specific Learning Difficulties and Inclusion (DipSpLD) to support learners more.
For the last 20 years she was a school leader.
As headteacher OFSTED praised the “positive and ambitious culture” in school over many years. “All children were personally known” and “delight in learning” SIAMS inspection 2021.
She was also interim headteacher for a school with a SEND unit.
Andrea is passionate that as every child is special, so should their education be.
Services
All children are individuals and my hope is for all children to enjoy a “special education” regardless of starting point or barriers.
Specialist Teaching & Support
Following discussion with you, I can offer one to one specialist teaching for your child in your home.
This can be to support any Special Needs information from school such as a One Page Profile or any assessment outcomes.
Alternatively, if this is yet to be done, I can assess your child and support them from there.
If your child has dyslexia type issues e.g. slow progress in phonics or reading, poor spelling, poor organisation or concentration, I can support by assessing your child with a dyslexia screening tool. This will show the likelihood of your child having dyslexia and give a way forward prior to formal assessment by a specialist qualified assessor.
Advice
I can give independent advice about any educational issue your child may be having.
Sometimes the information from school can be confusing or seem overwhelming; I will explain any school documents to you and then draw up a plan to support your child or give you questions to go back to school with so that your child can be well supported at school.
I can support your child if school say your child is not at the standard expected for their age and there is not yet an identified cause. Every star shines differently is my tag line – not all children develop at the same rate. There can be 11 months in age difference in a year group class! Sometimes a child may need a different style of learning or some very precise teaching to close a particular gap. All of this can be addressed.
Home Learners
I am able to support parents as they manage home learning. I can meet with you to discuss the curriculum, making learning manageable at home, assess your child so that you are reassured that they are working at age appropriate levels and provide plans/support where any catch up is needed.
If your child is home educated due to special learning needs, I can support you with targeted areas to help you in providing small steps learning to your child. There is support for home learning families from home learning groups to tap into too.
Mediation
I am able to support you if you feel your child’s school are not helping your child to learn as you would expect. Following meeting with you and discussion to gather information about the situation, I could attend any school meetings with you to support you. She could ask the specialist questions that you may not know to ask and can explain to you what the school language and jargon means for you and your child. Children do best when schools and parents can work together and I’m happy to be the “go between” to make this happen.
Dyslexia Screening
If your child is struggling to grasp phonics and reading, issues with spelling and other issues such as poor concentration or organisation then they may benefit from an early stage dyslexia screening. I have a special interest in dyslexia and am able to assess your child using the Dyslexia Screening Tool to establish your child’s risk factor for dyslexia. Following this a careful plan of support can be drawn up to help your child. This is the first stage of any assessment of dyslexia.
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Frequently Asked Questions
What are the first steps?
Please use the contact form or call me on the line above to speak to me. I will always call you to find out more about your worry. It may be I can reassure you straight away. It may be that we need to meet face to face so I can look at plans or school information. Either way, we will agree next steps together.
Should I keep my child off school for a meeting with you?
If I need to meet your child this can be done at home after school and a time can be agreed. Regular attendance at school is important for your child so they don’t get gaps in learning and also so they can access any special help the school or teacher are giving them.
I am a bit worried about a school type person coming to meet me…
I’m very approachable and know that this can be daunting. But, we can meet first on neutral ground e.g. a coffee shop if that suits better. Although I have been a headteacher, I am also a step-mum and Nana. I care passionately about children and left headship because I was doing more paperwork than being with the children. I was a small school headteacher and knew every child and family. I really enjoyed getting to know families over the years and parents trusted me to do the right thing by their child. Schools don’t always get it right, although they try hard – they are busy places, with funding issues. Parents contact me because they are worried and want the best for their child. I do too so please call me and we can help your child together.
Does my child need to be there if we meet?
Not at first. It is better to talk about your child and for us to look at documents without your child present so we can talk honestly about what is happening. Following this, we can agree a next step together.
I have decided to home educate my child but need some advice.
There are lots of good home learning groups who will be able to guide you and support you. However, if you want some advice about how your child is doing compared to others of their age (for example if you are considering them returning to primary school or later to secondary school) then I can advise. I can also provide specialist teaching to close any gaps.
If your child is home learning due to special needs then I can advise on this. I can help you plan a timetable that meets their needs and a learning plan that helps them make the small steps of progress they need so you can all see the progress and celebrate those gains!
I think my child is dyslexic but school don’t seem to be doing much…
Dyslexia and early reading and writing is a complicated area. I would be happy to meet with you, learn about your child and your concerns then advise you on next steps. If appropriate, I am able to administer the first level dyslexia screening assessment if required so you would have evidence of your concerns.
Contact us
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