Downright Special Education

At Downright Special everything we do is based on an understanding of the specific learning profile of children with Down syndrome. The children do not simply have the generalised learning delay often assumed. The good news is that if we use the correct strategies these children can learn effectively, going on to read, write and access the rest of the school curriculum.

Downright Special Education aims to support effective inclusion in mainstream schools.  We employ an Early Years Advisor, Key Stage 1 Specialist Teacher and a Key Stage 2/3 Advisory Teacher who together have several years’ experience of teaching children with Down syndrome and have seen the benefits of applying teaching techniques specific to the learning profile of our children.

Downright Special Education offers support to schools primarily through our Downright Special Friday sessions where school-age children attend with their Teaching Assistants for a structured lesson.  These lessons cover core aspects of the curriculum including reading, writing, literacy, numeracy, speech and language development and take place on Friday afternoons. Younger children (birth to foundation stage) attend our weekly morning play and education sessions.

In addition to the Friday sessions our teaching staff offer outreach work, individual advice and training opportunities for education staff. We currently provide outreach support to around 45 nurseries, pre-schools, primary schools and secondary schools in our area.

Our training page gives more details of our programme of online and face-to-face training and information on our INSET training offer. Education staff from mainstream and special schools are welcome to attend any of our training.

For further information or to enquire about support for a child in your setting please get in touch on 01482 420160 or email office@downrightspecial.co.uk