For my second placement at University, I wanted to go down a different route and try something different with different challenges.  Apple fields is a special school for secondary aged students with a wide range of learning difficulties some a lot more severe then others. Special needs include, autism, down syndrome, and learning disabilities etc.  We visited the school for 6 weeks, doing an hours dance/movement class for the young people.  This really broadened my teaching knowledge on how to deal with these young people and how to get the best out of them. Including new techniques on how to approach, communicate and interact with young people with special needs. I worked closely along side a young girl with sever autism, her speech was limited so was difficult to understand how she felt. From working with her after a number of weeks I learnt how to read her body language dictating her mood. Therefor I was able to support her in ways she needed.

Working at apple fields, has not only given my experience in other sectors of teaching, but also given me confidence in myself, knowing I have the ability to support young people with sever learning disabilities. A lot of the time when working with the young people in Apple fields we had a lot of supporting staff, normally one member of staff to two young people. which gave us time to actually get to know the individuals and learn their interests, but also learn what they don’t like, which gives us information on how to support them through the good times, and the bad.