Case study 4: Using frames with Odd One Out activities
Teacher-researcher Greg Mace says “children know what is expected of them, are less anxious and more focused.”
Teacher-researcher
Greg Mace
Setting
Greg runs a special educational provision for autistic children aged from 5-11. The provision is based within a mainstream school and operates a system of integration and intervention. The system allows the children access to their mainstream lessons when possible and receive additional support within the provision when needed. The aim is to build their confidence and communication skills so that they return to full-time mainstream educational within two to three years.
Identified need
Greg wanted to find a new way to help the children to focus on their science learning. He also hoped to extend their attention and provide a pathway to develop their thinking. Within each activity, Greg wanted to provide an element of challenge for each child.
Greg felt that re-framing the task within a more accessible format would help to make the learning easier to understand. He also believed that by using the same format routinely he could help children know what was expected of them. Ultimately, this would lower children’s anxiety levels and enable them to be ready-to-learn.
The Approach
Greg had experienced using a ‘frame’ format to help children to focus when he took part in the ‘Inclusive Approaches in Primary science’ project. He carefully selected the group of children, the time of day and provided a calm environment. Greg presented Explorify Odd One Out activities (e.g. Tropical fruits and Baby animals) supported by ‘frames’ like these:
He added visual instructions to the corners of the frame so that children were clear about what they should be doing. The frame also included introductory questions for the Odd One Out activity and a sentence stem to help children organise their ideas.
You can download these frames here.
Key outcomes for children
Better understanding of what is expected
Lower anxiety leading to improved focus
Greg’s reflections
Explorify resources are high quality and interesting. Using them helps me establishing positive relationships with all the children I work with. The Explorify activities hook the children and get them thinking and talking - often there’s an element of surprise and excitement. When the children are motivated, they can make better progress academically.
Using a frame makes the Explorify activity more accessible. I found that children knew what was expected of them and could repeat back what they had to do. This lowered their anxiety and focused their attention. The frame also provided a record of the intervention for each child. This is useful so that I can review their progress and feedback to the other teachers.
