All-Ability

Since the opening of Side by Side, in Hackney, 20 years ago, children with special educational needs have benefited from the integrated nursery and special school, recognised by Ofsted as “good” in all categories and praised for its “pupil-centred ethos”. Side by Side educates more than 80 pupils, with specialist programmes to account for each child’s individual abilities.

The integrated nursery is a win-win for all the children. The special children learn and grow in an environment where they can play alongside their mainstream classmates as a peer group. They observe and then model how to play, eat, speak and act with great confidence and understanding.

All children become more self-assured, build up friendships and are supported, encouraged and praised by staff. For children who may require some additional support, parents choose to send their children to Side by Side to benefit from the educational interventions available but at the same time build friendships, preparing them to progress to mainstream schools.

Our nursery actualises the idea of a society without the stigma of special needs and disability. It is wonderful to see the mainstream children connect, thrive and learn in this environment and create a new generation of children who are empathetic and inclusive, with the hope that they will carry this throughout their lives.

Ofsted inspectors noted how the children are “made to feel special, successful and safe […] yet at the same time, leaders balance this excellent level of care and nurture with high expectations of pupils’ learning, behaviour and progress.” Staff co-ordinate and design programmes to enable the pupils to experience a deeper understanding of the Jewish culture which underpins the school and their lives. Since the Jewish year is structured according to a yearly cycle of festivals and a weekly cycle of Shabbat, the school curriculum reflects this calendar and each event is organised as an engaging and spiritual experience for the pupils, so that they can share in their families’ religious practice. In addition, teaching of British values is essential.

Educators employ various methods to aid their teaching. One is augmentative and alternative communication (AAC), where specialist speech and language therapists work alongside the teachers to ensure all children have “their voice” heard, even when they are unable to speak.

AAC approaches include basic systems such as pictures, symbols, signing and communication books, as well as hi-tech solutions such as iPads and Eye Gaze, which enables children to communicate through eye-movements on a screen. Technology has empowered children who struggle to communicate to express themselves in alternative ways.

Side by Side prepares pupils to live as independently as possible, through qualifications from national bodies such as Asdan, in employability skills and social and personal development. Pupils take pride in their achievements and look forward to work experience placements that develop their abilities and interests. Some pupils have created a library from scratch, which they manage as a team. Initiatives such as these instil confidence in the pupils as they witness their ideas and creativity coming to fruition and believe that their special educational needs do not bar them from excellence.

Gerald Lebrett is head teacher at Side by Side

Multi-Lingual

With latest research confirming there is a critical cut-off age for fluently learning a language, many families opt to send their children to bilingual nurseries from an early age, regardless of whether English is a second language at home.

Keren’s Nursery, rated outstanding by Ofsted, has sites in London’s Hampstead Garden Suburb, Belsize Park and Holland Park. It has an exceptional reputation for its balanced bilingual English/Hebrew-based curriculum and for its teaching of additional languages as part and parcel of the daily routine.

A sizeable number of pupils speak Hebrew as their first language and these children are taught side by side with English speakers to help integration and learning. Teachers speak, sing and play with all children in English and Hebrew, whatever the mother tongue.

All day, every day at Keren’s Nurseries, the sound of Israeli and English songs can be heard ringing through the classes and outside spaces. Storytelling is just as likely to be from Modern Hebrew books as from English classics for pre-schoolers and peripatetic lessons including yoga, music and movement are taught in Hebrew and English. The Kabalat Shabbat ceremony is in Hebrew every Friday.

With English and Hebrew as the two “base languages”, the curriculum at Keren’s goes even further, extending every child’s capacity to learn multiple languages at such a young age. Every month, pupils are taught a “language of the month” to reflect the cosmopolitan nature of the families in their communities, as diverse as Portuguese, French and Russian. These additional languages are taught on a monthly rotation, by way of song, counting, flash cards, story time and project-based activities.

Parents also get involved, bringing their own traditions, including food, music and stories, into the classroom to foster a wider sense of community in the schools.

Makaton is taught, too. Keren ben Ezra, the founder of the nursery, says: “Our children thrive on learning different ways to communicate and see it all as part of play. Makaton is part of daily play, to support language and a sense of belonging. We care for children from all over the world and our teachers learn the basic vocabulary of our international pupils to support these children and their families. ”

More details at kerensnursery.com

Forest School

The Forest School concept has found a firm place in many schools and nurseries in the Jewish community. But what does it entail and why is it so popular?

Keren’s Nursery is accredited by the Forest School Association and the method is part of its curriculum at all its three sites. Keren ben Ezra says: “Forest School is outdoor, nature-based learning that centres on the rounded development of each child. In Forest School, activities are provided, but it’s the children who determine which activities suit them, while teachers observe their progress. It’s very much akin to kibbutz philosophy, which is why it works so well for us.

“With so much of our children’s childhood taken up online and in front of screens, parents and children alike just can’t get enough. Demand has been so high that we’re opening another class in our Suburb site this year and we run regular weekend parent and child sessions.”

Forest School is a long-term process, requiring intensive teacher training. Children at Keren’s attend forest school sessions weekly, throughout the year, with preparation for outdoor learning happening in the classroom before venturing outside.

Activities include sensory walks, foraging, shelter building, mini-beast hunts, tree climbing, campfire cooking, woodwork, nature art, and games like puddle and mud jumping.

Keren’s offers Forest School to children as young as two. The process has been shown to raise self-esteem and confidence, through risk-taking and the freedom of being outside for long periods. Children do not “run wild” — far from it — but it does offer opportunities for learning that children are unable to experience in a classroom.

Intergenerational 

Bushey Gan Nursery and Pre-School is based at Bushey United Synagogue. The nursery, which has been awarded outstanding status by Ofsted twice, has just appointed Michelle Peters as nursery manager. Much of the nursery day centres on Jewish traditions, the chagim and Jewish way of life. The highlight is the weekly Shabbat party.

The oldest children participate in the JOY Project — Joining Old with Young — which gives them an opportunity to form friendships with members of a local day care centre/residential home. This has significant benefits for both groups. Together the children and elderly sing songs and make artwork and recently there was a sponsored “Jump for JOY” where families raised more than £300 for the project.

Intergenerational activities are at the heart of Apples and Honey Nightingale. When Judith Ish-Horowicz first approached Nightingale Hammerson Care Home in south London to ask if they would be interested in opening a nursery in their grounds, she was welcomed with open arms.

She had been visiting the home with her Wimbledon-based nursery, Apples and Honey for many years, initially to give mishloach manot gifts at Purim and bikkurim baskets at Shavuot and then growing the programme to include arts and crafts, gardening, cookery and even joint outings. The benefits for both age groups were clear, as nursery families befriended lonely residents and children gained extended families.

Ish-Horowicz then approached Ali Somers, a parent with expertise in setting up social enterprises, and Apples and Honey Nightingale was born. It is a community interest company (not-for-profit social enterprise). Initially a second site of Apples and Honey, it was “gifted” to the community to be run on the same ethos of Jewish values and inclusivity as its parent setting.

Offering day care and a pre-school, under the leadership of Cindy Summer, it is now full, with a waiting list.

The benefits for the residents have been obvious, in combatting loneliness and isolation and creating an environment where old and young interact. Many of the children do not have extended family living nearby and they have the opportunity to mix regularly with older people who can give the unconditional love of a grandparent.

Being with people who have lived so long and have so many stories to tell gives the children a sense of time and their place in Jewish history. And, of course, the residents at Nightingale have time to listen to them and to share stories in a way that busy parents sometimes do not.

Children show improved communication and language; greater empathy and social awareness; greater maturity and sense of responsibility for others; advanced special awareness and understanding of risk; a greater sense of their place in the timeline of history and an inherent understanding and acceptance of the cycle of life.

The concept has caught the public’s imagination in a big way, with world-wide media coverage and national government and local authority interest. The think tank United for All Ages has just launched a crowd funding campaign to create 500 centres for all ages by 2023. Somers and Ish-Horowicz now run regular workshops to share their experiences of intergenerational models.You can read more about the nursery at applesandhoneynightingale.com