Entrant's address and contact details

School name:	Wood Bank School
School/college address:	Dene View Luddendenfoot Halifax West Yorkshire HX2 6PB England
School phone number:	01422 884170
Number of pupils in school(s) - male:	30
Number of pupils in school(s) - female:	20
Number of staff in school(s):	45

Our team leader and our team

Name	Position (e.g. Headteacher, parent, etc.)	Organisation
Mrs Karen Wilkinson	Science Co-ordinator	Wood Bank School
Mrs Peggy Collins	Head of Junior Department	Wood Bank School
Mrs Joanne Holmes	Learning Support Assistant	Wood Bank School
Mrs Marie Harper	Expressive & Creative Arts Co-ordinator	Wood Bank School
Mrs Sheridan Brown	Learning Support Assistant	Wood Bank School
Mrs Kathryn Cobham	Head of Early Years	Wood Bank School

The key skills, strengths and roles of each team member are: (200 words)

Mrs Karen Wilkinson
Karen has experience in both secondary and primary science sectors. Karen will oversee learning to ensure high standards are achieved and that children of a wide range of abilities have access to the content of the project.

Joanne Holmes
Joanne is the ideas person behind the project and thought of the idea of a Sign-along Science Club. She has worked in both mainstream and special schools. Joanne will co-ordinate meetings, arranging transport and ordering equipment for the science club.

Peggy Collins
Peggy has a knowledge of the wide disabilities and abilities within the junior department and having sign experience for fifteen years using both B.S.L. and teaching using Sign-along for the past nine years.

Marie Harper
Marie has 10 years experience working in the field of pupils with SEN. She use lots of multi-sensory resources to provide access to the curriculum for all pupils.

Mrs Sheridan Brown
Sheridan has worked for many years within this school and has a particular interest in helping to maintain the multi-sensory environment.

Mrs Kathryn Cobham
Kathryn has extensive experience of teaching within mainstream schools as SENCO and as an Inclusion Co-ordinator. Kathryn has realistic expectations on how all
subjects can be experienced by children within an inclusive learning environment.

Our proposal

Topic area of proposal: Generic Issues - Whole school approach

Briefly, the aim of our proposal is: (50 words)

We aim to enable our pupils who have a wide range of learning difficulties and physical disabilities to
access the primary science curriculum using a total communication approach. The whole-school project will involve running a weekly science club which will work to create a Big Book of science concepts from the letters A-Z. The Big Book will use imaginative sensory methods to give our pupils experience of science. The A-Z will be a lasting resource available to future pupils of Wood Bank.

Pupil type to benefit: S.E.N.

Age range to benefit from proposal: 3-11

Learning outcomes from our proposal: (50 words)

• Provide a stimulating environment to learn science through multi-sensory resources.
• Provide opportunities for children to make good progress.
• Use total communication in science lessons.
• Provide a wide-range of scientific exploration within a small group setting.
• Differentiate by offering a variety of opportunities for communication

Our reasons for developing this particular proposal: (100 words)

Wood Bank school is a special school for children aged 3-11. Pupils have a range of physical and learning difficulties. Many have profound and multiple learning difficulties.

The school aims to promote the science curriculum to ensure good progress for all pupils. An inclusive science club will augment the existing science curriculum.

The school has a total communication system and by focussing on this, especially on our signing system, this will increase access to science.

We will bring communication and science together is a fun, interactive way for our children to grasp concepts of science and how it is used in everyday life.

Detailed description of our proposal: (300 words)

We will establish a weekly science club, comprising pupils aged 3-11. Each week it will focus on a different science word, from A to Z. For example, the club would look at A for Absorption, with experimental work on sponges. Our school council is developing ideas for science topics to cover.

As routine is important for our pupils, the club will always start with a science song. Children will learn the new science word in sign language. By the end they will know signs for at least 26 science words. There will be demonstrations, for example W for Whirlpool will be experienced by making pop bottle whirlpools. The group will discuss what they have observed. The whole school will be involved in activities to do with the word of the week.

Outcomes of the science activities will be given to a local artist who is part of Shabang, a professional art/theatre company that specialises in working with children with special needs. She will create an imaginative Big Book. It will be big - 100 cm approx and each page will feature a big letter, simple text, photographs and art work. Pages will use different sensory methods to convey meaning, for example corrugated card for children to feel and scratch and sniff pages for children to experience through smell. There will be two books, A-N and M-Z, so two classes can use them simultaneously and will have wheels for portability.

Our children will create a professional CD of science songs with Shabang. This CD and Big Books will be lasting resources of benefit to future pupils. Shabang will also perform an afternoon of science drama.

We will visit a science lab in another school and work closely with a mainstream school. Treesponsibility,
a community group that promotes conservation, will involve our children in tree planting. Nature talks will be provided by the National Trust. We will visit a local garden centre to watch seed planting. A trip to EUREKA!, the children’s museum, is also planned.

Putting our proposal into practice

Outline of how our team would implement our proposal over a period of not more than 24 weeks: (300 words, bulleted lists accepted)

Week 1

Letter A

• Letter to parents explaining project and asking if any have skills they would like to share with the Science Club(JH)
• Assembly to introduce science word of the week (KW)
• Risk assessment team to check practicals
• Team meeting to discuss next four weeks projects
• Budgeting, monitoring and song writing (all)
• Order equipment for letters A-K (JH)
• Press contacted (Head)

Week 2

Letter B

Staff meeting with Head and Governors (all)

• Mainstream school to join club every week (KC)
• Meeting with Shabang about Big Book
• Contact Treesponsibility to arrange date for tree planting (JH, SB, KH)
• Contact National Trust to arrange talk (JH)

Weeks 3-8

Letters C-H

• Transport arranged for trip to science lab at secondary school (JH)
• Meeting with Shabang - science song day and recording. (JH, MH, SB)
• Treesponsibility - day of tree planting

Weeks 9-10

Letters I-J

• Order equipment for letters L-J (JH)
• Team and Head meeting on progress (all)
• Transport arranged for trip to garden centre

Weeks 11-15

Letters K-O

• Governors invited to join science club
• School council meet to discuss progress of science club (KC)
• Wall displays for letters A – M (SB, JH, MH)
• Shabang science songs recording day
• Trip to garden centre for seed planting
• Staff meeting for updates and feedback (all)

Weeks 16-20

Letters P-T

• Order equipment for letters U-Z (JH)
• Letter to parents, governors, Rolls-Royce, Shabang, garden centre manager, secondary school, Treesponsibility to join us for presentation of our science songs, Big Book and science songs CD (Head)
• Press to be contacted (Head)

Week 21

Letters U-X

• Team meeting to organise Eureka! trip (all)
• National Trust to give wildlife talk
• School council meeting about progress (KC)

Week 22

Letter Y

Shabang drama day

Week 23

Letter Z

• Trip to Eureka! (all)
• Wall display of letters M - Z
• Begin evaluation (Head teacher)

Week 24

• Conclude evaluation and debriefing (all)
• Presentation afternoon for everyone to see our good work

Monitoring and evaluation

The monitoring procedures we will use during the project are: (200 words, bulleted lists accepted)

• The leadership team will be responsible for the overall monitoring and evaluation.
• Feedback from staff involved with sessions to inform future lessons.
• Ongoing monitoring of science throughout the school by the Science Co-ordinator.
• Lesson plans to be produced and assessed by the senior management team.
• Activities could be linked to specific targets within pupils' Individual Education Plans.
• Regular meetings to check progress and iron out any difficulties.
• Photographic evidence to be used as part of the ongoing evaluation process.
• Some pieces of work which could be kept for evaluation purposes.
• Feedback from pupils - their responses will form an essential part of the ongoing evaluation process. It informs future activities, differentiation and lets us know if we are using targets that are measurable, achievable and realistic.
• Head to monitor budget.

The evaluation procedures we will use at the end of the 25 weeks to check the effectiveness of our project are: (200 words, bulleted lists accepted)

• Evaluate whether the pupils were able to respond during various scientific experiments through vocalisation, gesture, body movement etc.
• Class teachers involved with the project will evaluate the children's responses using Individual Education Plans and photographic evidence. Are the pupils able to participate as part of a group as well as working independently?
• Staff members involved with the project will use observation to assist with recording.
• Through regular team meetings we will identify the key successes and failures of the project, which may impact upon the delivery of science throughout the school.
• Personal reflection will assist staff members with professional development - perhaps future INSET.
• Science Co-ordinator will monitor in relation to our whole school policy.

• Budget

  Itemised costs of putting your proposal into practice within a maximum budget of £5,000 or equivalent in Euros:

  Budget Item	Cost (GBP)
  Shabang Big Book making	1200
  Shabang song writing, recording and printing cds	1150
  Items for experiments and activities (26 letters @£50 per letter)	1300
  Materials needed for wall displays	50
  Tickets for Eureka!	100
  3 days supply cover	550
  Material for storage bags	50
  Transport (special buses)	600
  TOTAL	5000