Global Campus: Four Winners in Creative Writing!
Shortlisted entries now put forward for worldwide judging( and further awards!)
In Global Campus News we are very pleased to share that DCIS have had four winners shortlisted for the Creative Writing Competition- Harriet( 3VS), Jiah( 6CP), Suhani( 7C) and Emma( 10C). These shortlisted entries will now be put forward for worldwide judging for further awards but will definitely appear in the 2016-2017 Creative Writing Anthology. Congratulations to these students.
The shortlisting of these entries means that the Visual Arts Competition has now launched for students to illustrate these winning pieces of writing. Students will receive details of the competition over the coming weeks and can submit their entry by Friday 31st March.
Back by popular demand is the new Lego Challenge for Primary and Secondary; information on this challenge will can be found on the Global Campus Online.
Planning is also now well underway for this year’ s Global Challenge, in partnership with UNICEF, and we look forward to sharing more information on this in in the coming weeks.
Behaviour, Attention and Performance
Facilitating optimal range of attention in students required for classroom learning
As a parent, all we want to see in our children is that they live in a safe, secure and enabling environment, providing optimal sensory stimulation to focus, learn and thrive in their learning journeys, each day.
As the picture in the photo gallery above depicts, our brain( central nervous system) receives sensory information in a controlled and regulated manner and helps us to focus and learn. It is noted that 80 % of brain is involved with sensory processing. We take sensations from different sensory systems to our brain and process the information for learning functions. At one hand, our senses helps us to stay calm and alert. On the other hand, efficient sensory processing helps us to learn and perform in the desired activity.
However, sensory responsiveness can vary in children. Each child have a unique regulatory- sensory profile. We can term it as temperament. Some children can be overresponsive and some can be under-responsive. This affects their attention and learning.
Some children are often quiet and passive. They can be so enthralled by a world of their own imagination and have difficulty in engaging. They may appear withdrawn and lethargic.
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They may seem lack of inner drive. They tend to show clumsiness with their movements.
On the other side children can be active and demonstrate high energy levels into their bodies. They tend to be consistently moving, crashing, bumping and demonstrate impulsive and explosive behaviours. It’ s hard to engage them in learning situations.
Sensory Processing Differences in children can manifest in many ways-
• Decreased social skills
• Weak participation in classwork
• Weak self-confidence
It is important for the teachers and parents to notice their child’ s unique sensory profile
and help them in the classroom, so that they can regulate their attention and behaviour so that they are able to participate in the class activities effectively and cope with learning situations.
Sensory Integration is one of the methods, which helps in regulating children’ s attention and facilitate them for learning in the class. This involves providing an enriched sensory environment and sensory activities to facilitate effective sensory processing.
Occupational Therapists in the school evaluate children’ s unique sensory profiles and help to plan sensory activities in the child’ s daily routine to facilitate optimal range of attention needed for classroom learning. The therapist and teachers decide the intensity and frequency while offering such activities to facilitate behavioural organisation and attention.
It is a guided treatment method which can be executed under the therapist supervision with observant parents, teachers and caregivers.
Department of Supportive Education