Training Courses
Training courses can be developed to suit the needs of your organisation. You can mix and match from the examples below, to make up a day or half day’s In-Service Training. Or you can choose a course for an after- school session or conference workshop sessions. All courses and workshops are based on Michael’s experience in mainstream schools, special schools and pre-school settings, and activities have been tried and tested with real children in real schools.
Workshops are adapted to meet the needs of the school setting, to cover Early Years settings, infants’ schools, primary schools and special schools.
All workshops come with extensive handouts.
Sharing stories, language development and reading
A practical, interactive and fun one-day training course for anyone who works with young children. Themes include, how babies and young children learn language so quickly; the role of adults in language development; how to make the most of sharing books with children; how to make story time with groups fun for everyone; how we can use TV, DVDs and computers to help language development and learning; language development and behaviour; reading and reading difficulties; helping children learn English as an additional language.
Some comments from satisfied Childminders in Luton: “Very, very funny, entertaining and thought provoking”; “A great way to spend a Saturday!”; “I learned a lot in a few fun-filled hours”.
To download a flier for this training event, click here.
Bringing storytime to life!
Story time can sometimes be a great pleasure, or a form of punishment for adults and children alike.
This workshop looks at ways of sharing books with groups of children that enhance children’s understanding, enjoyment and involvement. We consider ways of including children with language and learning needs in story time in ways that develop their involvement and language.
For early years settings and KS1.
To download a flyer for this training event, click here.
Including children with communication needs in pre-school settings
(A one day course or series of after school workshops.)
This workshop looks at the range of speech and language difficulties in young children that early years practitioners are likely to come across.
We examine some practical ways of helping children to communicate and develop their speech and language skills.
Including children with communication needs in school.
(A one day course or series of after school workshops.)
We look at the range of communication difficulties that school staff often encounter.
We examine some practical ways of helping children to communicate and develop their speech and language skills.
Selective Mutism in children
Most teachers and early years practitioners are likely to work with a child who finds talking in public extremely difficult.
We look at the nature and causes of Selective Mutism, and what can be done to help children to communicate in school or pre-school setting.
Telling stories to stimulate children’s language and literacy
Children need to be able to retell other people’s stories and tell their own stories, before they can become successful writers. This ‘narrative development’ is a vital part of language development. A good story, told well, should leave a lasting impression and stimulate children to tell (and later write) their own stories. The keys to involving children in stories are to choose your story carefully and plan your presentation. In this workshop we look at:
- Matching themes to stories.
- Choosing artefacts to demonstrate key points in the story.
- Expanding the story to include ideas of your own.
- Using music to evoke mood.
- Helping children to use all their senses.
- Involving the audience.
- Improving assemblies.
This workshop is an ideal follow-up for schools and pre-school settings who have had one of my performances and children’s workshops.
Testimonials
What a fantastic morning’s training!
We arrived feeling a bit tired and uninspired. But the session produced a blizzard of wonderful ideas about developing children’s speaking and listening skills- all of which we will use in the future and pretend they are our own!
Ewan Smith, Trainee primary Teacher, Luton
I thought Michael was quite mad! (But very entertaining and thought provoking!)
Teacher, Harrow
I thought the session was extremely good. The way in which the story was told, the interaction of the presenter with the audience, the way puppets and props were used and the including of every person in the room, was a great way of showing how inclusion can be promoted in schools and showing us, the audience, how it can be done. It was a completely different session than we are used to but it made a refreshing change! I definitely recommend that this stays on the timetable for the year 3 students next year.
Year 3 Student, BA in Teaching and Learning, Leicester