Courses Archive

This webinar will explore the benefits of brain-based learning in the classroom. Brain-based learning is a paradigm of learning which focuses on a child’s learning and learning outcomes from the point of view of the brain. This webinar will explore specific strategies which are based on how the human brain develops and learns.

DATE:     Thursday, 21 October 2021
TIME:      7pm to 8pm
VENUE:  Online via Zoom

This is an informative webinar on supporting children with diverse additional needs in all school settings. The aim is to provide participants with a range of practical skills and resources to support all learners through differentiation in the inclusive classroom. Both lecturers bring a wealth of experience in special education and inclusion to this webinar and will highlight how to support children with a range of abilities including Dyslexia, Behaviour difficulties, Down Syndrome, ADHD and ASD. After taking part in this webinar, participants will be equipped with approaches for effective inclusive provision in mainstream and special settings.

Bio of Presenters:

Miriam Colum

Miriam Colum is the Head of Department of Inclusive Education, Religious Education and Student Life in Marino Institute of Education, Dublin. She is also the School Placement Coordinator for the Institute. Miriam is a former primary school teacher with experience in mainstream and special school settings. In 2019, Miriam was ppointed to the National Council for Special Education (NCSE) consultative forum. She is currently undertaking doctoral studies (PhD) in the area of leadership for special education. Miriam’s research interests are in special education, inclusive education and educational leadership. 

Dr. Andrea Lynch

BIO:

Dr. Seonaid Anderson is a chartered research psychologist and freelance neurodiversity consultant with many years experience in neurodevelopmental disorders. She continues to raise awareness of the treatment and management of tic disorders and is passionate about increasing accessing of patients to behavioural therapy and organises training for clinicians and therapists as well as supervision sessions.

Seonaid contributed to the updated European clinical guidelines for the treatment of Tourette syndrome (TS) and she has written widely on the subject as well as producing webinars and podcasts.

Dr. Seonaid Anderson https://www.neuro-diverse.org/

This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

https://www.facebook.com/neurodiverse.org

Twitter @Seonaidanderson2

https://www.instagram.com/neurodiverseorg/

Developmental Coordination Disorder (DCD) or Dyspraxia is a condition affecting physical coordination. Childhood development such as crawling, walking, writing, drawing and sporting ability may be delayed with DCD or be behind what may be expected. A definite diagnosis often does not happen until a child is 5 years old or more. In this webinar neurodiversity expert, professor Amanda Kirby will explain what Dyspraxia is, what areas are of particular challenge for children with DCD and what strategies and interventions parents and teachers can employ to support children with the condition.

What you will learn:

• What is Developmental Coordination Disorder/Dyspraxia?
• What are the common challenges for school age children?
• What can you do practically at home and school to provide support?
• Learn skills and interventions to help family life with a DCD child

BIO-

Professor Amanda Kirby is a trustee of the ADHD Foundation, works closely with the BDA, Dyspraxia Foundation and several Autism charities. She has written 8 books and more than 100 research papers in the field and is an emeritus Professor at the University of South Wales and honorary professor at Cardiff University. She is a parent of neurodivergent children, and grandchildren and a GP. Her personal experiences drove her to change career in order to understand more about neurodiversity for herself and her family. She founded and ran a clinical and research team for 15 years relating to neurodiversity supporting 1000s of families and subsequently completed a PhD in emerging adulthood in neurodiversity.

This webinar will focus on the use of Precision Teaching, both in the classroom and the SET learning context. This evidence-based methodology, as endorsed by NEPS, is highly effective in enhancing pupil fluency across a range of curricular areas, including literacy and numeracy. Teachers will learn how to use Precision Teaching at a whole-class, group and individual pupil level, both as a means of enhancing pupil fluency and gathering formative assessment data through a ‘response-to-intervention’ approach.

BIO:

Claire Griffin is an Educational Psychologist and lecturer in Educational and Developmental Psychology at Mary Immaculate College (MIC), Limerick. Claire originally worked within primary and special education settings and in residential care centres for persons with intellectual disabilities. Claire completed her PhD in 2018 through University College London. This research explored the preparedness and deployment of Special Needs Assistance when supporting the behavioural care needs and independence development of children in primary schools. Claire’s research interests include inclusive education, psychological and educational assessment, positive behaviour support and the voice of the child in education.

This webinar will support primary school teachers in inspiring students to be literate (Duffy 2005). The importance of ARC (Access, Relevance and Choice) will be explored. Suggestions will be offered for creating exciting school and classroom spaces, developing teacher knowledge of children’s literature and providing learning experiences which inspire children to actively engage and build their identities as readers.

Bio of Presenters: 

Regina Dunne

Regina Dunne is a Deputy Principal of St Catherine’s NS Rush. Co Dublin. She is President Elect of the LAI. Regina was previously team leader for Primary Literacy at the Professional Development Service for Teachers (PDST) and Academic Coordinator for English Language Teaching and Learning at the Applied Language Centre, UCD.

Duncan McCarthy

Duncan McCarthy is Principal in St. Peter’s NS Dungourney. He has spent the last number of years supporting teachers and schools as a Literacy Advisor with PDST, a member of the Literacy Association of Ireland Executive Committee and provider of courses for Education Centers.

Date:        Wednesday, 20 October 2021
Time:        7pm - 8pm
Venue:     Online via Zoom

This webinar will explore the benefits of cognitive flexibility in children. Cognitive flexibility is the ability to switch between different mental tasks, sets or strategies. Cognitive flexibility helps children to cope with changes in a calm, regulated way. It also helps children to learn more effectively.

This webinar will explore the various models  of addition and subtraction. It will look at the importance of the 66 addition facts within 10 and how these can be used to find subtraction facts. The webinar is suitable for children across all age ranges.

You will learn:

• Understanding of the different models of addition and subtraction
• Strategies for recall of the 66 addition facts
• Strategies for linking new facts to known facts
• Understanding of the value of pictorial representations including ten frames, bar modelling and number bond diagrams 

Bio-

Judy is an educational consultant specialising in Maths and learners with dyscalculia and dyslexia. Her teaching career started in primary schools before she moved into teaching children with special needs. Judy delivers key notes, workshops and training in Dyscalculia, Dyslexia and Maths Mastery across the world, including New Zealand, Australia and Dubai. Judy co-founded the Dyscalculia Association in the UK in 2018.

This Webinar is suitable for Primary School Teachers and SNAs.

Verbal communication is often considered the most important form of communication in the classroom. However, for many children, other forms of communication are more suited to their current abilities and learning styles.

This webinar looks to provide teachers and SNAs with ideas, skills and strategies to help children engage and communicate through sensory play. During the webinar we will review how a number of areas of the curriculum can be made more inclusive through the use of sensory play. 

Areas to be covered include: 

• Reflecting on communication
• Understanding of our senses and sensory processing.
• Reviewing how children can engage with the primary school curriculum through sensory play
• Strategies and ideas for sensory engagement

Objectives:

• Participants will have a greater understanding of the foundational aspects of sensory processing and integration
• Participants will develop strategies and tools to help children develop communication and expression through sensory activities  
• Participants will have gained knowledge of a number of practical and achievable strategies to help children engage with the primary school curriculum through sensory activities. 

Tutor: Stephen Hodnett

Bio:  

Stephen is a qualified occupational therapist and primary school teacher with over 10 years’ experience in the classroom, working in both mainstream and SEN settings. Stephen has worked with Dyspraxia/DCD Ireland and their members in recent times, including the development of the ‘Our say in our schools’ resource for schools by children with Dyspraxia/DCD.

Session 2 - Coding in the Primary Classroom - Scratch & Maths

Throughout this session:
- Participants will identify their expectations
- Participants will be enabled to identify their child’s expectations.
- Participants will be able to differentiate between their expectations and their child’s expectations
- We will explore the 3 levels of listening
- Participants will understand how powerful questioning can impact conversations.
- Understanding the importance of effective communication with their children.
- Generating tips that work for you to support your child.
- Q&A

Speech difficulties, phonics, dyslexia, literacy outcomes - what’s the common denominator? Phonological awareness skills! Distinct from phonemic awareness, phonological awareness are the fundamental skills you may never have heard of. By providing your students with strong phonological awareness skills, you are providing them with the foundations for future success in many areas.  

In this session we will cover: 

• How to assess phonological awareness skills?
• Who has difficulty with phonological awareness?
• The link between phonological awareness and speech
• The link between phonological awareness and dyslexia
• How to support it these skills in the classroom
• How to target skills in 1:1 or small group activities

The webinar is most suitable for SNAs, class teachers, learning support teachers who work with early primary school (Junior Infants up to 2nd Class).

Presenter Bio: Alanna O' Connor

Presenter Bio: Alanna O' Connor

Alanna O’Connor is a Kerry-based Speech and Language Therapist, who trained in the UK. In her time in Manchester, she worked based in a school and college, working alongside teachers to support students to meet their educational potential. Since returning to Ireland, she has worked with children and young people in clinic, home, and school environments. Last year, she delivered online training to over 1’000 education staff. 

Alanna has worked with children and young people with autism spectrum disorder throughout her career. She has experience of diagnosing autism and providing intervention in home, clinics, and schools. Alanna works hard to take on board the opinions and feedback of autistic people, as well as providing neurodiversity-affirming support. 

Struggling to efficiently manage your workload? Join our Time Management Webinar for School Principals. Caroline Reidy, Managing Director of The HR Suite, will explore how you use your time in work now and how you need to be using it. After attending this webinar, you will:

• Develop the skills and knowledge on how to be more organised and efficient in order to achieve work outputs.
• Develop a process to structure daily, weekly and monthly tasks building in methodologies to use in rapidly changing environments.
• Be able to define what your priorities are and how to get control over a challenging ‘To Do’ list.

Facilitator: Caroline Reidy, Managing Director of the HR Suite and HR and Employment Law Expert

For further information please visit www.thehrsuite.com and contact us directly to discuss future opportunities.

Course Description

• Analysing style
• Structuring answers 
• Writing effective paragraphs

Bio of Presenter: Aoife O'Driscoll

Aoife teaches English in the Christian Brothers College in Cork city. Aoife has run the English website www.aoifesnotes.com for over ten years. She is the author of a number of LC and JC textbooks for educate.ie, including the the Excellence in English and Excellence in Texts series.

Date:      Thursday, 14 October 2021
Time:      7pm to 8pm
Venue:   Online via Zoom  

This Fónaic na Gaeilge webinar will explore the teaching of Irish phonics from junior all the way through middle & senior classes. You will gain an insight into how you can integrate the teaching of Fónaic na Gaeilge into your Gaeilge lesson planning. You will engage with an Aibitír Ghaelach, systematic phonics levels, fun characters, songs, poems, dictation lists, games, e-books & much more!

The SingFónaic programme is fully aligned with the Primary Language Curriculum.
More Info: https://www.singfonaic.ie/

This webinar will look at how to include people with learning difficulties such as ADHD in the classroom. You will achieve a greater understanding of the problems that arise, what the main issues are and how you might respond to ensure that everyone is being included and catered to. See interactive activities and simple and effective strategies designed to meet a range of needs based.

What you will learn:

• How impairments cause barriers to learning
• Why learners with ADHD/ADD need Visual Interventions
• Tools and learning environment strategies
• How to meet an ADHD/ADD child’s needs
• Strategies to support learners in tandem with other learning difficulties
• How to promote positive behaviour through effective practice.

BIO-

Andrew Whitehouse is a specialist in neurological diversity and is himself diagnosed with ADHD. He provides interventions for parents, professionals and young people with ADHD, Autism, Dyslexia and related conditions. Andrew has a number of roles including training, developing strategies and therapies for education professionals in educational settings, observing learners in the learning environment and providing practical tools & solutions to help them achieve their full potential. Andrew is the author of a seminal book on ADHD, entitled “Growing up with ADHD” and is a TEDx speaker having delivered his popular talk “From Disability to Superpowers”. He is a regular conference speaker and is a Forensic SEND Consultant acting as an expert witness in SEND related court cases.

DATE: 4 Classes, 1 hour each on Thursdays, 14 October, 21 October, 4 November & 11 November 2021

 Target audience: Teachers of Leaving Certificate Higher Level Maths.

Class 1

• Binomial Distribution / Normal Distribution
• Standard Normal Distribution (Z-Distribution) / Empirical Rule / Z-Scores
• Tables P36/37 - Probabilities for Standard Normal Distribution
• Terminology – Sample /Population / Statistic / Parameter

Class 2

• The Central Limit Theorem and Distribution of Sample Means
• Excel Simulation of Sample and Population mean for Normal Distribution
• Calculating Z-Score for Distribution of Sample Means
• Margin of Error / Confidence Interval for Mean / Level of Significance / P-Value
• Exam Questions

Class 3

• Hypothesis Tests
• Exam Questions

Class 4

• Sample and Population Proportion
• Confidence Interval for Proportion / Level of Significance
• Margin of Error Approximation
• Exam Questions

Learning Outcomes

• Understand normal distribution, standard normal distribution and the empirical rule
• Be able to calculate z-scores and use tables to work out associated probabilities
• Be familiar with the language and terminology used in inferential statistics
• Understand the significance of the central limit theorem
• Understand how to work out confidence intervals for sample means
• Understand how to work out confidence intervals for sample proportions
• Understand hypothesis tests
• Understand p-values and level of significance
• Develop clear methods for answering the different types of exam question

BIO-

I have a Bachelors Degree in Electronic Engineering from UCC and a Masters in Electronic Systems from DCU. I also worked for 6 years as an Electronic Engineer with Parthus/Ceva in Dublin. I have many years of experience in computer hardware and coding from my academic and work backgrounds.

I changed career to teaching after completing the Hdip in Education in NUIG in 2006 and I have been teaching Maths, Physics and Applied Maths to Leaving Cert Honours level for the last 11 years in CBS Ennistymon, Co. Clare. I also teach Junior Cycle Science and Coding. I have a website www.hardsums.ie where I share my teaching resources for these subjects with other teachers/students.

From 2012 – 2015, I worked as a local facilitator for the Project Maths Development Team. This involved giving courses to Maths teachers in the Limerick and Clare Education Centres. More recently, I have given teacher courses on Geogebra in Limerick Education Centre

In my role as  chairman of the Clare/Limerick branch of the IMTA (Irish Maths Teachers’ Association) over the last 5 years I have organised events such as MathsFest 2018 in Limerick (see www.mathsfest.ie)  and TEAM Maths Quizzes for Leaving Cert students. I also maintain the website www.clareimta.ie for sharing resources with maths teachers 

I have also previously given Easter Revision Courses for Leaving Cert Honours Maths students in Ennis, Co. Clare, and at Brú na Páirce, Killarney.