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Special Educational Needs Portal Insight

Introducing Helen Caldwell

Helen CaldwellOur SEN portal manager is Helen Caldwell, an educator who has worked at every level, from university lecturer to LA advisor to classroom practitioner. She currently splits her time between Northampton University and her advisory role for ICT and SEN in Milton Keynes.

The constant threads running through her work are SEN and the use of ICT to support teachers and learners. 

“

The SEN portal will focus on practical help for classroom practitioners through sharing ideas, looking at what works and exploring affordable, often free, tools for supporting children. We will try and offer something of interest to everyone, and bring ideas and opinions for them to consider and adapt to their needs. News, views, practical ideas! That is the SEN portal in a nutshell.

Everyone welcome!

”
Helen Caldwell

Video guides

Have you thought of using a visual neutral net-style dictionary to support literacy? How about using augmented reality to interact with 3D science resources or inaccessible artworks? And are you taking advantage of the wide range of free apps available to support learning?

Our ever-expanding collection of video guides show how a whole variety of resources can be used to support learning & teaching.

View our free sample video guides 'Oxford Owl e-books' and 'Using Evernote Clearly to customise web pages' for just a small taste of what the portal has to offer.
  

Top tips

Looking for a quick fix? Something different to spice up a lesson? Access a huge library of speech-enabled, switch-accessible, beautifully illustrated books; download a free text-to-speech tool, or find a themed writing template to enable pupils to produce an attractive page of writing.

Follow our top tips and find some of the best free SEN resources on the web in no time.
 

Content that matters

Searching the internet for quality materials and ideas is time consuming, so why not let us do the work for you? We’ll direct you to the best resources out there and offer advice about how to use them effectively to motivate students and enhance learning.

Watch this video to find out more.
  • Top tips
    Explore our library of links to free SEN resources for children, young people, educators and parents.
  • Video guides
    Follow our video guides explaining how and why different resources can be used to support educating young people with SEN.
  • SEN Apps
    Find out about the best apps to support teaching and learning
  • News stories
    Find the latest news, reports and commentary relevant to SEN.
  • Key events and CPD opportunities
    Events, activities and continued professional development opportunities for teachers with an interest in SEN.
  • SEN Talk
    Hear thoughts and ideas from educators and other experts from around the UK and beyond.