Language skills the Spiral way

Hands up if children in your setting have underdeveloped language skills.

Spirals small group work gives effective support which helps to develop vulnerable children's use of language.

Spirals maths is designed to help the children understand maths-related language so that they can access the maths curriculum but not to teach the curriculum itself. Without knowing this distinction it is easy to miss the subtle difference between Spirals maths and other resource books. The Spirals maths language development scheme is a valuable resource for teachers and assistants.

Myself and Jackie Lowe, a speech and language therapist, developed the scheme because many young learners struggle to learn maths. This can be as confusing as a second language because familiar words take on very different meanings. What sense does a child make of being asked by mum not to be rough with his brother, then in school to decide whether a piece of wood is rough? Or asked to turn off the light and later be asked which is the light bag?