The pre-formal curriculum is for pupils who have profound and complex needs.  

The curriculum is designed to meet the needs of pupils  through a personalised approach.  It focusses on the early communication, social and emotional and cognitive skills that are the foundation of learning.  It is a curriculum that recognises the importance of movement and play in a child’s development and the need for sensory and multi-sensory approaches to learning.

Planning:

Classes follow the termly topics from the relevant department Long Term Plan, creating sensory activities linked to the topic.  The lesson objectives will be largely taken from the PMLD curriculum document, with some linked to additional ITP or relevant pupil specific targets (e.g. a physiotherapy programme). 

Lessons may fall broadly under one subject area but will probably include elements from other areas in addition to the main focus, e.g. a story session could fall under the main subject area of Communication Skills but may also include the pupils working on bench sitting (Motor Skills), interacting with a peer (Social Skills) and visual tracking (Sensory Cognitive Skills).

PMLD Curriculum is taught through activities such as the Sensology workout, massage stories, dance massage, TacPac, resonance board work, parachute activities, object exploration and object permanence, and use of technologies such as iPads, floor projectors, switches and eye gaze. 

Assessment:

The curriculum is assessed on a daily/ ongoing basis using lesson record sheets.  Targets are assessed as one of the following:

W –     Working towards

E –      Emerging skills

A –      Achieving in specific contexts

G –      Generalised

Class teachers input data into a spread sheet at the end of each term and progress is monitored during termly pupil progress meetings.

The pre-formal curriculum has at its heart, a personalised learning journey with progress along that journey measured using Routes for Learning,