Cognition and Learning
Cognition
What you might see
- A child may struggle to follow verbal instructions given to the class.
- They may not be able to recall, when prompted, things that they have been taught previously.
- They may demonstrate inconsistent application of skills and/or knowledge that have been taught previously.
What you can try
Use task boards and visual reminders so pupils can check instructions and steps independently.
Use Talking Tins or recording devices so pupils can replay instructions or key vocabulary during a task.
Use Now/Next Boards to break routines and tasks into a clear visual sequence.
Use dual coding by combining visuals, symbols and short text to support memory.
Use Colourful Semantics to help pupils understand and remember sentence structure.
Teach key facts and vocabulary using multi-sensory approaches such as actions, songs and manipulatives.
Revisit key learning regularly across days and weeks to strengthen retention.
Use Think–Pair–Share to give pupils time to rehearse ideas aloud before responding.
Pre-teach and post-teach key ideas and vocabulary to build familiarity and confidence.
Teach memory strategies explicitly, such as chunking, visualisation and mnemonics.
Mix new learning with previously taught content to support recall and transfer over time.
Use mind maps or graphic organisers to help pupils organise and connect ideas.
Teach in small, structured sequences and revisit key content over time.
Pre-teach key concepts and vocabulary before whole-class teaching.
Use targeted interventions to develop automatic recall of key knowledge.
Break learning into small, manageable steps to reduce memory load and support recall.
What you might see
- It may take longer for a child to respond (think of their answer) or complete tasks.
- They may have difficulty completing time-limited tasks.
- They may say things in a disordered way.
- They may find it hard to organise their thoughts. This might look like disorganised work on a page or not using space on a page in a typical way.
What you can try
Allow extra thinking time after asking questions or giving instructions.
Give short, clear instructions, broken into small steps.
Use visual supports (e.g. diagrams, timelines, models) to explain ideas.
Provide written or visual task plans to support organisation and sequencing.
Model thinking aloud to show how to approach and solve tasks.
Reduce the amount of work so pupils can focus on understanding rather than speed.
Use worked examples to show how to complete tasks.
Provide sentence starters or scaffolds to support responses.
Break questions into smaller steps to support thinking.
Teach memory strategies explicitly, such as chunking, visualisation and mnemonics.
Encourage pupils to talk through their thinking before answering.
Use checklists or prompts to support task completion.
Give opportunities to practise and rehearse learning to build understanding.
Adapt the pace of teaching so pupils have time to process learning.
Use consistent routines to reduce thinking load and support processing.
Pre-teach key concepts and vocabulary to support understanding in lessons.
Use visual timetables or sequences to show the structure of learning.
What you might see
- A child may have an inability to attend to a conversation for an expected amount of time.
- They may be unable to get rid of irrelevant information and focus on the important part of a task.
- They may find it hard to focus on a given task for an age-appropriate amount of time.
- They may lack or quickly lose motivation.
What you can try
Review the learning environment using a sensory or distraction checklist; reduce visual clutter and background noise.
Chunk text or tasks into short, achievable sections with clear stopping points to sustain engagement.
Present information visually (e.g., comic strips, diagrams, manipulatives).
Review seating and proximity to minimise distractions and maximise adult support when needed.
Use movement or sensory breaks strategically to support self-regulation and focus.
Build in variation and interactive elements – short bursts of activity, practical tasks, or opportunities for pupil choice.
Explore underlying factors (e.g., tiredness, hunger, anxiety, hearing or vision issues, ACES). that may affect concentration Use ‘Working / Not Working’ charts with the pupil to explore motivation and barriers.
Link learning tasks to interests to boost intrinsic motivation and sustained effort.
Use positive reinforcement and specific praise for on-task behaviours rather than focusing on inattention.
Use first name to cue child into a conversation.
Use prompts such as task boards, checklists, reminder apps.
What you might see
- A child may have difficulties working independently.
- They may show signs of dysregulation as a learner which could be caused by anxiety.
- They may show lack of confidence and self-belief in their ability as a learner.
What you can try
Model and reinforce that mistakes are part of learning and valued.
Break tasks into small, manageable steps to support engagement.
Share clear success criteria so pupils know what success looks like.
Model how to approach tasks and learning behaviours.
Provide scaffolded support (e.g. prompts, frames, templates) to guide pupils.
Gradually reduce support to build independence.
Use “I do, we do, you do” to structure learning and build confidence.
Encourage pupils to reflect on what has helped their learning.
Teach pupils to plan, monitor and evaluate their learning.
Set clear, achievable goals to support motivation.
Give feedback that focuses on effort and strategies, not just outcomes.
Use specific praise to reinforce effort and persistence.
Teach pupils how to organise their work and resources independently.
Use visual supports or prompts to support independent working.
Support pupils to keep going when learning is challenging.
Provide opportunities for pupils to make choices in their learning.
Plan opportunities for success to build confidence and engagement.
Reading
What you might see
- Reads slowly / hesitantly, losing track of meaning.
- Relies heavily on sounding out or finger tracking.
- Struggles to read unfamiliar words.
- Ignores punctuation when reading aloud.
- Lacks intonation or expression when reading.
- Tires quickly when reading longer passages.
What you can try
Provide daily supported reading aloud in small groups or pairs
Use echo, choral or paired reading to model phrasing, expression, intonation, pace and volume.
Use re-reading of familiar texts to build automaticity and confidence.
Pre-teach key vocabulary before reading new texts.
Provide high-interest, decodable texts matched to pupils’ reading level.
Use audiobooks or text-to-speech tools to expose pupils to fluent reading models.
Provide individual or small-group reading support focused on accuracy, rate and confidence.
Provide targeted practice to develop automatic word recognition and prosody.
Use short, frequent intervention sessions to strengthen fluency over time.
What you might see
- Inconsistent recognition of letter–sound correspondences.
- Difficulty blending sounds to read new words.
- Cannot recall common exception words automatically.
- Confuses similar-sounding phonemes or digraphs.
- Makes phonically plausible spelling errors.
- Avoids decoding. Guesses from pictures/context.
What you can do
Teach phoneme–grapheme correspondences systematically and cumulatively.
Provide daily practice in blending and segmenting using manipulatives or sound cards.
Use visual prompts and word-building activities to support phonics learning.
Provide extra small-group sessions to overlearn tricky words and patterns.
Link spelling instruction to taught phonics patterns.
Reinforce phonics in reading and writing across the curriculum.
Use small-group or 1:1 intervention to address specific gaps in phonological knowledge.
Plan structured, cumulative teaching sequences matched to the pupil’s current level.
Provide regular review and practice to secure decoding skills and support transfer into reading.
What you might see
- Can read words accurately but struggles to explain meaning.
- Finds it hard to recall or summarise what has been read.
- Gives literal responses and struggles with inference.
- Misunderstands figurative language or idioms.
- Limited awareness of character, setting, or plot development.
- Needs frequent re-reading to make sense of a passage.
What you can do
Model ‘thinking aloud’ to show how good readers make sense of text.
Use reciprocal reading strategies (predict, clarify, question, summarise).
Provide visual organisers to sequence or summarise ideas.
Highlight and discuss key vocabulary and figurative language.
Use film clips, images, or drama to build understanding before reading.
Regularly check understanding through oral discussion or quick quizzes.
Use LLLM AI models to help simply texts to aid understanding.
Explicit teaching of vocabulary and concepts linked to texts being studied.
Adult-led small-group work to model comprehension strategies and support understanding.
Structured opportunities to rehearse and apply comprehension skills with guided feedback.
Writing
What you might see
- Misspells common or high-frequency words despite practice.
- Applies phonics inaccurately when spelling unknown words.
- Struggles to recall or apply spelling rules or patterns.
- Confuses homophones (e.g., there/their/they’re).
- Omits or reverses letters within words.
- Avoids writing longer or unfamiliar words.
What you can do
Teach and revisit spelling patterns using multi-sensory approaches (e.g. saying, writing, tracing).
Display common exception words and refer to them during teaching.
Use “look, say, cover, write, check” and precision teaching to practise focus words.
Provide word mats and editing checklists to support independent spelling.
Encourage use of technology (e.g. spellcheck, text-to-speech) for proofreading.
Teach spelling patterns and rules explicitly in response to identified gaps.
Provide structured practice to develop accuracy and automatic recall.
Teach spelling in small steps with regular review and application.
What you might see
- Finds it difficult to generate or organise ideas before writing.
- Written work lacks clear structure or sequencing.
- Provides minimal detail. Sentences are short or repetitive.
- Struggles to write for a purpose or adapt tone to audiences.
- Struggles to independently plan, draft, and review their work.
- Avoids extended writing tasks/loses focus quickly.
What you can do
Use ‘talk for writing’ and oral rehearsal before independent writing.
Provide structured planning frameworks (story maps, writing ladders).
Model writing and thinking aloud to show how ideas develop.
Break writing tasks into smaller, achievable steps with clear success criteria.
Use peer and adult conferencing to refine and extend ideas.
Celebrate writing for real audiences to build confidence.
Targeted small-group or 1:1 support, planned around clear outcomes and reviewed regularly for impact.
What you might see
- Inconsistent use of capital letters and full stops.
- Limited understanding of sentence boundaries.
- Struggles to use punctuation marks correctly.
- Uses repetitive or incomplete sentence structures.
- Over-relies on simple conjunctions (and, then, but).
- Writing does not reflect spoken grammar (e.g., tense shifts).
What you can do
Model sentence construction through shared writing.
Teach grammar in context, linked to real examples from class texts.
Use sentence combining and manipulation activities.
Provide visual aids and editing checklists for punctuation marks.
Give immediate oral feedback to correct errors and reinforce rules.
Targeted small-group or 1:1 support, planned around clear outcomes and reviewed regularly for impact.
What you might see
- Letter size and spacing are inconsistent.
- Slow writing speed affects amount of work done.
- Struggles to form letters correctly or stay on the line.
- Complains of hand fatigue or writing discomfort.
- Avoids writing tasks. Prefers typing/drawing instead.
- Work presentation is messy or difficult to read.
What you can do
Provide daily short handwriting or fine-motor warm-ups.
Model correct letter formation and posture explicitly.
Use writing frames, line guides or sloping boards to support handwriting.
Encourage alternative recording methods (e.g. laptop, voice-to-text) when appropriate.
Allow short, regular breaks to reduce hand fatigue.
Use positive feedback to reinforce good presentation.
Provide small-group or individual support to develop fine motor control, letter formation and fluency.
Use structured programmes that build skills incrementally and reinforce correct patterns.
Provide targeted handwriting practice linked to functional writing tasks.
Maths
What you might see
- Finds it hard to count accurately or in sequence.
- Confuses digit order or place value (e.g., 31 vs 13).
- Difficulty partitioning or recombining numbers.
- Relies on counting in ones to solve problems.
- Struggles to identify number patterns or estimate quantities.
- Needs practical or visual resources to understand value.
What you can do
Use manipulatives (base ten, bead strings, number lines) to reinforce value.
Link abstract numbers to real-life contexts and images.
Provide number cards, charts, and visual prompts.
Encourage verbal reasoning (“How do you know?” “What’s the same/different?”).
Build fluency through short, daily number recall and estimation games.
Small-group or 1:1 teaching focused on securing core number concepts.
Structured interventions that build understanding progressively and revisit key ideas.
Guided practice to develop accuracy, confidence, and mathematical language.
What you might see
- Finds number bonds to 10 or 20 unreliable.
- Needs to count on fingers to add simple numbers.
- Forgets the effect of adding zero or reversing the order.
- Struggles to carry digits or align numbers correctly.
- Avoids mental addition or multi-step problems.
- Loses place when adding across place value boundaries.
What you can do
Use concrete–pictorial–abstract (CPA) approach to build understanding.
Teach number bonds through songs, games, and visuals.
Encourage use of mental strategies before formal written methods.
Model estimation and inverse checking to promote reasoning.
Provide step-by-step scaffolds for column addition.
Intervention focused on securing understanding of concepts and number relationships.
Structured practice to build fluency and reduce cognitive load.
Small-step teaching sequences with regular opportunities for review and consolidation.
What you might see
- Uses counting back for all subtraction, even simple facts.
- Confuses add/subtract operations in mixed tasks.
- Struggles to understand the inverse relationship with addition.
- Finds it difficult to cross tens or hundreds of boundaries.
- Unable to explain what subtraction (take away/difference).
- Often makes place value or regrouping errors.
What you can do
Use part–whole models and number lines to visualise subtraction.
Model inverse relationships between addition and subtraction.
Teach both “take away” and “difference” meanings explicitly.
Provide structured practice with regrouping and crossing tens.
Encourage checking strategies and discussion of methods used.
Intervention focused on securing understanding of concepts and number relationships.
Structured practice to build fluency and reduce cognitive load.
Small-step teaching sequences with regular opportunities for review and consolidation.
What you might see
- Does not recall multiplication facts automatically.
- Confuses multiplication with addition or repeated counting.
- Needs arrays or concrete materials to visualise “groups of”.
- Struggles to apply known facts to new problems.
- Finds long multiplication steps confusing or misaligned.
- Difficulty understanding scaling or commutativity.
What you can do
Use repeated addition, arrays, and grouping to show the concept.
Practise skip counting with songs, games, or rhythmic activities.
Explicitly teach and display multiplication facts in context.
Provide visual support for long multiplication steps.
Link multiplication to area, scaling, and ratio in real contexts.
Intervention focused on securing understanding of concepts and number relationships.
Structured practice to build fluency and reduce cognitive load.
Small-step teaching sequences with regular opportunities for review and consolidation.
What you might see
- Limited understanding of sharing vs grouping.
- Confuses division with subtraction.
- Relies on repeated subtraction or grouping practically.
- Finds it difficult to interpret remainders appropriately.
- Makes place value errors when dividing larger numbers.
- Struggles to recall and apply inverse relationships with multiplication.
What you can do
Model “sharing” and “grouping” using real objects and visuals.
Teach links between division and multiplication facts.
Use practical resources (counters, bead strings, arrays) to show remainder.
Provide structured opportunities to reason about fair sharing.
Encourage multiple methods (repeated subtraction, partitioning, short division).
Intervention focused on securing understanding of concepts and number relationships.
Structured practice to build fluency and reduce cognitive load.
Small-step teaching sequences with regular opportunities for review and consolidation.
Resources and Advice
Practical Resources
Practical Resources
- Birmingham SEN Toolkits – support identification, tracking and teaching for pupils working below age-related expectations
- Assessment Through Teaching Approach – guidance to support identification and response to learning needs
- Assistive Technology – tools such as text-to-speech, word prediction and recording devices to support access to learning
Intervention and Programmes
Intervention and Programmes
- Acceleread / Accelewrite – structured literacy intervention
- Barrier Games – supports communication and understanding
- Cued Spelling – structured spelling intervention
- Direct Instruction / Direct Phonics – explicit teaching programmes for literacy
- Hornet Literacy Primer – structured literacy support
- Metra – literacy intervention programme
- Paired Writing / Paired Reading – collaborative approaches to develop literacy skills
- Phonological Awareness Training (PAT) – supports sound awareness
- Precision Teaching – structured approach to developing fluency and retention
- Reciprocal Reading – supports reading comprehension
- Toe by Toe / Word Wasp / Words First – targeted literacy interventions
Specific Learning Difficulties (SpLD)
Specific Learning Difficulties (SpLD)
- Dyslexia guidance and resources – information on identifying strengths and needs, and supporting learners with dyslexia www.localofferbirmingham.co.uk/pupil-and-school-support/supporting-dyslexia/
Support Available
- Language, Learning and Strategic Support (LLSS) – supports schools with assessment, advice and strategies to improve outcomes for pupils with cognition, learning and language needs. Specialist SEND Support Services – Local Offer Birmingham
- Educational Psychology Service (EPS) – provides training, consultation and support for Social, Emotional and Mental Health needs, including ELSA and CBT approaches. Specialist SEND Support Services – Local Offer Birmingham