Download resource

Please enter your details to download this resource
Login
 

Enter your details to access this video

Or if you already have an account login to watch the video (if you don't you can register here).
Login
Teacher pre-teaching SEND learner
Author: Karen Wilson, SEND Specialist
Email share link LinkedIn share link Twitter share link Facebook share link
Approximate reading time: 1 minute

Pre-teaching helps learners to enter a lesson feeling confident, independent and ready to shine! It can be used to promote curiosity before a lesson, expose learners to new, unfamiliar vocabulary or concepts and/or allow them to tackle tasks at their own pace before working in a larger group setting.

Tip or Idea: Ensuring learners are confident with key vocabulary before they encounter it in a lesson or piece of text can reduce barriers to learning and improve levels of comprehension. Pre-teaching can be delivered in a variety of ways from individual interventions, small group sessions or set home-learning tasks.

Free resource to help you with this activity: Our Plant and Animal Cells Flashcards can be used to pre-learn specific vocabulary to support and scaffold learning in science lessons.

Email share link LinkedIn share link Twitter share link Facebook share link

More articles by this author

SEND family

SEND support: Working with students and families

Created: Mon 16th Jun 2025

It is widely recognised that young people and their families should be at the heart of their educational journey. The phrase “nothing about us without us” simply and powerfully reflects the need to include young people and their families in decisions that affect them. Pupil voice can provide crucial insights into the needs of young people with SEND. Parents can also provide a valuable overview of a child’s needs, strengths, and challenges. Using these insights to guide learning opportunities can enhance engagement, enjoyment and, ultimately, progress.

board game with dice and figures

SEND support: Using games to learn

Created: Mon 23rd Mar 2026

Games are one of the most effective ways to support both SEND and EAL learners because they reduce anxiety, increase engagement, and make language learning fun! Structured games also offer additional benefits for SEND learners by encouraging attention, turn-taking, and understanding routines. Visual rules, simple instructions, and predictable formats also help reduce cognitive load whilst keeping learning active and inclusive.

Child learning phonics

SEND support: Phonics

Created: Thu 20th Aug 2026

For many learners, phonics can provide a clear, structured pathway into reading and spelling. For learners with SEND, phonics can offer small, sequential steps that reduce cognitive load. Improving phonics skills can also build independence for learners, as it enables them to decode unfamiliar words without relying solely on context or translation. This helps learners to access the wider curriculum and develop their confidence.

Back to Blog