“We have a high volume of children with additional needs, as well as speech and language delay. Already, in only a few months, Helicopter Stories has had such a positive impact”
Early Years Practitioner
The Need:
In Sunderland, Covid has had a huge impact on children’s speech, language, communication and writing skills. Many children start preschool as either pre or non-verbal. Early Years Advisory Teacher, Susan Miller, wanted training for practitioners in her local authority. She needed a long-term solution that would continue to support increasingly low language levels while bringing joy to everyone involved.
What They Did:
Susan had previously read Trisha Lee’s book, Princesses, Dragons and Helicopter Stories, and felt drawn to the approach. She researched the online course, Helicopter Stories On Demand, and felt it would benefit children across a whole range of abilities, particularly those struggling with speech and language issues. Initially, Sunderland signed up twenty-three schools and settings to undertake the training in 2022. This relationship is still on going with 10 more schools and several childminders signing up to taking part this term.
The Results:
Helicopter Stories is already beginning to have an impact in schools and preschools across Sunderland. The benefits can be seen in a range of key areas, including children’s developing speech and language, vocabulary, confidence, imaginative play and emergent writing. Individual settings have reported that, even after just a few months, children who were initially not meeting age-related expectations for speech and language are now on target and progressing well. Practitioners have found scribing children’s stories highly engaging, and school-home connections have been strengthened by sharing stories with parents.
