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1:1 SEN FS Job Interview > Out There Forest School Key Person Role > Flashcards

Out There Forest School Key Person Role Flashcards

1
Q

Tell me about yourself

A
  • Where I grew up
  • My hobbies
  • My education
  • How I came to be at Forest School
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2
Q

Why do you want to work for Out There Forest School and Kindergarten?

A
  • Passionate about outdoor education.
  • Child-led, play based learning.
  • The setting and the team allow for a stimulating and nurturing setting for holistic development.
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3
Q

What is your greatest strength?

A

Building strong positive relationships with children.

  • Ash
  • Jimmy
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4
Q

What is your greatest weakness?

A
  • Emotionally sensitive
  • Hard to switch off sometimes.
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5
Q

What is your greatest achievement?

A
  • Mainstream School PGCE training
  • Working with SEND
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6
Q

Tell me about a challenge or conflict you’ve faced at work, and how you dealt with it.

A

Last day of first placement having my exam, Covid and taking the class for my first time on my own.

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7
Q

What are the key things you would want to know about the children before you started working with them?

A
  • Development at home, what they can and can’t do yet.
  • Any concerns.
  • Do they have physical health issues?
  • Dietary requirements - do they struggle with sensory issues while eating?
  • Accessibility/ mobility issues?
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8
Q

What is the Forest School approach to learning?

A
  • Child-led, play based
  • Promotes holistic development in a natural setting
  • Activities are open-ended and flexible
  • Aims to develop resilient, confident, independent and, self-motivated learners through child-centered, risky play where children must solve problems and work with others.
  • Observing Ash in different learning areas.
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9
Q

How does Forest School help develop children in a holistic way?

A
  • Child led curriculum (social, emotional and personal)
  • Risky play (Physical)

(critical thinking, problem solving, resilience, independence)
Natural setting (Empathy, resilience in all weathers, art, creativity)

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10
Q

What are the limitations of Forest School?

A

Challenging, important for us practitioners to remain enthusiastic and positive.

Risky play can lead to accidents but as long as we remain vigilant and conduct risk assessments this is minimised.

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11
Q

What is your experience with SEN/D children?

A
  • Ash
  • Anastas, Sawsane, Edgar
  • Supply teaching assistant
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12
Q

Give an example of how you adapted tasks so an SEN child could access the activity.

A
  • Anastas and the Velveteen Rabbit made sensory.
  • Ash sensory nature walk.
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13
Q

What are some general methods you have used with SEN children?

A
  • Love, patience and support
  • Working with parents and SENCO
  • Simple language like “now and next”
  • Watch body language
    -Set high expectations
  • Visual timetable
  • Sensory aids
  • Colour monster
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14
Q

How would you promote inclusion amongst peers during an activity for SEND?

A
  • Observe
  • Facilitate restorative conversations
  • Help with turn taking (Ewan)
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15
Q

What is your experience working with children 2-5 years old in a similar setting to Out There Forest School?

A
  • Brislington site
  • 1:1
  • Covering Evie as a key person
  • Bank staff
  • RSPB
  • AGDWP
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16
Q

What is your experience of planning in the moment for 2-5 year old’s that extend their learning?

A

EYFS training - Children loved “Going on a bear hunt” so planned in the moment to get resources to create the different environments for the children.

Out There - Measuring shadows as an extension of Bodhi’s interest in shadows. Then linked to planets key group lesson.

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17
Q

What is your experience and understanding of Forest School Planning?

A
  • Think about the seasons, flora and fauna and areas of the Forest and its advantages and limitations and the hazards and risks.
  • Spring = Flower scavenger hunt and river exploration.
  • Autumn = Leaf printing and mud slides.
  • Winter = Cooking on an open fire and freezing things in ice for tool use.
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18
Q

What is your experience of positive behavior management in the early years?

A
  • Child-centered.
  • Working collaboratively with the child.
  • Positive feedback.
  • Building strong positive relationships.
  • Set expectations.
  • Model desired behaviours.
  • Be consistent with expectations like always listening to each other.
  • Routines.
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19
Q

What is your knowledge and experience of Montessori, Steiner and Reggio educational approaches?

A
  • Strong and capable.
  • Lead their own learning.
  • Use free-flow play so children can develop their interests and be curious, creative and critical in their thinking with their peers or independently.
  • We are facilitators to scaffold, model and extend their ideas and offer resources.
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20
Q

What other experience do you have that is relevant to the role of being a key person at Out There Forest School?

A
  • Working as a Wildlife Care Assistant.
  • Education
  • RSPB
  • AGDWP
  • Green Ambassador
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21
Q

What experience do you have that will help you to make accurate records on our Famly software?

A

Research Assistant.

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22
Q

What experience do you have that will help you to develop effective relationships with colleagues, parents and outside agencies.

A
  • Confidence to create trusting relationships with parents.
  • Positivity and patience with both children and adults.
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23
Q

Do you have any experience of working with outside agencies to improve children’s outcomes.

A

Vicar for refugee family.

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24
Q

Have you ever had to maintain confidentiality in a learning setting?

A

Alexa and Ash

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25
Q

Why do you think you would be suitable for this role?

A
  • Experience at Out There
  • Suitable qualifications
  • Other environmental education experiences
  • Experience working outdoors in winter
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26
Q

Why do you want to work with young children?

A
  • Their development at this age
  • Play-based learning
  • Get to be apart of the early blueprint of their life
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27
Q

What makes you stand out from other early childhood teachers?

A
  • Other experience with wildlife
  • Environmental education experience
  • SEND experience
  • Drive for alternative education
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28
Q

Tell me about a time you have demonstrated leadership?

A
  • Taking classes on my own during my teacher training because my tutor was ill or doing SLT training.
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29
Q

Tell me about a time you made a mistake?

A

-

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30
Q

Tell me about a time when you worked with a team to solve a problem?

A
  • Working with Ash, Evie, Alex and parents as a team to provide the best outcome for Ash.
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31
Q

Tell me about a time when someone gave you feedback and how you handles that?

A
  • PGCE observations.
  • Masters research project.
32
Q

Can you give us an example of a situation where you did not have the resources you needed, or the commitment of other team members?

Can you tell us how you worked through this to reach a positive outcome?

A
  • Being my own music for musical statues.
  • Having to contact my university tutor to help get my teaching time in for my first EYFS placement. Used as 1:1 which was great experience but I had to get my hours in. Handled professionally and through the correct protocols.
33
Q

Where do you see yourself in five years?

A
  • Level 3 Forest School Qualification.
  • Manager or deputy manager.
  • Maybe own practice.
34
Q

What would your first few months look like in this role?

A
  • Orientation and familiarisation to the setting.
  • Getting to know the children.
  • Establishing relationships with families.
  • Collaborating with colleagues.
  • Assessing children’s skills and development.
  • Planning and implementing activities.
  • Reflective and professional development.
35
Q

What are our values and ethos?

A
  • Developing social and emotional skills
  • Encouraging children to work cooperatively and collaboratively
  • Helping children to manage conflict, find ways to express their needs and emotions
  • Child initiated learning and child-led projects
  • Nature-based free play and outdoor learning
  • Interactive, hands-on learning
  • Social and environmental sustainability
  • Building an inclusive and diverse community
36
Q

Summarise three parts of the EYFS curriculum that are most important to you and explain why?

A

Social
Emotional
Personal
Physical

37
Q

What is your teaching philosophy?

A
  • Child-centred
  • Child-led
  • Positive relationships and behaviour management.
  • Inclusivity.
  • Natural setting outdoors - nature reflects diversity and uniqueness.
38
Q

How do you work towards improving your practice?

A
  • CPD
  • Reflective teaching.
  • Feedback.
  • Asking professional colleagues.
39
Q

What is your method for reflective teaching?

A
  • Reflective section at the end of my lesson plans.
  • Reflective work journal.
    Listening to feedback and constructive criticism.
40
Q

Provide an example you have used creative concepts to teach a concept.

A
  • Role playing “We Are Going on a Bear Hunt” outside.
  • Role playing surfers, footballers, astronauts to think about how the body moves in different ways.
  • Gustav Holts to explore how music makes us feel.
41
Q

How would you incorporate kindness into your setting?

A
  • Modelling that behaviour.
  • Consistent turn taking and listening to others.
  • Collaborative work with children to solve problems with their friends.
  • Discussion and stories on kindness.
  • Role playing kindness with soft toys.
42
Q

How do you ensure that all pupils are receiving same level of attention.

A
  • Take time to spend quality time with each child during free flow play.
  • Go around the circle asking each child what they think or to share their interests with me.
  • voting system.
  • everyone checks in with how they’re feeling.
  • everyone gets to share an idea for the planning board.
43
Q

How do you communicate changes to your key children?

A
44
Q

How would you ensure that vulnerable groups are making good progress?

A
  • Basic needs are being met.
  • Knowledge of home life and how that could be impacting progress.
  • Daily observations and feedback.
    Involving SENCO if required.
  • Involving SGL if required.
45
Q

What would you hope to see in an inspiring EYFS environment.

A
  • Continuous provision.
  • Open-ended and flexible activities.
  • Indoor and outdoor space.
  • Engaged and enthusiastic practitioners.
46
Q

What do you consider good practice in the tracking of progress and attainment in the 7 core areas of the EYFS core areas?

A
  • Ongoing formal and informal observations and assessments (teacher observations, child-initiated activities, conversations, and work samples)
  • Creating, updating and reviewing individual learning files.
    (involve parents and caregivers)
  • Planning child-centred next steps for developmental milestones.
    (develop at their own pace).
  • Documentation and portfolios of child’s assessments, observations and work through photos, written obvs and any assessments.
  • Planning interventions if the child is really struggling such as a meeting with parents and SENCO.
  • Logging any red flags or behaviours onto online database.
  • CPD and reflective practice.
47
Q

What would you do if a parent was dissatisfied or worried about their child’s development?

A
  • Actively listen to the parents.
  • Have safe and non-judgemental open communication.
  • Share information
    (share their child’s strengths through observations, assessments, photos, typical range of development for EYFS children, children have their own learning rates)
  • Collaborative approach
    (schedule meetings and regular updates on the concerns.
  • Individualised support
    (Develop a plan of action as a team that addresses the concerns and any interventions, recommend and provide home resources.
  • Regular updates and monitoring.
48
Q

How often do you communicate a child’s progress to the parents?

A

Every day informally when they are picked up, through online observation sharing, and through any scheduled meetings.

49
Q

What is your experience with assessments?

A
  • SATS
  • Reading assessments
  • Phonics assessments
50
Q

What does safeguarding mean?

A
  • Actions and measured to protect the welfare, well-being of individuals.
51
Q

What’s you’re approach to safeguarding children at work?

A
  • Safe learning environment (risk assessments, forest school code of conduct)
  • Strong positive relationships with parents and children.
  • Observations.
  • Modelling desired behaviours.
  • Listening and empowering children’s voices.
52
Q

A child’s behaviour suddenly changes, what do you do?

A
  • Record it on the online database.
  • Mention to parents.
  • Discuss with colleagues to get their opinion to remove my own bias.
  • Regular monitoring,
53
Q

If a child makes a disclosure what would you do?

A
  • Write it down
  • Open-ended questions.
  • Tell the child I can’t keep this information to myself.
  • Tell Safeguarding lead or LADO if its about SGL.
  • Follow the safeguarding procedures.
  • Keep confidentiality.
54
Q

What training have you done to help you undertake this role?

A
  • Safeguarding training.
  • Autism awareness course.
  • Key Person Role training (EduCare).
55
Q

How would you include a child with EAL?

A
  • Celebrate their home language and culture.
  • Learn some words in their home language to help them feel included.
  • Clear slow language with hand gestures (Makaton).
  • Encourage peer interaction and peer support.
  • Multilingual resources like songs and books.
  • Documentation (Bell Foundation)
56
Q

How would you include a BAME child?

A
  • Having cultural awareness and respect.
  • Cultural exchanges and celebrations. (Ramadan, Dharnia)
  • Language Support.
  • CPD abolitionist edication
57
Q

How would you include a SEND child?

A
  • Individualised support plan.
  • Sensory considerations.
  • Visual supports and communication.
  • Adapted activities and materials (larger tools, modified seating options).
  • Trained and supportive staff (1:1).
  • Safety considerations.
58
Q

Scenario: A child in your key group consistently struggles with transitioning from one activity to another and becomes disruptive during these transitions. How would you address this situation?

A
  • Create a supportive and structured routine to help the child by using 5 minute - 2 minute warnings, visual timetable, now and next board.
  • I would be open in my communication about their child struggling with transitions and work collaboratively to think of any approaches that may help that individual child and give regular daily updates with how they did.
  • To create a positive experience I may ask the child what they would like to do once they get to the woods, or give them choice about where or what they would like to sit on. Give them special jobs to do to help them feel included and confident.
  • Ask them how they are feeling about where we are going and what might help them feel better. E.g a certain object or friend they can play with or walk with.
  • treasure bag example
59
Q

Scenario: One of the children in your key group is showing signs of separation anxiety and struggles with separating from their parent or caregiver during drop-off. How would you support this child and their family?

A
  • I would ask the parents how they had been at home, any issues with sleep or eating?
  • Ask how they child is feeling and if they know why they are feeling this way.
  • Offer some choice of things that might make the child feel better based on their interests.
  • Remind them of something positive from the day before.
  • Distraction by showing the child something we had set up that relates to their interests.
  • Feedback during the day over Famly and end of the day with how their child is getting on after separating.

E.g Alma, made a card for her mum, found a comforting toy, suggested she can stay with me if she is feeling a bit sad if that would help.

60
Q

Scenario: A child in your key group is experiencing challenges in social interactions and struggles with sharing and taking turns during group activities. How would you promote positive social skills and inclusive play?

A
  • Observe the social interaction.
  • Scaffold a restorative conversation. How are both side feeling and what they feel the issue is.
  • I would scaffold turn taking with the child who is struggling or model it.
  • I would use a timer to help manage turn taking and use a turn taking visual if I find that it helps.
  • Work as a team to see how we could maybe change the game if its excluding someone).

-Ewan (example).

61
Q

Scenario: You notice that a child in your key group is displaying signs of disengagement and reluctance to participate in forest school activities. How would you motivate and engage the child to foster their curiosity and enjoyment of the outdoor environment?

A
  • I will be enthusiastic and positive about the day ahead.
  • Make observations on their strengths and preferred learning styles so I can adapt activities for their interests.
  • Ask why they do not want to do the activity.
  • Work collaboratively to see if we could adapt the activity to make it more interesting for them.
  • Plan and create an inclusive activity based on their interests in the moment.
62
Q

Can you share an example of a forest school activity you’ve designed or facilitated that encouraged children’s creativity and imagination? How did you support their learning and engagement during this activity?

A
  • Andy Warhol inspired art in Autumn
  • Worked as a team to collect conkers and red, orange and yellow woodland materials which the children could choose.
  • Children could then create their own artwork.
  • Gallery walk at the end to celebrate the unique art of each child.
  • Give positive feedback about art creations, take photos of work.
  • Encouragement to explore different textures and colours.
63
Q

How do you balance providing children with freedom and independence while ensuring their safety?

A
  • Setting expectations.
  • Forest School Code.
  • Strong positive relationship so those children feel safe under my care to explore risky play.
64
Q

How do you encourage cooperation and peer interaction among children during outdoor activities?

A
  • team building activities.
  • Partner/group work.
  • Sharing and turn-taking.
  • Cooperative nature based projects like Andy Warhol group art.
  • Problem solving and decision making e.g when the children walking over the log and had to work as a team the best way to get across.
65
Q

How would you incorporate the local flora, fauna, and surroundings into educational experiences for children?

A
  • Nature walks and exploration.
  • Tree and plant identification.
  • Nature based arts and crafts.
  • Habitat exploration and set up like dens.
  • Sensory experiences.
  • Eco-friendly projects like composting or bug hotels.
  • Storytelling or nature myths.
  • Sharing my knowledge on flora and fauna.

e.g Ash tree used to be burned to ward off evil spirits.

66
Q

How would you ensure children are adequately prepared and comfortable during outdoor sessions, taking into account different seasons and climates?

A
  • Educate parents and caregivers on appropriate clothing throughout the year.
  • Communication with parents.
  • Monitor weather and temps.
  • Choose shaded areas in summer and cool activities like river exploration.
  • Regular hydration.
  • Adapt activities.
  • Observe and monitor children.

e.g recent heatwave did river exploration and did after kindie in back garden.

67
Q

Forest school encourages children to develop an appreciation for nature and become environmentally conscious. How would you foster this connection and encourage sustainable practices among children?

A
  • Modelling recycle, reuse and reduce,
  • Develop an appreciation for nature through forest school activities.
  • Environmental discussions and storytelling e.g the problem with dragons or building a tower to the sun. (also positive storytelling).
68
Q

Can you share an example of a challenging situation you’ve faced during a forest school session and how you managed it effectively? What steps did you take to ensure the well-being of the children involved?

A
  • Ash falling and biting tongue.
  • Worked with key person who initiated forest aid while I used his regulating interventions we had made together to help him through it. Discussed with the children what happened and how we could make the activity safer.
69
Q

Forest school encourages holistic development, including physical, cognitive, social, and emotional aspects. How do you incorporate these different dimensions into your planning and activities?

A
  • Proved ample opportunities for physical development like climbing trees, over logs.
  • Incorporate identification, counting, pattern, shape and colour spotting in nature.
  • Design group activities for social development.
  • Have reflection time and create a safe stimulating environment for emotional development.
  • E.g setting up in the morning for free flow play. - quiet reading space and creative work, climbing areas, and group activities like in the mud kitchen.
70
Q

How do children develop in the early years?

A

Children develop physically, cognitively, socially, emotionally and personally in the early years. So, providing a nurturing and stimulating environment is crucial for holistic development.

An example I can share is when observing Ash interact with all the learning areas at Out There. I have been able to assist him with his physical development in coordination using the slack line, critical thinking when building using the loose parts as well as his spatial awareness while climbing. Alongside this, I see his emotional and social development when interacting with his peers and then learning to regulate himself when things don’t quite go to plan and how to solve the problem with his friends and the help of myself and other adults but we are just there as supportive bystanders.

71
Q

What is your knowledge of the EYFS curriculum?

A

I have experience planning with the EYFS statutory framework with additional documents like Birth to Five and Development Matters during my PGCE training.

There are 7 core areas;
- communication and language.
- physical development.
- personal, social and emotional development.
- literacy.
- mathematics.
- understanding the world.
- expressive arts and design.
Out There focuses on personal, social, emotional and physical development. But with the other core areas woven into the planning. For example, setting up shop frames for understanding the world or letter and number stickers for postcards which introduce some literacy and mathematics into an understanding of the world activity.

72
Q

What is your knowledge of research related the Forest School approach and benefits to children.

A

Spending time in nature allows for physical development, children can problem solve when learning to assess risks and make decisions independently and critically think when engaging in risky play like climbing.

Being outside regularly helps children develop empathy and respect for nature and can help with emotional regulation due to the calming effects of nature, while also developing resilience in cold, rainy weather.

Research has also suggested that children who regularly attend a forest school develop an increased motivation and engagement in their learning due to the hands-on, experiential nature of outdoor activities that capture their interest and curiosity.

73
Q

What health and safety issues are relevant to this age group and how do you manage risks in the environment?

A
  • Carry out risk assessments
  • Make sure we have the correct number of adults per child
  • Create boundaries using the orange cones,
  • Discuss the forest school code,
  • Regular head counting, and following the missing child procedure if that was to occur.
  • Reminding children of what to do with members of the public, roads, dogs and hazardous flora and fauna.
  • Keeping up to date with our health and safety procedures and regularly going over them in the handbook.
74
Q

What is your understanding of the role of a “Key Person”?

A

Form loving relationships with all my key children helping them to feel safe and cared for which will help their social and emotional development. Also, their physical safety is my responsibility so ensuring risk assessments are taken, and adhere to be up to date with all safeguarding protocols.
From a practical approach the key person will keep records such as an “all about me” document, maintain and update records in the child’s personal and developmental files and be responsible for completing the “two-year-old progress check” as well as filling out accident and incident forms.
Make and write up observations in line with EYFS using the Famly software. Then use these observations to identify and plan for the next steps, providing a unique learning journey for every key child and then sharing the next steps with parents so they can incorporate them into home learning.
Support their home learning environment understanding that parents are a child’s teacher throughout their life so it’s important to understand what the child is like at home and what they like to do there and what skills they are developing at home.
To communicate important information to the parents, for example; daily routines, toileting accidents, injuries and other behaviour/ emotional concerns. To liaise with parents and the SEN coordinator if there are any concerns about the child’s development.
Discuss children with my supervisor about how my key children are developing and progressing and will give regular updates to parents verbally and through observation forms.
Transition time to the child’s next setting. My role is to make the transition as easy as possible by talking about it to the child and family, helping with any concerns and that we all work together to help the child.

75
Q

What personal attributes do you think are most important to this role?

A
  • love of outdoors and nature
  • self-motivated
  • Resilience
  • Imaginative and creative
  • Confident and outgoing
  • Adaptable and flexible
  • Patience with children and adults
  • Fun and approachable
  • Physically fit

1:1 SEN FS Job Interview (5 decks)

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