Are you struggling to understand why a child you know is finding school hard?
Understanding their point of view is the first step to working out what needs to happen to make things better.
Buy Clarity CardsGetting young people to share their views about school can be hard.
- Some don't have the words to explain how they feel.
- Some say they hate school or find it boring, but find it difficult to give details.
- Some will share details with parents, but mask their true feelings from teachers.
- Some refuse to talk about school at all.
- Some aren't attending school so staff will have limited opportunities to talk to them.
But if young people aren't able to explain clearly what they really think:
- parents and teachers rely on "best guesses" about what is going on, which are often not the complete picture.
- parents won't know what support to advocate for.
- parental concerns may not be taken seriously if the child masks at school.
- schools won't know exactly what kind of support to put in place.
- young people may not be fully or appropriately supported, difficulties persist and they are likely to continue to find school hard.
Empower children and young people to easily share their views about school.
The School Attendance Clarity Cards are a tool to help children and young people easily communicate their views about what they find hard in school and what protective factors are in place.
The cards were originally designed to investigate the views of young people with school-based anxiety, but they are so informative, I now use them in my educational psychology practice with most of the young people I work with. They are applicable to children experiencing a wide range of difficulties in school.
The School Attendance Clarity Cards:
- Empower young people to easily communicate their views about:
- what they find hard in school.
- what is going well
- what support is in place.
- their priorities for change.
- Use this information to build a support plan that:
- includes motivating goals.
- addresses all the issues the young person finds difficult.
- plugs any support gaps.
- makes school easier or less stressful for the young person.
- Can be used parents, teachers, SENCOs, ELSAs, pastoral support workers, attendance leads and educational psychologists.
- Are most useful for children aged between about 7 and 16.
Evidence-based
The cards cover factors that research and my 10 years of professional experience as an educational psychologist suggests are common barriers to attendance.
I regularly use The School Attendance Clarity Cards in my daily practice as an educational psychologist and they consistently provide rich information that translates to an obvious course of action being identified.
Five simple steps to help young people share their views.
1
Buy the cards
Order you downloadable pdf.
2
Watch instructional videos
Learn how to get the most out of the cards.
3
Facilitate conversation
Use the cards to find out going well, what's hard and priorities for change.
4
Analyse what child has said.
The cards are colour coded so it's easy to see if themes emerge.
5
Use information to plan support
Use rich information gathered to build a bespoke support plan.
Help children and young people share their views.
They deserve to be heard.
As a parent or professional who works with young people, you'll know the frustration of watching a child who is struggling at school, but finds it hard to clearly articulate the problem. Often these children feel (and sometimes are) misunderstood, unsupported and unhappy.
That's where The School Attendance Clarity Cards come in. Created by an educational psychologist, these cards provide a structured way for children to communicate what makes school so difficult and to show how supported they feel. By facilitating a clearer understanding of each child's unique challenges, The School Attendance Clarity Cards empower families and professionals to take informed action to improve that child's experience of school.
