One of the major reasons that SALLEY includes work on attention skills is that we were often faced with the same scenario as you. We feel it is one of SALLEY’s strengths that nothing is assumed. We don’t for example assume that children have good language or attention skills before they start, therefore SALLEY goes slowly, step by step through the essential skills needed to sit, look and listen – all vital for attention and learning. We teach children what they have to do when they are told to listen and we teach them the language that they need to access the programme. For example we do not assume that children know what “beginning” means – a key concept if you are looking at the sound structure in a word. “Beginning” is taught in a variety of ways using toys and pictures for example before it is linked to word structure – e.g. “find the sound at the beginning”.

The major focus in SALLEY is on the input loop too – this means that children can respond and take an active part in their learning without having to say anything. This is beneficial for a wide range of children from those who are shy and need to build confidence to those who have little or no English.