Components of our ACE ethos - developing pupils’ Adaptive thinking, Communication and Emotional Wellbeing (ACE)

INDEPENDENCE

Over time and with whole-school inputs, we have developed and refined our High Grange School ACE ethos. The overarching aim is to ensure that all of our school leavers will have the necessary knowledge, skills, personal attributes and positive attitudes to be able to lead happy and enriched lives in their communities, as independently as possible.

ADAPTIVE THINKERS 

Pupils with ASC often can have fixed mindsets and over-rely on structure and routine in their daily lives. Becoming adaptive, flexible thinkers requires our pupils to explore and problem solve in different ways, in different situations they encounter in life. Our pupils will be supported to explore the concept of flexible thinking and to discover proven strategies and techniques to allow them to become adaptive thinkers.

COMMUNICATION

Almost all of our pupils have some difficulty with components of their spoken language or with processing information to enable them to understand in learning contexts; or with the social and interactive aspects of communication, or with all of these. Pupils work towards understanding and using strategies that enable them to engage and succeed academically. Also, they are supported to develop their awareness of how the social mind is expected to work, and of the essential skills for successful social interactions and for developing and maintaining relationships.

EMOTIONAL WELLBEING

Learning to self-regulate is a key milestone in young people’s development - how they think, feel and react can have a significant impact on their daily life experiences and on their overall quality of life. Our pupils will learn about core emotions to gain valuable emotional literacy skills. Learning focuses on linking daily academic and social experiences with strategies for enhancing and sustaining emotional wellbeing.

ACE IN PRACTICE

• Our ACE Ethos is fundamental to, and permeates all learning at High Grange School.
• Each term has a specific focus on one ACE component, so in the Autumn term our focus is Emotional Wellbeing; our Spring term emphasis is on Communication and in the Summer term, Adaptive Thinking is highlighted.
• This offers our pupils more focussed opportunities to target specific knowledge and skills in one of the core elements of ACE. 
• During lessons, one specific “Team ACE” target is set for pupils, which then follows them across core lessons and is worked on collaboratively as a class/team.
• Pupils are consistently encouraged to develop their Independence with reference to the particular ACE target in lessons and also during break times and informal school activities.
• All pupils have termly, personalised “My ACE targets” that are set against their EHCP outcomes. 
• These are reviewed termly by the pupils in partnership with their keyworker and a designated member of our multi-disciplinary therapy team.
• Progress against the targets is reviewed and new targets are set by each pupil during twice-weekly meetings with their keyworker in collaboration with the form teacher.
• Ultimately, all progress feeds directly into EHCP reviews.