DESCRIPTION

Step by Step Centre special education Centre in the heart of Doha, licensed by Supreme Educational Council. We offer a number of therapy services and programmes to meet the needs of children with learning challenges.

Our Mission

To provide learning opportunities for children to achieve their full potentialin a safe and positive environment

To actively involve parents in supporting student learning and development.

To create awareness in Qatar community.

And to dedicate ourselves to our children, families, staff and our profession.

Services

We can develop programmes for children with the following special needs:

• Communication/ Speech and Language Impairments
• Autism and other Developmental Disorders
• Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder
• Multiple and Complex Learning Disabilities
• Specific Learning Disabilities

Our general services also include teacher training and workshops, educational assessments and support, individualized afternoon therapy sessions, parent support meetings, afterschool/weekend play groups and sibling workshops.

Afternoon Therapy Support

We provide additional individual therapy support for children during afternoon sessions. Typically, these sessions last 45 minutes to 1 hour long. The session times can be arranged with parents/carers. Alternatively, parents are offered therapy package programmes in the areas of Occupational therapy, Speech and Language Therapy, Behaviour Therapy, and Academic Support sessions.

ABA Programmes

We deliver specialist Applied Behaviour Analysis (ABA) services to our children under supervision from board certified ABA consultants (BCBA). For this programme, we initially require parents to meet (either in person or using internet conference) with our consultants to assess their child’s needs and design a personalized therapy programme accordingly. Therapy sessions will be on a one on one basis and the learning goals can be reviewed and monitored regularly.

Behaviour Support Plans

Where necessary, individual children can have a Behaviour Support Plan that outlines specific strategies so that a consistent and coordinated approach can be adopted by all adults (and parents) working with the student. When devising a Behaviour Support Plan for a student, all adults involved with the student in the centre and parents contribute to the writing of the plan which is then shared with all the rest of staff.

Evaluating Children’s Progress

We use a combination of teacher assessment, and standardised activities and tasks to measure our children’s level of achievement. The Student's Progress Reports are sent to parents at the end of each term. This will be followed by the end of year annual Parents’ meetings to which parents/carers are invited. At these meetings, there is an opportunity to talk with all the school staff involved with their children, to view their work, and see the facilities and equipment used by them. We also offer parents an opportunity in September to come into school and discuss our plans for their child for the coming year.

Physical activities

Our children develop skills in a wide range of physical activities working on co-ordination, balance and co-operation skills and develop positive attitude. These activities are practiced through play, in the classroom and playground using indoor and outdoor equipment.

Admission

Step by Step Centre has a capacity for approximately 50 children; however, actual intake depends upon the number of children opting for a place and their specific needs. A child can be admitted at any stage of the school year following the procedure laid out below so long as there is a place available and we can meet his/her needs.

Initial assessment for admission is normally on Tuesdays from 7:30 am until 12:30 pm. We use both formal and informal tests, in addition to observation of the child’s general functioning at different settings in the school. Following the assessment, parents are invited to come for a meeting to discuss how we can meet their child’s needs. Once admitted to our school the student’s progress is reviewed at least annually. We also review the placement to ensure that a student is correctly placed.

Meeting our Children’s Needs

Each of our children has an individualised educational programme (IEP), which is delivered to them in a variety of approaches and contexts. Their individualized educational programme is based on a combination of sources: previous school reports, observations and assessments by teachers, discussions with parents, inputs from therapists and other professionals involved with them. All of this information is then combined to produce a list of annual goals and objectives for the student, which is later discussed with parents at IEP meeting.

All of our children receive relevant group and individual therapy sessions, the number of which depending on their needs. Our children’s needs are updated as they achieve success in their individual targets. Their progress is reported to parents at the annual educational review, where the new targets are also discussed for the next year.

Individual Education Plans

Each of our children is given an individualised curriculum and IEP (Individual Education Plan) is prepared accordingly. The following sample areas of development can be targeted:

• Speech, Language and Communication
• Academic Skills (Numeracy, Literacy etc)
• Play skills
• Listening and Attention
• v Motor skills
• Behavior
• Social skills
• Self-help/daily living skills

An IEP can include what special or additional help is being given, who will provide the help and how often, what help you can give your child at home, your child’s targets and how and when progress will be checked.

Communication with parents and careers:

After admission every child is given a Home Communication Book which is the most immediate and regular method of communication with the class teacher, the teaching assistant and therapist team. Daily messages can be sent to and from home.