The Educator Magazine U.K. Sept-Dec 2026 issue - Magazine - Page 11
Creating classrooms where every child can write
Bridget Gri昀케ths is our Content Manager at Crick Software. She was formerly an Assistant
Principal and KS2 teacher who regularly led demonstrations of best practice in literacy for
her trust.
The introduction of Inclusive Mainstream Funding presents leaders
with an opportunity to strengthen their school’s universal o昀昀er. As they
develop their inclusion strategies, leaders are encouraged to take an
evidence-informed approach to identify, understand and support the
needs of their cohort. The hope is that the education system becomes
inclusive by design, with sustainable approaches that make a lasting
di昀昀erence for all learners.
Current guidance suggests schools do this by focusing on
implementing fewer approaches well and building on existing
inclusive practice rather than o昀昀ering ‘bolt-on’ solutions. This includes
high-quality adaptive teaching, sca昀昀olding, early intervention and
approaches that can be delivered consistently across the whole school.
To identify and understand their cohort’s needs, leaders will be asking
an important question: What are the common, predictable barriers to
learning that we see every day, in every classroom?
How Clicker supports inclusive writing provision
Clicker is designed around the principles of Universal Design for
Learning (UDL), enabling teachers to build writing support into
everyday classroom practice. Any pupil can access sca昀昀olds such as
picture-supported Word Banks, sentence structure guidance, audio
prompts, word prediction and speech feedback whenever they need
them, helping them overcome writing barriers in the moment. As
part of a school’s universal o昀昀er, Clicker can be available to all pupils,
whether they have identi昀椀ed SEND or are simply struggling with a
particular writing skill.
The result is a more inclusive learning environment where pupils can
routinely participate more independently to show what they really
understand and can do.
And for many schools, writing will be identi昀椀ed as a signi昀椀cant barrier
to learning.
The challenge of writing in mainstream classrooms
Writing is one of the most cognitively demanding skills that children
learn. From Early Years through to Year 6, to produce a piece of writing
pupils must simultaneously generate ideas, recall vocabulary, form
letters, remember grammar and organise sentences. The cognitive
load is frequently overwhelming for pupils, and when any one of these
processes becomes too di昀케cult, writing becomes too di昀케cult.
The impact can extend far beyond literacy lessons. Pupils struggle
to participate fully in classroom activities or show their true
understanding and ability. Over time, this can negatively impact
attainment, engagement and con昀椀dence in literacy and across the
curriculum.
These challenges are not limited to pupils with identi昀椀ed SEND.
Di昀케culties with writing are common across all year groups, and
learners often need support at di昀昀erent points in their education. As
schools plan their inclusive-by-design approach to learning, pupils
should not have to wait for a diagnosis, formal identi昀椀cation process or
specialist intervention before receiving support with a di昀케culty that is
a昀昀ecting their access to learning every day.
A universal approach to overcoming writing barriers
Once leaders have identi昀椀ed said barriers, 昀椀nding a universal,
evidence-based solution for the whole school is the next challenge.
The di昀케culty is that high-quality support for struggling writers typically
relies on extra adult time, whether that’s from teachers, TAs or 1:1
interventions. While interventions are e昀昀ective, it’s often impossible
for schools to make this level of support part of their universal o昀昀er
because budgets and sta昀케ng simply aren’t available.
The Education Endowment Foundation’s guidance on inclusive teaching
highlights the importance of universal approaches that support
all learners, such as sca昀昀olding. E昀昀ective sca昀昀olding helps pupils
succeed in tasks that might otherwise be beyond their current level
of independence. In line with adaptive teaching practices, sca昀昀olding
tasks o昀昀ers pupils support according to their individual needs without
lowering learning expectations or potential outcomes.
This is where Clicker has become an important tool in mainstream
classrooms.
For more information on Clicker visit cricksoft.com/clicker
Building con昀椀dence, independence and writing
success with Clicker
Research by Durham County Council’s SEND & Inclusion Service found
that pupils using Clicker made progress across all areas assessed,
including writing, con昀椀dence, concentration and motivation. Sta昀昀 also
observed increased independence, with pupils able to self-check and
self-correct their work without adult support.
Cumberland Infant School uses Clicker across the curriculum to help
pupils overcome barriers to writing as part of everyday learning.
Teachers say that it helps manage the cognitive demands of writing,
builds pupils’ con昀椀dence and self-esteem and enables them to
demonstrate what they can achieve with the right support in place. “It’s
a lovely sca昀昀old; it’s an accessible tool for these children to get them from ‘I
can’t do this’ to ‘I can do this’ to ‘I can do this by myself.’”
By making support available whenever pupils need it, Clicker helps
create a more inclusive learning environment where learners can enjoy
independent writing across the curriculum.
