Raising Aspirations: INSET for children in care and with a social workerExpect more. Then help it happen.

Story. Priya, 9, starts her third school in two years in the middle of the spring term. On her first day she is given a reading book two levels below the one she had finished, because her records haven’t arrived yet.

Theory. Maslow’s hierarchy of needs (1943) explains why a child who is still working out whether she is safe, and whether she belongs, has less left for learning. We link this to what the designated teacher guidance asks every school to understand about children in care and previously in care.

Action. Notice, don’t diagnose. Staff fill in a workbook page on one anonymised child they know: what the child might be carrying, what they have noticed, and what would help in the first week, without labelling the child.

By the end of this part staff can describe what a child in care or with a social worker may be carrying into school, and name one thing that helps them feel safe in the first week.

You leave with A workbook page on one child your staff know, anonymised, and what they might be carrying

Story. Marcus, 15, tells his mentor he wants to be a vet. She says, kindly, “Let’s think about something more realistic.” He doesn’t bring it up again.

Theory. Rosenthal and Jacobson’s Pygmalion in the Classroom (1968) started decades of research on teacher expectations. It shows how adults’ beliefs about a child travel through grouping, feedback, tone and who gets asked the hard question.

Action. Language that Cares. Staff sort real phrases heard in schools into those that hold children back and those that stretch them, then rewrite the ones they recognise from their own staffroom.

By the end of this part staff can explain how expectations reach a child, and replace three phrases they use with ones that stretch.

You leave with A list of phrases to stop using, and what to say instead

Story. Priya’s class has an “All about my family” display. Every child has a photo up except her. Nobody meant anything by it.

Theory. Baumeister and Leary’s work on the need to belong (1995) shows belonging is a basic human need. Children read it from small signals: displays, seating plans, rewards, who gets asked and who gets jobs.

Action. A walk-through. Staff walk a classroom and a shared space with fresh eyes, using a checklist, and note what tells a child they belong and what tells them they are different.

By the end of this part staff can audit a classroom or shared space for messages about belonging and name one change to make.

You leave with A walk-through checklist for classrooms and shared spaces, with your first findings

Story. Marcus is the one who calms the younger children on the school bus. A teaching assistant notices and asks him to help run the Year 7 lunch club.

Theory. Carol Dweck’s work on growth mindset (Mindset, 2006) shows children’s beliefs about whether ability can grow are shaped by how adults praise and challenge them. A strengths-based approach starts from what a child does well and builds stretch on top of it, not only extra support.

Action. Growth Mindset and a strengths map. Staff map the strengths of one child they teach, then plan two ways to use them in lessons, clubs or responsibilities, and practise feedback that praises effort and strategy.

By the end of this part staff can map one child’s strengths and plan two specific ways to build on them.

You leave with A strengths map for one child and two things to try next week

Story. Marcus, now 17, says what made the difference wasn’t one big intervention. It was a few adults who kept asking about the vet plan, and meant it.

Theory. The designated teacher guidance gives the designated teacher lead responsibility, but high expectations only stick when every adult owns a part. One person, one change, one week: small named actions get done, big shared intentions don’t.

Action. The school plan. Led with your designated teacher, staff build the school’s aspiration plan together. Every adult writes one named action and agrees when it will be reviewed.

By the end of this part every member of staff can name their own action in the plan and the date it will be reviewed.

You leave with A school action plan with a named action for every member of staff and a review date