About In The Zone for Learning

A program to assist students with complex learning needs.

During 2012 and 2013, Clarke Road School in partnership with Autism Central Pty. Ltd. have been involved in an action research project focusing on how to assist students to be in an optimum state - In the Zone for Learning, so that relevant and rigorous teaching and learning is taking place within classrooms.

The In the Zone website and its' resources have been developed by a team of teachers and allied health professionals in conjunction with parents, web developers, graphic designers and software developers. This website is a result of this extensive collaboration.

It was developed as a result of the Every Student, Every School (New South Wales, Australia) initiative aimed at providing better learning and support for students with a disability, learning difficulties or behaviour support needs. Every Student, Every School is supported by the Australian Commonwealth Government’s More Support for Students with Disabilities National Partnership 2012-2013.

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This website includes:

Video training modules
A profiling tool and strategy booklets
Some useful resources and websites.

The information contained in this site is only a GUIDE for educators. It is recommended that parents and allied health professionals are consulted for formal assessment and interventions for individual students.

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Our purpose: to provide tailored professional development & evidence-based tools that will assist you to understand your student's internal world.

To teach and support students.
To enable and empower students.
To inspire and energise students.
In order to engage learners within classrooms; educators require specific knowledge and understanding, tools and strategies.

The latest research and literature indicate that an individual's brain needs to be in a regulated/calm yet alert state in order for functional learning to take place. In other words, the student has to be In the Zone for Learning in order for higher order processes such as attention, reading, writing, critical thinking, problem solving, reasoning and decision-making to occur.

When curriculum and learning activities are delivered to a student who is not in an optimal state; the result can be increased anxiety, stress, challenging behavioural responses, non-participation and/or reduced engagement.

The ITZ tools, strategies and information are designed to assist you to support your students to be calm yet alert and ready to learn with individualised learning tools in a supportive environments that is vibrant, safe, relevant, motivating, engaging and academically rigorous.

Who can benefit from this information?

In the Zone for Learning has been developed as a resource for educators of children and young people with complex learning needs such as students with the following diagnosis or challenges:

Intellectual disability
Developmental Delay
Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD)
Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD)
Syndromes such as Fragile X and Down's Syndrome
Sensory Processing Difficulties
Motor coordination challenges

The information, resources and strategies can benefit all learners.

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Resources

All In the Zone for Learning tools are intended to support educators to better understand our students, their complex needs and their capacity to attain and maintain a calm yet alert state.

Ready to learn more?

Start Module 1 now

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Acknowledgements

This In the Zone Project has been funded by the Australian Commonwealth Government’s More Support for Students with Disabilities National Partnership 2012-2013. This website and its resources have been developed by a team of teachers and allied health professionals in conjunction with parents, web developers, graphic designers and software developers. This is to acknowledge and thank the many people who contributed to this project.