A typical day for Max begins by greeting everyone, making sure that he misses no one out. He will talk to everybody wanting to know what they have been doing for the last week. He always shows that he is interested and listens carefully to the stories people tell him. When we settle down after a cup of tea Max most often supports Kim and Stephen. Max is very creative in finding ways to enable Kim and Stephen to understand what we are doing and to take part in a meaningful way.
Max’s ability to engage with the group is obvious but it is at lunchtime when it is most evident. He quickly realised that Stephen likes books and having stories read to him, so Max brought in a Harry Potter book which he read to the group. They really enjoyed this and there was lots of laughter and a great sense of warmth in the room as Max used his verbal skills and body language to ignite imaginations through the story telling.
I was really impressed that Max had reflected on the best way to support the group at lunch time and had come up with a creative solution which suited everyone. People often used to talk over one another at lunch time, but the story telling enthralled the whole group and everyone could participate and share in the excitement.
I suppose what I am trying to say is that it’s not about the obvious things that Max does but the small things, the intuitive way he has of knowing when someone needs support and how to enable this in the most appropriate way for each individual. Some of us have to learn this, but to others it appears to come more naturally and when we meet a person to whom it does come more naturally, we need to watch and learn.
Nicola Franklin
Senior Learning Practitioner, Milton Keynes