Solutions · Special needs

Online lessons built around every learner’s needs

Pencil Spaces helps tutors, schools and therapists teach students with disabilities and special educational needs (SEND) online. Pick a need to see what helps.

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Needs covered

38 needs in 5 areas

Who

SEND tutors and tutoring companies, special schools and SENCOs, EOTAS and alternative provision, speech, occupational and mental health therapists, families

アクセシビリティ

Audited against WCAG 2.1 Level A and AA

Customer stories

Love2Learn Education, Bemorefab, ALP Charlotte

Start with the learner’s need

Pick a need to see what an online lesson requires, the Pencil Spaces features that meet it and tips that help in any classroom.

Cognition and learning

Dyslexia7 features today · 1 coming soonReadable boards, less copying and more ways to show what they know.
Dyscalculia7 features todayMath kept concrete, visual and laid out one step at a time.
Dysgraphia7 features today · 1 coming soonType, draw, talk or write by hand, with nothing to copy.
Dyspraxia (DCD)8 features todayFewer fine-motor demands and a board that never gets lost.
Processing speed and working memory8 features todayTime to think, steps that stay visible and recaps to come back to.
Executive function difficulties8 features todayOne link, reminders, visible time and next steps in writing.
Moderate learning difficulties (MLD)7 features todayA simple screen, pictures beside words and success at every step.
Down syndrome6 features today · 1 coming soonVisual, sociable lessons with big faces and clear sound.
Twice-exceptional (2e)6 features todayStretch the strength and support the need in the same lesson.
Visual-motor and visual-perceptual difficulties8 features todayMazes, tracing and copying tasks on the board, with hands in view.

Communication and interaction

Autism7 features today · 1 coming soonThe same Space every week, a calm start and ways to join in without speaking.
Pathological demand avoidance (PDA)7 features todayLow-demand, choice-led lessons that follow the student’s lead.
Speech, language and communication needs7 features todayClear sound, visible faces and pictures behind every word.
Stammering and stuttering6 features todayTime to speak, turns in order and other ways to answer.
Selective mutism6 features todayWays to take part long before speaking, with no pressure.
Non-speaking learners and AAC7 features today · 1 coming soonChoices to touch, AAC in view and time to respond.
Speech sound disorders8 features todayA clear view of the mouth, clean audio and practice words on the board.
Voice disorders7 features todayClear audio, recordings to compare and quiet ways to take part.
Social communication difficulties8 features todayPractice conversations in small groups, with visual scripts and clear turns.

Social, emotional and mental health

ADHD6 features today · 1 coming soonShort, active tasks, visible time and a heads-up when focus drifts.
Anxiety6 features today · 1 coming soonPredictable lessons, private ways to ask and no surprises.
Emotionally based school avoidance (EBSA)7 features todayKeep learning going from home, and build back up one step at a time.
Trauma and attachment needs7 features todayThe same trusted adult, calm routines and strong safeguarding.
Behavior that challenges8 features todayClear structure, private redirection and quick ways back to success.
Tourette syndrome and tics6 features todayControl over microphone and camera, typed answers and breaks.
Mental health needs5 features today · 1 coming soonFlexible lessons, easy catch-up and safeguarding in every lesson.

Sensory needs

Visual impairment8 features todayZoom, softer colors, keyboard control and lessons to listen to again.
Deaf and hard of hearing6 features today · 1 coming soonBig faces, a pinned interpreter, clear sound and text in every lesson.
Sensory processing differences6 features today · 2 coming soonLess noise and glare, a cleaner screen and control over sound.
Auditory processing disorder (APD)6 features todayClear sound, written instructions and recordings to replay.
Visual stress (Meares-Irlen)6 features todayChoose the color of the page, with clearer fonts and bigger text.

Physical and medical needs

Physical disabilities7 features today · 1 coming soonAny way of using a device, less fine-motor work and no travel.
Cerebral palsy7 features today · 1 coming soonInput that fits each student, answers without handwriting, paced around fatigue.
Medical needs and long-term illness6 features todayLearning that moves with treatment, from home or hospital.
Epilepsy6 features todayFlexible lessons, easy catch-up and care with what’s on screen.
Acquired brain injury (ABI)7 features todayShort, calm lessons with memory aids, built up gradually.
Chronic fatigue, ME/CFS and long COVID8 features todayShort lessons paced to their energy, from bed or sofa.
Self-care and daily living skills8 features todayReal tasks at home, coached live with picture steps and a second camera.

The features special needs lessons use most

What do learners with special needs need from an online lesson?

Every learner is different, and the best guide is always the student and the people who know them. Across very different needs, the same few things come up again and again.

Predictability

The same link, the same Space and the same routine each week. Pencil Spaces keeps every board between lessons, so nothing starts from scratch.

A calm, simple screen

Fewer tools, less clutter and less noise. Child Mode, which suits students of any age, cuts the toolbar to five big tools and hides everything else. Softer board colors and AI noise cancellation help too.

More than one way in

Pictures, real objects, speech and text together. Teachers add images to the board, show objects on a document camera and write by hand.

Time and repetition

Visible timers, recordings to rewatch and a summary after every lesson give students time to process and to practice.

Partnership with families

Lesson summaries come in a version written for parents, so families know what happened and what to practice at home.

Built for SEND programs

Tutoring companies, special schools, EOTAS teams and local authorities need more than a good lesson. Pencil Spaces adds safeguarding in every lesson, recording policies, automatic attendance and reports across every student.

Accommodation Profiles, coming soon, will record each student’s accommodations from their EHCP, IEP or 504 plan once. Pencil Spaces will then apply them in every lesson, with every tutor.

Built for therapy teams and providers

Speech-language pathologists, occupational therapists, school psychologists and counselors bring the expertise, the activities and the records. Pencil Spaces is the live room they work in: video beside a shared board, a document camera for hands-on work and recording policies for counseling.

Providers can put that room inside their own platform with iFrame Embed, under their own name with White-Label. Their own activities run on the board as Custom Apps, and the API and webhooks keep attendance in step with their systems.

How accessible is Pencil Spaces?

Pencil Spaces has been audited against every WCAG 2.1 Level A and AA success criterion, using a keyboard and the NVDA screen reader. The accessibility page lists the features, the known limits and how to request the conformance report.

Questions people ask

Is Pencil Spaces good for special needs tutoring?

Yes. SEND tutoring companies such as Love2Learn Education teach all of their online lessons in Pencil Spaces. Each student gets a Space that keeps their work between lessons, with a shared board, video and tools for reading, writing, focus and communication.

Which special educational needs can be supported online?

Most needs can be supported online with the right lesson design, from dyslexia, ADHD and autism to anxiety, hearing and vision needs and long-term illness. Each page here sets out what helps, and where online lessons have limits.

Does Pencil Spaces support EHCPs, IEPs and 504 plans?

Teachers apply accommodations today with tools such as dyslexia-friendly fonts, softer board colors, timers, recordings and typed answers. Accommodation Profiles, coming soon, will record each student’s accommodations once and apply them automatically in every lesson, with every tutor.

Is Pencil Spaces safe for vulnerable children?

Pencil Spaces runs on-device safeguarding in every lesson and uses AI after each lesson to flag harassment and safety concerns to your team. Recording policies, incognito observation for leaders and an audit log give programs oversight. Pencil Spaces is COPPA, FERPA, GDPR and CCPA compliant.

Can therapy providers use Pencil Spaces inside their own platform?

Yes. iFrame Embed puts the room inside your own website or app with API-based login, and White-Label carries your name and logo. Your own activities can run on the board as Custom Apps, and the API keeps attendance and other data in sync with your systems.

Can parents see what happens in lessons?

Lesson Summaries include a version written for parents after each lesson. The Parent Portal, coming soon, will let parents see what their child worked on before and after every lesson.