All Episodes
Episodes
Ep. 79 Sensory Breaks for the Classroom
One of the biggest questions therapists and teachers have is how to accommodate sensory needs in group settings. Obviously we need to do that. But trying to consider the preferences of every child in the classroom can...
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Ep. 78 Designing The Perfect Clinic Space
My clinic, Pediatric Therapy Playhouse, is turning 11 years old!! I seriously can't believe it. One of the biggest lessons I've learned in my 11 years as a clinic owner has been how to make a clinic space that works...
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Ep. 77: Supporting Autistic Play Development
What does "functional play" really mean? Should we be teaching a child how to play? Is there a right and wrong way to play? These are all questions that come up when talking about Autistic play. I've always said "play...
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Ep. 76: How We Can Do Better For Autistic Kids
Recently, a parent of a 9-year old Autistic boy shared with me that her son threatened to take his life multiple times. He was so sad that at 9 years old, he did not want to live anymore. And that got me thinking… How...
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Ep. 75: ABA & Neurodiversity Affirming Practices
We need to talk about behavioral therapy... You may not know this but when I was in grad school, I was hired as a 1:1 behavioral support therapist for a little girl in a private school. ABA is a very common...
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Ep. 74: Are You Actually Neurodiversity Affirming? Ask Yourself These 5 Questions
Are you actually neurodiversity affirming? The term "neurodiversity affirming" has become such a buzzword. Therapists are advertising themselves as "ND Affirming Therapists". And maybe that is you. But are you...
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Ep. 73: The Problem With Social Skills Training
Chris's ND Affirming Activity Book is out NOW! Click below to grab it: https://www.speechdude.com/book
The problem with traditional social skills training is that it focuses on teaching autistic individuals to mimic...
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Ep. 72: How Do You Transition Autistic Kids?
If you work with kids, you know how hard transitions can be. For some kids, hearing a statement like “In five more minutes, we’re going to line up and go back to class” might not be a big deal. But those of us who...
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Ep. 71: When Kids Aren’t Picking Up On AAC
When you’ve introduced AAC…but you feel like there’s no progress…what should you do? Sometimes just getting a device in a child’s hand feels like a major win. But what do you do when you’ve been trying and trying with...
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Ep. 70: Avoid these Goals for Autistic Kids
Let’s face it. A lot of goals that are still being written for Autistic kids….well, they suck. This may come across as harsh but some of these goals truly do more harm than good. I genuinely believe that. So why are...
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Ep. 69: Navigating Autism & ADHD Assessments Ft. Neuropsychologist Dr. Wilson
This week on Making the Shift, we are sitting down with Dr. Karen Wilson, a renowned clinical neuropsychologist and the founder of ChildNEXUS to discuss the importance of differential diagnosis in neurodivergent...
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Ep. 68: Best Ways to Support Nonspeaking Autistic Children
In this week's episode of Making the Shift, we’re breaking down the absolute most powerful ways you can support nonspeaking Autistic children. On this episode, we're discussing: why kids may not be speaking, when to...
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