Co-Regulation: Stepping in with soothing, responsive interactions to help a person be able to regulate their emotions. OR Borrowing the ability to attain a regulated state from another person who is emotionally regulated and responsive to our need for assistance.

First – you need to regulate yourself.

• Be aware of own triggers
• Find /create your own system of support
• Find activities, interests to help you regulate (music, movies, hobbies, exercise)
• Find what grounds and anchors you, a source of strength, comfort, and clarity of purpose like personal faith, nature, meditations

Second - let them borrow some of your regulation.

• Be (and remain) present
• Reflect back calm and responsiveness
• Hold space

The final step of regulation is to actively teach children how to regulate themselves, giving them tools to use.

• Mindfulness
• Name It to Tame It
• Creative Expressions of Emotions
• Movement & Rhythm
• Breathing
• Sensory Engagement
• Hunger or Thirst
• Grounding Techniques
• Play

Resources:

Mona Delahooke https://monadelahooke.com/

Deb Dana https://www.rhythmofregulation.com/

The Whole Brain Child- Dr. Siegel and Dr. Bryson

In this episode, Julie and Ginger share the Five Neurodivergent Love Languages from @neurowonderful.

Info dumping. Sharing information about topics that excite you and that you have an interest or passion in and sharing them in detail and length.

Body Doubling/Parallel Play/Sharing Space. When people do separate activities with each other, they are not trying to influence each other's behavior.

Seeking Support/Support Swapping. Helping each other look out for themselves in small ways.

Deep Pressure. Finding a way to be grounded physically through pressure and weight

can alleviate stress.

Penguin pebbling/gift giving. This is when an ND person shows another person affection by offering them little objects, like trinkets or even memes.

Listen in as Julie and Ginger discuss that the Five Neurodivergent Love Languages are a Tool for EVERYONE!

Share these with the children in your care to open dialogue about how we see and value each other and how we can better connect and understand each other. It can be a very effective way to increase communication and inclusivity.

In this Episode Julie and Ginger seek to increase awareness and acceptance of the strengths that neurodivergent children have.

Neurodiversity means valuing all types of thinking and learning equally, without considering any as superior. It focuses on equitable inclusion by accepting diverse ways of engaging with the world, rejecting the ideas that difference from the norm are problems to be fixed. ATN aligns with the belief that societal and physical barriers create disabling environments, and that impairments result from these barriers rather than from focusing on what is wrong with the person.

“Neurodivergent” describes someone whose brain works differently. A neurodivergent person often has different ways of thinking or processing the world around them than someone who’s “neurotypical” or who has what’s seen as a more standard experience.

Neurodivergent people aren’t any less capable than their peers, and in fact tend to excel in more particular or specialized areas. But often our school and social structures aren’t built to accommodate ND individuals, which makes life more difficult for them.

Neurodivergent students LEARN DIFFERENTLY. Dr. Mona Delahooke teaches that we should take “differences” off a diagnostic checklist and see these differences as adaptations in the way the student processes information in the classroom.

So what should educators be doing? Experts who work with neurodiverse students suggest Using Trauma-Informed strategies in the classroom and regulation-driven teaching models.

They also highlight the importance of adapting systems and environments to support success by honoring all forms of communication as valid

Resources noted in the episode

https://www.templegrandin.com/

https://www.axismunditherapy.com/

https://www.kelly-mahler.com/

https://monadelahooke.com/

Listen in and Julie and Ginger share their vulnerable stories of parenting and educating their neurodivergent children in hopes of helping others walking in their shoes.