Decoding Learning Differences with Kimberlynn Lavelle

If you’re wondering how to best educate your child, be sure to listen to this episode!  There is no one-size-fits-all approach to education, but there are many more options than you may have realized.

In this conversation, we talk with Dr. Norrine Russell, the Founder & CEO of Russell Coaching & Consulting.  We go into ADHD, Autism, AuDHD, as well as technology's role in education and SO much more! Russell Coaching for Students, a nationally recognized practice supporting complex learners—uses an innovative method of coaching for complex students, including those who have ADHD, Autism,...

This week we're chatting with Jonathan Treiber of Skil-Care on the podcast.  We discuss how a child’s environment may impact their learning and what we can do for these students to better support them.   Although Skil-Care is a company selling products, they also want you to view them as a resource to learn more about how to best support your kids with sensory needs.   Jonathan Treiber, CEO of Ski...

What has your experience with technology been with your kids?   Are you able to give unlimited screen time with no consequences?   Does your kid become an unrecognizable monster after 20 minutes of video games?   Have you noticed any impact in their learning?   Do you use educational apps with your kids?   I would LOVE to know all of these answers! Please email me at Kimberlynn@DecodingLearningDif...

Later this month is my birthday and one tradition I have is to give gifts on my birthday as a way to celebrate my life with those around me.  It’s a tradition my dad demonstrated and I always thought was lovely.  I don’t do it every year and mostly just for my kids, but this year is different!   Almost 2 years ago I created an IEP checklist to help you do what I do for my clients and the tech gods...

David P Hurford, PhD is a true gem, offering wonderfully comprehensive texts and curricula for children, parents, and educators; and making navigating the world of dyslexia easier! Learn more about Dr. Hurford at https://www.jettpublishing.net/authors/about-the-author and get your copy of his books at the same link!

Enjoy this episode from season 5, to prepare you for next week's episode about some books written by David Hurford!   original notes from Season 5: Dr. Hurford is doing great things in the world, studying dyslexia and teaching kids with dyslexia as part of his non-profit organization! You can hear all about that as well as some books he’s published (that I just had to get my own copies of, so expe...

Evan Connell  is an Australian sustainable technologist and systems architect who has spent over 30 years helping schools, governments, and community organisations extend the life of their technology while improving reliability and control. He is the creator of  Sprint Central , a lightweight operating system designed to keep existing school computers usable for years longer than traditional platf...

After taking a summer break that stretched into a winter break that stretched into a mid-winter break… I’m finally back at putting out new episodes of the podcast! This week is a soft intro into what to expect this season, and how I plan to avoid the problem of last season.   For more information on how to work directly with me (looking over IEPs, preparing yourself for IEP meetings, getting your...

Are you dyslexic?   Is your child?   Someone you know well?   Chances are that you answered yes to at least one of those! And yet, for most people, dyslexia is still a mystery!  Myths still abound, and kids with dyslexia often feel alone and different.     Feeling alone and different leads to lower self-confidence and can further impact academic success as well as friendships and navigating social...

Restorative Justice is about accountability and making repairs. It’s about emotional intelligence and building relationships. It’s about investing in people with time and patience. Listen in to this week’s podcast to learn more about Restorative Justice in Education including what it can look like, and how it can change a school’s disciplinary system to a system with redemption built-in. To help y...

Are Microschools the Answer?   Summer break is here or nearly here.  Are you thinking ahead to next school year?  You may be worrying about if your child will lose progress over the summer and you may be looking for ways to maintain their educational levels.  (Hit reply and let me know if you’d like to discuss tutoring options) OR   You may be wondering if you need to change schools for your kiddo...

Video Version available at DecodingLearningDifferences.com   In previous seasons, we have talked EXTENSIVELY about motivation and because it is such a critical part of a child’s academic success and overcoming learning challenges, I’ll always keep bringing it up again and again!   This week we’re diving into a quick and easy way to motivate a child.  It won’t work for every child every time.  And...

Video Version available at DecodingLearningDifferences.com   I recently was confronted (on this podcast episode!) with a myth that I had spread widely believing to be true: that learners retain 90% of what they teach.  I had never believed that the pyramid this fact was based off of was exact or precise but rather a generalization of lots of research.  It also was supported by the real-life experi...

Gretchen Wegner, a former classroom teacher, is the founder of The Anti-Boring Learning Lab. This is a wonderful resource for all educators to check out, including home educators! In this second conversation, Gretchen will share her knowledge of Self-Directed Learning, which we discuss calling “Collaborative Learning”!  You’ll learn what it is, how to implement it in any learning situation, and wh...

Video version available at DecodingLearningDifferences.com Gretchen Wegner, a former classroom teacher, is the founder of The Anti-Boring Learning Lab. This is a wonderful resource for all educators to check out, including home educators! In this conversation, Gretchen will share her knowledge of neuromyths, why they are not accurate, and why we need to bust them! Check out Gretchen's blog article...

I do hope that I am not the only neuro-nerd out there, but even if you’re not particularly fascinated by neuroscience, stick with me!   In this week’s episode, I take an old-ish quote and apply it to how your kids learn, leaving you with action you can take to make learning more successful for your kids!   This is extremely helpful in working with kids with dyslexia, dyscalculia, dysgraphia, and s...

This week’s podcast episode might be a first of its kind (for me).  It started out as wanting to explain that English is actually relatively logical and follows a lot of patterns, but it turned into a book recommendation because Uncovering the Logic of English by Denise Eide goes into better detail than I ever could in a podcast episode! Listen in to hear about why I like this book, why I recommen...

I am delighted to announce that our first guest interview for the 2025 season of Decoding Learning Differences is Dr. Hurford.  Dr. Hurford is doing great things in the world, studying dyslexia and teaching kids with dyslexia as part of his non-profit organization! You can hear all about that as well as some books he’s published (that I just had to get my own copies of, so expect to see another ep...

Times are challenging, and I’m dedicated to focusing on getting everyone the info they need to be successful in the area in which I have expertise in. There will be a few changes to the podcast for the 2025 season.  I will now be emailing and publishing the podcast episodes on THURSDAYS instead of Mondays!     So watch for emails from me on Thursdays at 12:34pm.  As much as I’d like to get back to...

Parents assume that their kids have learned something and will still know it next week.   They won’t, unless they’ve been practicing.     This is probably obvious to you when you stop to think about it, but it’s just so common for parents to also be surprised when our kids have forgotten something they TOTALLY knew!   And this learning-requires-practice truth is exponentially more true for kids wi...

If you have a “great”, “good”, or even “okay” IEP in place for your kiddo, don’t assume all is going well and you don’t need to check in until the next annual IEP.   Check NOW!  We’re approximately ⅓ of the way through the school year (depending on your school’s calendar).     We need to be sure that everything in place still makes sense and is benefiting your kiddo.     We need to be sure the goa...

Unfortunately, education has become increasingly political lately and I feel like I’m not doing anyone any favors by keeping quiet about it.   I will not tell you who or what to vote for, but I would love the opportunity to let you know about a few things that can impact your child’s education.   I’m intentionally releasing this episode well ahead of Election Day because I want everyone to have ti...

Today is Christmas in September!  I’ve got a gift for you!   I’ve just created an IEP checklist to help you do what I do for my clients!  When working with clients, I go through every part of an IEP to ensure it is well-written, accurate, and is working toward reasonably ambitious goals.   With this PDF, you can now do the same thing!  The PDF links to videos that go deeper into some of these topi...

Click here to see the video and get the letters!   https://decodinglearningdifferences.com/Letters Or email me at Kimberlynn@DecodingLearningDifferences.com