Supporting Your Neurodivergent Child at School and Home

Send us Fan Mail Trigger Warning: The topic of suicide is discussed in this episode. Please decide for yourself whether or not you have the emotional capacity to listen at this time. If you skip it for now but feel differently later, you can always come back to it. The most important thing is that you prioritize your own mental health. This episode is part 2 of 2. If you haven't yet, please g...

Send us Fan Mail Trigger Warning: The topic of suicide is discussed in this episode. Please decide for yourself whether or not you have the emotional capacity to listen at this time. If you skip it for now but feel differently later, you can always come back to it. The most important thing is that you prioritize your own mental health. In this episode I discuss why suicide intervention is importan...

Send us Fan Mail This episode is part 2 of 2. We continue to bust the most commons myths about ADHD. Even if you listened to part 1, I highly recommend listening to part 2, as it includes the myth that hits you right in the feelings - "If you tell a kid about their ADHD, it will make them feel different." We talk about why parents believe this, and why it's actually false.  Please s...

Send us Fan Mail If I had a dollar for every time I heard one of these comments about ADHD... I would be able to pay off my overdue library fees. Maybe even buy myself lunch. This episode covers 4 of the most commons myths about ADHD (no matter who you are, you probably believed at least one of these at one point in time!) Share this episode with your parent and/or teacher friends, so we can start...

Send us Fan Mail A quick reference guide for teachers, administrators, clinicians, and all school staff for how to interact with kids from a trauma-informed perspective.  If you have any questions or topics you want me to cover, please email me at schoolpsychpodcast@gmail.com, direct message me on Instragram @SchoolPsychPodcast, or click "Send Us a Text" in this episode description. If y...

Send us Fan Mail Death is not always easy to talk about, but kids who are grieving need us to be brave, rather than shy away from hard conversations. In this episode I share ten tips for supporting kids through grief.  If you have any questions or topics you want me to cover, please email me at schoolpsychpodcast@gmail.com, direct message me on Instragram @SchoolPsychPodcast, or click "Send U...

Send us Fan Mail If you're a school clinician wanting to feel generally prepared and organized in your day to day, then this episode is for you! I share some obvious and some "not so obvious" must-haves for school psychologists. Enjoy! If you have any questions or topics you want me to cover, please email me at schoolpsychpodcast@gmail.com, direct message me on Instragram @SchoolPsy...

Send us Fan Mail There are so many factors out of our control as school clinicians. But there are things we can do as a part of our fall start-up to set ourselves up for success. In this episode I cover some tips for laying the foundation of a smoother "back to school", and talk about some of the tasks school psychologists are likely to engage in, in the first quarter of the school year....

Send us Fan Mail How is it fall already? If you are an educator or a parents who has mixed feelings about "back to school," then this quickie episode is for you! Transitions can be hard and it's okay if things feel a little bumpy at first. But we are resilient, and collectively - We got this!  If you have any questions or topics you want me to cover, please email me at schoolpsychpo...

Send us Fan Mail Case studies are a great way to learn what it actually looks like to walk through the psycho-educational assessment process. In this episode, I review how a student with already diagnosed ADHD was referred to school psychology, and what questions her school team and parent were interested in answering through a psych assessment. I walk through each part of the assessment, what we...

Send us Fan Mail The cliché "If you meet one person with Autism, you know one person with Autism," means that we all have different strengths and challenges and therefore we need recommendations for our own unique needs. However there are a few resources/suggestions that come up often in conversations with parents and teachers who are supporting autistic learners. In this episode I talk...

Send us Fan Mail The prevalence rates of Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) have been on the rise throughout the past two decades. This ignites lots of debate, regarding which factors contribute to these rising rates. In this episode, we review some of the findings from the recent CDC report, as well as an article by economist Emily Oster.  References: 1. CDC Report about 2022 ASD prevalence rates (pu...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode, we first cover some important language when discussing Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). We move on to discuss who diagnoses ASD. Then we thoroughly review the diagnostic criteria of ASD. Lastly, we share some stats such as prevalence rates and other factors that contribute to the diagnosis of Autism, as well as other disorders that commonly co-occur with ASD. We al...

Send us Fan Mail In the last 2 episodes,  we covered misconceptions about mental health counselling, as well as an overview of different therapeutic approaches. For today's episode, we get a bit more practical, by discussing what therapy is and why it's worth your time. We end with some tips on how to access therapy/counselling. If you've ever wondering if therapy is right for you,...

Send us Fan Mail Are you interested in starting therapy but aren't sure which type of therapy is the best fit? Or maybe you're already in therapy, but didn't realize there are other therapeutic approaches besides the one your counselor is using? OR maybe you're thinking about becoming a therapist one day?! Then this episode is for you! We cover several different therapeutic app...

Send us Fan Mail In honour of the 50th episode, I'm reflecting on what it really means to celebrate mental health. So many people still carry outdated or unhelpful ideas about therapy - and those myths often keep them from getting support. In this episode, I'm clearing up the biggest misconceptions and inviting everyone - parents, teachers, friends, and you  - to think differently about...

Send us Fan Mail Just a quick episode wishing you an awesome summer, in which you are kind to yourself and remember.... YOU ARE HUMAN.  If you have any questions or topics you want me to cover, please email me at schoolpsychpodcast@gmail.com, direct message me on Instragram @SchoolPsychPodcast, or click "Send Us a Text" in this episode description. If you like the School Psych Podcast or...

Send us Fan Mail This episode builds off of one of last week's tips for "what all teachers need to do this summer." One of the suggestions was pausing to reflect what went well this year that you want to take into next school year, and what you need to let go of. So, THIS episode is my own reflections about exactly that. Whether you're a teacher, a parent, or a school clinician...

Send us Fan Mail This episode is for teachers and any of us working in schools (clinicians, admin, educational assistants, all y'all!) By summer break, our nervous system is tapped out.. How do we ensure summer is the proper reset that we need before we come back in the fall? In this episode I list the top 5 activities (or lack thereof) that educators need to focus on this summer. We deserve...

Send us Fan Mail In this interview episode, Bryan Stanton (chair of "Teaching While Queer," a not-for-profit organization) shares the importance of allyship even when it feels scary or uncomfortable. "But how can I be an ally?," you ask?! Listen as Bryan shares the importance of visual signals, asking about pronouns, checking in on queer students, creating space for queer educa...

Send us Fan Mail I've shared some of these with you before and I'll share them again and again! There are certain resources I find myself recommending over and over to families and school teams of neurodivergent learners... and for good reason. It's time to dedicate an episode to listing these top 5 resources and to talk about why I love them for our neuro-spicy kiddos! 1. Explainin...

Send us Fan Mail Ah the dreaded "summer slide," also known as "summer learning loss" or "academic regression". Have no fear parents! There are lots of ways we can help our kids maintain some of the skills they worked so hard to develop this school year! These 7 tips should provide you with some ideas - from creating a daily "learning routine" that works for...

Send us Fan Mail Did you know that school psychologists attend IEP (Individual Education Plan) Meetings with families and school teams? This episode covers what a typical day looks like for a school psychologist during testing season. I also share what my favourite IEP meeting process looks like (spoiler alert: It's not just reading a document verbatim to a parent). If you have any questions...

Send us Fan Mail Have you ever wondered what a testing day looks like for a school psychologist? Then this episode is for you! I run through a typical testing day, and also discuss the steps that need to have been completed beforehand (weeks or days in advance) to make this day go smoothly.  If you have any questions or topics you want me to cover, please email me at schoolpsychpodcast@gmail.com,...

Send us Fan Mail Have you ever wondered what a school psychologist does with their time? Why does it feel like they're everywhere at once or simultaneously nowhere to be found? Hopping in and out, but flying into the building within minutes when a crisis occurs. The role of a school psych can vary widely, depending on the situation. I'm not just talking from country to country, province...