This is our 4th episode of Prep for An Affirming School Year, where we're talking to school-based professionals about how they implement affirming practices in their setting and spread the word on their campus and in their districts. In this episode, SLPA Clarissa Behrens speaks about the opportunities she's had to share new ideas with supervisors and others on her team, and how she makes neurodiversity approachable to others in her school.

Note: at about 10:15 Clarissa mentions "whole body listening". She would like to clarify that she's referring to "old" whole body listening, which has been revised by Elizabeth Sautter to be much more affirming.

Clarissa's recommended resources:

-PODCAST: Two Sides of the Spectrum podcast https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/two-sides-of-the-spectrum/id1514489746

- Learn Play Thrive - (trainings) https://learnplaythrive.com/trainings/
-Rachel Dorsey Autistic SLP https://dorseyslp.com/

-Autism Level Uphttps://www.autismlevelup.com/

-Neuroclastic https://neuroclastic.com/
-Play spark https://play-spark.com/educational-handouts
-Neurodiversity Strengths Checklist file:///Users/cbehrens/Downloads/Neurodiversity%20Strengths%20Checklist.pdf
-Autistic Self advocacy Network (ASAN) https://autisticadvocacy.org/

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We're back for the third episode in the Prep for an Affirming School Year series! In this episode, elementary school psychologist Breea Rosas gives us insight into how she incorporates a neurodiversity affirming lens in her role in the school setting. Listen to learn about how reports can be transformed from shaming to supportive, how behavior plans can work for the student rather than against them, and how to promote a student-centered approach amongst the school team.

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We are returning for another episode of "Prep for an Affirming School Year", this time discussing SLP services for young elementary school students with Sara Peele, M.A., CCC-SLP. Listen to learn about how the process from referral to IEP can be infused with a neurodiversity-affirming approach, gaining confidence with providing child-led services, tips for incorporating student interests into your therapy, and more!

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It's the first episode of the Prep for an Affirming School Year series! For this first installment, Abby from @thenotsoneurotypicalteacher joins us to talk about a child's first experiences in the schools, the early childhood classroom. We discuss how to implement affirming strategies with large groups, working with the classroom team, and taking risks with teaching. Listen for more!

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In this week's episode, Emily gets vulnerable and discusses the experience of getting an autism diagnosis as an adult. She walks through early experiences in childhood that gave a preview to later diagnosis, experiences in therapy, and the diagnosis process itself. She also answers some listener questions about the experience and what has changed since then.

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On this week's episode, we are joined by Bettina Lopez-Lam, MS, CCC-SLP, who is an autistic SLP and mother to an autistic child. Our discussion covers the journey of seeking out an autism diagnosis for her child, to an eventual diagnosis of her own, and how these changes in perspectives have impacted her family life and clinical practice. Most importantly, we discuss how love, understanding, and connection can overcome so many challenges and barriers.

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Intro and outro music: "Northern Glade" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ 

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Content Warning: This episode contains discussions about racism and eugenics against multiple groups. Please read the description for a list of sources and references.

In this episode, Emily is joined by SLPA and Anthropology student Anna to give an introduction to the topic of disability studies. Anna gives background on the history of disabled people and how society's treatment and accommodation to them has changed over time, as well as how it differs across cultures. They also discuss how clinicians can become more knowledgable in this area and use it to improve their clinical work.

This is only the tip of the iceberg, and Anna has kindly provided us with citations and further reading on the subject, which has been compiled into a list that you can view with this link. Please send me a message if you need assistance accessing it.

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Intro and outro music: "Northern Glade" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ 

Cover art by Ed Magdaleno

In this episode, Emily has a discussion with autistic SLP Ally about their experiences with counseling in the work of speech pathology, especially with autistic clients and their families. The two also discuss the ways that clinicians can become better counselors, and the experiences they share with being late-diagnosed autistic therapists. 

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Intro and outro music: "Northern Glade" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Cover art by Ed Magdaleno