This episode explores a nervous system responsive approach to teaching in the classroom, highlighting the importance of prioritizing connection and regulation to optimise children’s nervous systems for learning.

Key Take Aways

• Identifying behavioural signs children are outside of their window of tolerance.

• One on One time - Developing empathy and understanding of each student’s unique experiences.

• Working with Ots and using sensory profiles to inform sensory accommodations and supports in the classroom.

This Week’s Recommendations

• Instagram Account: @a_different_spectrum

In this episode we’re taking a closer look at our brain’s structures and functions, the impact our experiences have on our nervous system and the implications for learning and engagement in the classroom.

Key Take Aways

Dr. Dan Siegel’s Hand Model of the Brain

• Visualizing the brain’s structures using the hand

Brain Integration and the Upstairs/Downstairs Analogy

• The brain as a two-story house: upstairs (cortex) and downstairs (limbic system and brainstem)

Factors That Disrupt Brain Integration

• Cognitive overload and environmental stressors

Flipping the Lid

• The stress response: Fight, flight, freeze, fawn

Window of Tolerance

• Introduction to the Window of Tolerance 

• Differences in window size and stress management

Self Care for Teachers

• As adults, the importance of prioritising our own nervous system.

Recommended Resources

• Dr Dan Siegel and Tina Payne Bryson’s book ‘The Whole Brain Child’ 

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Learn more about Nat’s work on her website 

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In this episode, we continue our deep dive into executive functioning, focusing on how executive functioning processes develop differently in neurodivergent students, including dyslexic, ADHD, and autistic kids. We explore the key executive functioning processes—working memory, impulse control, and cognitive flexibility—while sharing practical strategies to support students in the classroom.

Key Take Aways

• Recap of Executive Functioning

• Definition of executive functioning system.

• How dyslexic brains process written language.

• Differences in brain development for ADHD students.

• Cognitive flexibility and the attachment to a desired process and outcome

• Teaching executive functioning explicitly.

Recommended Resources

• Alison Clarke’s SPELFABET site for literacy resources.

See this podcast in pretty pictures by following Nat on instagram - @the_audhd_speechie

Learn more about what Nat does by checking out her website - www.gospeechpathology.com.au

Our executive functioning system is a set of cognitive processes that allow us to independently engage and interact in our world and, for our school aged kids, in the classroom. 

Key Take Aways

• A quick discussion of Monotropism.

The week's Recommendations

• Dr Ross Green's Lives in the Balance Website

See this podcast in pretty pictures by following Nat on instagram - @the_audhd_speechie

Learn more about what Nat does by checking out her website - www.gospeechpathology.com.au

Welcome to Episode 1! In this first episode, we dive into the Neurodiversity Affirming Model - what it is, why it matters, and how it differs from the traditional medical model.

Key Take Ways Covered:

• Introduction to the neurodiversity affirming model and how it fits within the education system.

This Week's Recommendations:

• Neurowild's 'Neurodiversity Cupcakes' Infographic

References

https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamanetworkopen/fullarticle/2789926 

https://www.aihw.gov.au/reports/children-youth/australias-children/contents/health/children-mental-illness 

Prevalence of Developmental Dyslexia in Primary School Children: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis 

Developmental Language Disorder | NIDCD (nih.gov)

I’m Nat Willacy, Autistic ADHD speech pathologist, teacher and host of The Neurodiverse Classroom podcast. The neuro-affirming movement and better understanding neurodivergent brains is my SPIN (that’s autistic speak for special interest) so join me as I deep dive into a brain based approach to supporting and empowering all children in the primary classroom.

I’ll be unpacking the paradigm shift our world is making, away from the medical model of autism and ADHD to a neurodiversity affirming model, and how that applies to the education space. I’ll be exploring the executive functioning system of the brain and the role executive functioning skills play in learning at school for both neurotypical and neurodivergent students. And I’ll be drawing on the teachings of some of the great minds in this space to highlight the importance of prioritising the nervous system to support the wellbeing, development and learning of the students in your classroom.

It’s my hope that by tuning in to the Neurodiverse Classroom, school leaders, teachers, education assistants, allied health professionals and anyone working with children in schools will be empowered with knowledge, approaches, strategies and supports that just feel right, that just feel easier, and that are more affirming and more rewarding for everyone. Our classrooms are made up of all different kinds of brains and when we truly recognise and honour that, each and every student can blossom and grow in their own unique and beautiful way.

So join me on the Neurodiverse Classroom Podcast and click subscribe today!