WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:02.680 Hi, my name is Jordan. I am a special education 00:00:02.680 --> 00:00:06.139 teacher from the UK. I share my passion for everything 00:00:06.139 --> 00:00:09.099 communication, sensory regulation and fun lesson 00:00:09.099 --> 00:00:11.640 ideas for my classroom of disabled pupils aged 00:00:11.640 --> 00:00:15.279 4 to 11. Each week I am joined by experts in 00:00:15.279 --> 00:00:17.620 the field answering your questions and sharing 00:00:17.620 --> 00:00:19.559 our knowledge and experience working alongside 00:00:19.559 --> 00:00:22.600 our beautiful young people. Let's get started. 00:00:23.800 --> 00:00:26.359 So these episodes are going to be a little bit 00:00:26.359 --> 00:00:29.359 different over August. We are going to re -look 00:00:29.359 --> 00:00:32.500 at my favourite moments from the podcast from 00:00:32.500 --> 00:00:36.000 Series 1. We've had such amazing conversations 00:00:36.000 --> 00:00:38.340 this year and thank you so much to everybody 00:00:38.340 --> 00:00:41.079 who has been on the podcast. You've been incredible. 00:00:41.320 --> 00:00:43.500 And thank you so much for all the listeners for 00:00:43.500 --> 00:00:46.100 your support so that we can continue this for 00:00:46.100 --> 00:00:49.359 Series 2 from September. I hope you enjoy taking 00:00:49.359 --> 00:00:52.500 a look back at... yeah my favorite moments very 00:00:52.500 --> 00:00:56.060 often as adults we really mess it up because 00:00:56.060 --> 00:00:59.240 they've got a system they've got a thing that 00:00:59.240 --> 00:01:01.340 they want to do they don't need us and we're 00:01:01.340 --> 00:01:04.959 so desperate to be part of the play and to join 00:01:04.959 --> 00:01:07.980 in that we accidentally get in the way and what 00:01:07.980 --> 00:01:11.120 we then do is we prove their point which is that 00:01:11.120 --> 00:01:13.659 other people get in the way and so what yeah 00:01:13.659 --> 00:01:17.670 again one of the the best kind of tips is to 00:01:17.670 --> 00:01:21.189 just sit alongside for a while. Just sit alongside, 00:01:21.469 --> 00:01:24.769 be present, but not actively involved. And then 00:01:24.769 --> 00:01:28.769 what I tend to do as like a stepping stone into 00:01:28.769 --> 00:01:32.030 their play is I'd maybe find my own bottle top 00:01:32.030 --> 00:01:34.989 and just have one and I'd just do the same thing 00:01:34.989 --> 00:01:38.950 as them, but separately and alongside. Sometimes 00:01:38.950 --> 00:01:41.129 I even have to have invisible things because 00:01:41.129 --> 00:01:45.109 sometimes me having something that's then not 00:01:45.109 --> 00:01:47.430 part of their set is really... upsetting and 00:01:47.430 --> 00:01:50.170 dysregulating or they want everything that I've 00:01:50.170 --> 00:01:52.090 got and then it becomes a bit of a battle so 00:01:52.090 --> 00:01:54.629 if you're finding that I do try that but if you're 00:01:54.629 --> 00:01:56.609 finding that sometimes I have in visual things 00:01:56.609 --> 00:01:59.230 and I just copy the movement or the sound or 00:01:59.230 --> 00:02:02.450 the something because and I'm still joining in 00:02:02.450 --> 00:02:06.329 without that weird battle and if you feel that 00:02:06.329 --> 00:02:07.810 they're uncomfortable with how close you are 00:02:07.810 --> 00:02:10.210 then take a step back or if they feel uncomfortable 00:02:10.210 --> 00:02:13.969 with how you're sitting then sit some where else 00:02:13.969 --> 00:02:16.590 but but they're obviously aware of you and that's 00:02:16.590 --> 00:02:18.949 good that is the start it's just we want them 00:02:18.949 --> 00:02:22.030 to be as comfortable as possible and and yeah 00:02:22.030 --> 00:02:25.110 and this isn't a magic wand it takes time and 00:02:25.110 --> 00:02:26.849 that's the point isn't it if you're committed 00:02:26.849 --> 00:02:31.409 to it um then gradually yeah quite often when 00:02:31.409 --> 00:02:34.280 we do something new and we're trying this this 00:02:34.280 --> 00:02:38.000 kind of play and interaction therapy to start 00:02:38.000 --> 00:02:41.680 with it will feel new and and maybe a little 00:02:41.680 --> 00:02:44.159 bit too much for children and so they might watch 00:02:44.159 --> 00:02:46.400 you do your invisible bottle top and they might 00:02:46.400 --> 00:02:51.960 take their seven over to the other side No, thank 00:02:51.960 --> 00:02:55.659 you. This was actually a me time activity. And 00:02:55.659 --> 00:02:57.659 again, that's absolutely fine. I tend to just 00:02:57.659 --> 00:03:00.400 narrate along with it and go, oh, I had a term, 00:03:00.460 --> 00:03:02.759 but now it's time for you to play by yourself. 00:03:02.919 --> 00:03:05.759 I understand. I'll come back later. And, you 00:03:05.759 --> 00:03:08.620 know, just narrate alongside it and almost give 00:03:08.620 --> 00:03:12.460 that like advocating phrase to them as they go. 00:03:12.539 --> 00:03:14.520 So they move along and I go, oh, I need a bit 00:03:14.520 --> 00:03:17.259 of space. And they kind of, as if I'm talking 00:03:17.259 --> 00:03:19.919 as them so that they can hear that phrase, they 00:03:19.919 --> 00:03:22.169 might use it another time. time if they can and 00:03:22.169 --> 00:03:25.389 it means that you've had this this very equal 00:03:25.389 --> 00:03:28.189 interaction there like i didn't come in and insist 00:03:28.189 --> 00:03:31.430 that i must be part of your play um i haven't 00:03:31.430 --> 00:03:34.169 taken over i haven't taken your toys i haven't 00:03:34.169 --> 00:03:38.509 touched your play i'm offered to be part of it 00:03:39.080 --> 00:03:42.039 i've asked for an invite and then you've either 00:03:42.039 --> 00:03:45.719 replied saying yep join in or no thanks not today 00:03:45.719 --> 00:03:48.199 and both i think we have to show children that 00:03:48.199 --> 00:03:50.360 both of those things are an option like they 00:03:50.360 --> 00:03:53.319 can say no thanks for you joining in exactly 00:03:53.319 --> 00:03:57.099 exactly and sometimes it is we all like me time 00:03:57.099 --> 00:03:59.240 don't we and and that that relationship and trust 00:03:59.240 --> 00:04:01.479 will have to build won't it and and if you're 00:04:01.479 --> 00:04:04.759 showing them i respect your space and i allow 00:04:04.759 --> 00:04:07.340 you to advocate for yourself and you give consent 00:04:07.879 --> 00:04:10.740 to me working with you and playing with you and 00:04:10.740 --> 00:04:13.699 i honor when you don't give that then next time 00:04:13.699 --> 00:04:17.269 they might be a little bit less anxious that 00:04:17.269 --> 00:04:18.689 you're going to step in because they'll realize 00:04:18.689 --> 00:04:23.029 that this person doesn't do that in, you know. 00:04:23.709 --> 00:04:27.569 I think it's a huge gesture of connection to 00:04:27.569 --> 00:04:31.050 allow a child to say, oh, I'd like to do this 00:04:31.050 --> 00:04:34.490 by myself. And for an adult to respect that, 00:04:34.649 --> 00:04:38.110 I think that it can be really new for a child. 00:04:38.170 --> 00:04:40.230 They might not have ever experienced that before 00:04:40.230 --> 00:04:42.949 because there are so many other times where as 00:04:42.949 --> 00:04:45.279 adults, we have to leave. them and we have to 00:04:45.279 --> 00:04:47.759 guide them and we have to show them and you know 00:04:47.759 --> 00:04:50.579 we have to be in charge of whether you can eat 00:04:50.579 --> 00:04:52.360 whether you can eat that and whether you can 00:04:52.360 --> 00:04:56.620 climb on actually in play you know they can be 00:04:56.620 --> 00:05:00.079 fully in charge of that and so it's really empowering 00:05:00.079 --> 00:05:04.120 for them in a paid environment it is your job 00:05:04.120 --> 00:05:07.959 you're paid to work with this child you might 00:05:07.959 --> 00:05:10.379 be being watched by the parent you know it takes 00:05:10.379 --> 00:05:14.209 so much right So it might take so much confidence 00:05:14.209 --> 00:05:17.730 to step back because you almost want something 00:05:17.730 --> 00:05:21.490 to happen, I can imagine. Yes. Yeah. Yeah, but 00:05:21.490 --> 00:05:24.089 I think it's about explaining that there's a 00:05:24.089 --> 00:05:26.790 reason for that. for that space and that distance 00:05:26.790 --> 00:05:30.790 and that my my motivation is not to make them 00:05:30.790 --> 00:05:33.910 talk or or to make them play with me like that's 00:05:33.910 --> 00:05:37.730 not my aim my aim in therapy is for us to build 00:05:37.730 --> 00:05:40.910 a connection through play and a connection is 00:05:40.910 --> 00:05:43.490 a two -way thing like I can't make them connect 00:05:43.490 --> 00:05:47.430 with me but so often that offering of like this 00:05:47.430 --> 00:05:51.240 is up to you means that we do connect because 00:05:51.240 --> 00:05:52.860 you know they go off and they do their thing 00:05:52.860 --> 00:05:55.259 and then maybe i play something different over 00:05:55.259 --> 00:05:58.259 here and they are curious about it and so they 00:05:58.259 --> 00:06:00.300 come over and maybe they take all of my bottle 00:06:00.300 --> 00:06:05.160 tops that i started to play with but we're still 00:06:05.160 --> 00:06:08.759 interacting now and i think well okay here they 00:06:08.759 --> 00:06:11.600 are and we you know i'm then i'm then helping 00:06:12.459 --> 00:06:15.579 yeah passing the bottle tops over are there any 00:06:15.579 --> 00:06:18.079 more in this basket I will go and check for you 00:06:18.079 --> 00:06:20.980 I found three more here you go you know and we're 00:06:20.980 --> 00:06:24.680 now in a collaborative play accidentally yeah 00:06:24.680 --> 00:06:27.579 um but it started actually with me being rejected 00:06:27.579 --> 00:06:30.860 and accepting that rejection will win this absolutely 00:06:30.860 --> 00:06:33.240 and they're they're not even equal but they're 00:06:33.240 --> 00:06:35.779 actually in charge of this interaction aren't 00:06:35.779 --> 00:06:40.259 they they're fully in charge and in control and 00:06:40.259 --> 00:06:44.579 okay yeah great yeah that's fine and then meanwhile 00:06:44.579 --> 00:06:46.480 you're thinking in your head right how can i 00:06:46.480 --> 00:06:50.459 do this different next week or do i do i have 00:06:50.459 --> 00:06:52.439 all the bottle tops all over the room and we 00:06:52.439 --> 00:06:54.319 have to look for them or whatever that you might 00:06:54.319 --> 00:06:56.699 be next time you're just thinking aren't you 00:06:56.699 --> 00:06:59.579 like how can i extend this how can i move this 00:06:59.579 --> 00:07:02.660 on a little bit or or what could have been better 00:07:02.660 --> 00:07:05.240 you know all we're constantly questioning that 00:07:05.240 --> 00:07:09.259 aren't we my cat has just jumped we're constantly 00:07:09.259 --> 00:07:11.420 questioning that aren't we and kind of improving 00:07:11.420 --> 00:07:14.819 our own practice in that way and it's yeah and 00:07:14.819 --> 00:07:18.319 it very rarely is what we plan i love your instagram 00:07:18.319 --> 00:07:20.980 post when you say this is what i set up and this 00:07:20.980 --> 00:07:23.120 is what we ended up doing how we actually played 00:07:23.120 --> 00:07:27.430 because it's yeah and it has to i think it has 00:07:27.430 --> 00:07:31.230 to yeah you have to be willing to be really flexible 00:07:31.230 --> 00:07:34.410 and have an idea and a plan because that's important 00:07:34.410 --> 00:07:37.649 you know know know what you're hoping for but 00:07:37.649 --> 00:07:41.230 also be very accepting of the fact that the children 00:07:41.230 --> 00:07:44.529 that i support usually have a very clear plan 00:07:44.529 --> 00:07:48.209 for themselves and and our plans may or may not 00:07:48.209 --> 00:07:51.129 kind of cross those from each other and that's 00:07:51.129 --> 00:07:54.810 okay we might have to just work with with with 00:07:54.920 --> 00:07:57.480 where we are. And like you were saying earlier, 00:07:57.639 --> 00:08:01.779 each visit that I do or each session that I do, 00:08:01.879 --> 00:08:05.019 I have to look at where that child's at on that 00:08:05.019 --> 00:08:11.079 day. Where's their cup at? Did they skip lunch 00:08:11.079 --> 00:08:13.459 today because it wasn't what they liked? Is it 00:08:13.459 --> 00:08:15.759 Friday or is it Monday? Did they have a school 00:08:15.759 --> 00:08:19.199 trip earlier in the week? Has mum been poorly 00:08:19.199 --> 00:08:22.810 and so the routine's been off because... auntie's 00:08:22.810 --> 00:08:26.949 been in to help run the show you know it's no 00:08:26.949 --> 00:08:30.509 children are i think children aren't aren't robots 00:08:30.509 --> 00:08:33.549 and so we can't plan for robots we have to plan 00:08:33.549 --> 00:08:35.610 for tiny humans that are going to have very different 00:08:35.610 --> 00:08:38.090 feelings and very different expectations every 00:08:38.090 --> 00:08:41.450 single time you see them um yeah the best bit 00:08:41.450 --> 00:08:44.730 of the job isn't it yeah yeah absolutely you 00:08:44.730 --> 00:08:48.879 have to yeah you have to really love that that 00:08:48.879 --> 00:08:51.480 kind of on the go okay this is where we're at 00:08:51.480 --> 00:08:53.799 how are we gonna like weave that that therapy 00:08:53.799 --> 00:09:00.759 idea into this now instead yeah famous five conscious 00:09:00.759 --> 00:09:03.679 senses and actually hidden in those are a lot 00:09:03.679 --> 00:09:06.700 of the subconscious so like we have a sense of 00:09:06.700 --> 00:09:10.259 temperature and as tactile sense and we cluster 00:09:10.259 --> 00:09:12.620 them all together as touch but it's possible 00:09:12.620 --> 00:09:16.070 to be able to feel texture but not be able to 00:09:16.070 --> 00:09:17.909 understand temperature or it's possible to be 00:09:17.909 --> 00:09:19.870 able to feel temperature and not understand texture 00:09:19.870 --> 00:09:22.830 so it's a bit like deciding how many constellations 00:09:22.830 --> 00:09:25.110 there are in the sky it just depends how we group 00:09:25.110 --> 00:09:28.409 these neurons but there are 33 sets of neurons 00:09:28.409 --> 00:09:31.110 that control your senses so arguably you've got 00:09:31.110 --> 00:09:35.049 33 sensory systems but that would get a bit much 00:09:35.049 --> 00:09:37.389 because in a sensory story you only get eight 00:09:37.389 --> 00:09:42.289 to ten sentences so seven is manageable eight 00:09:42.289 --> 00:09:45.179 nine is getting a bit too ambitious really But 00:09:45.179 --> 00:09:48.120 my seven, I do the famous five. And then quite 00:09:48.120 --> 00:09:50.799 often you're working with somebody who is missing 00:09:50.799 --> 00:09:53.340 one of the sensory systems or can't eat and you 00:09:53.340 --> 00:09:55.159 lose a few. So it's worth having a couple of 00:09:55.159 --> 00:09:58.500 backups. I use proprioception, which is your 00:09:58.500 --> 00:10:01.240 awareness of where your body is in space. And 00:10:01.240 --> 00:10:04.179 it's a weird one to think about. But most people 00:10:04.179 --> 00:10:08.080 have had an experience of not having proprioception 00:10:08.080 --> 00:10:10.740 just as they're waking up. up or falling asleep 00:10:10.740 --> 00:10:13.059 and they get that sensation of falling do you 00:10:13.059 --> 00:10:15.740 ever have that yes and what's happening is your 00:10:15.740 --> 00:10:18.159 proprioceptive sense is falling asleep slightly 00:10:18.159 --> 00:10:21.419 before you or waking up slightly after you and 00:10:21.419 --> 00:10:24.700 you just have a moment where you don't have an 00:10:24.700 --> 00:10:27.019 awareness of where your body is in space right 00:10:27.019 --> 00:10:29.919 it's a really unnerving thing and people can 00:10:29.919 --> 00:10:31.779 have differences to their proprioception in the 00:10:31.779 --> 00:10:33.480 same way they can have differences to vision 00:10:33.480 --> 00:10:36.080 or differences to hearing and so if you don't 00:10:36.080 --> 00:10:39.690 have full proprioceptive capacity and i'm actually 00:10:39.690 --> 00:10:43.169 somebody who doesn't you don't fully have an 00:10:43.169 --> 00:10:44.909 awareness of where your body is all the time 00:10:44.909 --> 00:10:49.149 and that's slightly unnerving yeah so stimulation 00:10:49.149 --> 00:10:52.450 that tells somebody where their body is is a 00:10:52.450 --> 00:10:54.590 really good way of supporting the proprioceptive 00:10:54.590 --> 00:10:57.649 sense so things like um compression wear clothing 00:10:57.649 --> 00:10:59.730 and the weighted blankets and all of those things 00:10:59.730 --> 00:11:01.789 that are so popular in the sensory market that's 00:11:01.789 --> 00:11:03.889 what they're doing they're giving you information 00:11:03.889 --> 00:11:07.259 about where your body is Brushing, massage, all 00:11:07.259 --> 00:11:11.580 of those things. Vibration is a great one. And 00:11:11.580 --> 00:11:15.220 then my other one I do is your vestibular sense, 00:11:15.519 --> 00:11:18.679 which is your sense of motion and balance. So 00:11:18.679 --> 00:11:22.100 if you can incorporate a movement in your sensory 00:11:22.100 --> 00:11:24.080 story, it has to be a movement that involves 00:11:24.080 --> 00:11:27.799 the head because the receptors to your vestibular 00:11:27.799 --> 00:11:30.059 sense are in your inner ear. So it's no good 00:11:30.059 --> 00:11:32.100 just waving your hand. That wouldn't do it. but 00:11:32.100 --> 00:11:35.200 anything that creates like an up or down or around 00:11:35.200 --> 00:11:38.679 or around would offer stimulation to your vestibular 00:11:38.679 --> 00:11:42.480 sense and be another way children in chairs would 00:11:42.480 --> 00:11:47.700 you spin rock shake if if they can do that i 00:11:47.700 --> 00:11:52.019 mean is that what it looks like yeah yeah and 00:11:52.019 --> 00:11:57.340 actually so your senses are a part receptor organ 00:11:57.340 --> 00:11:59.700 but your brain understanding the information 00:11:59.700 --> 00:12:02.940 from the receptor organ So the only time we really 00:12:02.940 --> 00:12:05.559 give that any credit in kind of day to day life 00:12:05.559 --> 00:12:07.580 is when we give babies black and white picture 00:12:07.580 --> 00:12:10.120 books because we recognize this is a baby that 00:12:10.120 --> 00:12:12.200 can see, but they're not seeing in the same way 00:12:12.200 --> 00:12:15.740 that I'm seeing. And what's happening is it's 00:12:15.740 --> 00:12:18.740 partly, you know, the receptor organs picking 00:12:18.740 --> 00:12:21.019 up the information and partly your brain making 00:12:21.019 --> 00:12:23.600 sense of it. And it's about 25 percent pick up, 00:12:23.639 --> 00:12:27.210 75 percent make sense of it. And so I have a 00:12:27.210 --> 00:12:29.470 friend who is blind, but her eyes work perfectly. 00:12:29.610 --> 00:12:32.610 Right. But her brain can't understand it. And 00:12:32.610 --> 00:12:35.710 a lot of the people that I work with maybe have 00:12:35.710 --> 00:12:39.350 the receptor capacity. It's taking them longer 00:12:39.350 --> 00:12:43.500 to put together this information. and so i often 00:12:43.500 --> 00:12:45.740 talk about there being a curriculum of the senses 00:12:45.740 --> 00:12:49.100 and i have a course called develop your sensory 00:12:49.100 --> 00:12:52.179 lexiconry which is me teaching that curriculum 00:12:52.179 --> 00:12:55.019 of the senses but there are things that it is 00:12:55.019 --> 00:12:57.440 easier for your sentences to do and things that 00:12:57.440 --> 00:12:59.419 it is harder for them to do so like the black 00:12:59.419 --> 00:13:01.340 and white picture books for sight that makes 00:13:01.340 --> 00:13:03.539 sense doesn't you pop out you're getting all 00:13:03.539 --> 00:13:06.240 this visual information it's easier to figure 00:13:06.240 --> 00:13:09.039 out that's black and that's white than it is 00:13:09.039 --> 00:13:11.080 to figure out that's peach and that's lemon yellow 00:13:11.080 --> 00:13:13.779 like sequence of things that you're learning 00:13:13.779 --> 00:13:17.279 and with regards to your vestibular sense that 00:13:17.279 --> 00:13:20.299 sense of motion and balance the early way we 00:13:20.299 --> 00:13:23.820 learn about that sense is through bold directional 00:13:23.820 --> 00:13:26.720 movement so you think of what we do with little 00:13:26.720 --> 00:13:29.340 babies we rock them side to side we push them 00:13:29.340 --> 00:13:31.179 forwards and backwards in their buggy and then 00:13:31.179 --> 00:13:33.379 we pass them to their daddy and they lob them 00:13:33.379 --> 00:13:36.399 into the air like it's bold directional movement 00:13:36.399 --> 00:13:40.419 and if you're somebody who requires supportive 00:13:40.419 --> 00:13:42.879 equipment like if you're in a funky wheelchair 00:13:42.879 --> 00:13:46.559 you probably spent your early years maybe in 00:13:46.559 --> 00:13:49.720 a bed maybe ruined expensive care you won't have 00:13:49.720 --> 00:13:52.360 had as much chance to have those bold directional 00:13:52.360 --> 00:13:55.340 movements so you won't have had the opportunity 00:13:55.340 --> 00:13:59.000 to make sense of that stimulation and you might 00:13:59.000 --> 00:14:02.340 not be processing it fully yet and so by giving 00:14:02.340 --> 00:14:05.019 you those opportunities to access that movement 00:14:05.580 --> 00:14:07.580 you can give an opportunity to help somebody 00:14:07.580 --> 00:14:09.799 understand the messages coming from their senses 00:14:09.799 --> 00:14:13.000 and then that gives you more access to the work 00:14:13.000 --> 00:14:16.379 those two i'm quite up an eavesdropper on conversations 00:14:16.379 --> 00:14:18.820 where people go would you prefer to be deaf or 00:14:18.820 --> 00:14:21.100 would you prefer to be blind like there's a hierarchy 00:14:21.100 --> 00:14:24.580 and actually if you interjected in those conversations 00:14:24.580 --> 00:14:27.000 and said would you prefer to be blind or would 00:14:27.000 --> 00:14:29.960 you lose your vestibular sense most people would 00:14:29.960 --> 00:14:34.399 go okay my vestibular never had it But both of 00:14:34.399 --> 00:14:36.639 those senses, your proprioception and your stimulation, 00:14:37.259 --> 00:14:40.799 are fundamental to your capacity to move. And 00:14:40.799 --> 00:14:43.799 if you lose either one, it's a total paralysis. 00:14:44.320 --> 00:14:47.059 And so offering stimulation to them can support 00:14:47.059 --> 00:14:50.480 movement and coordination and all of those things. 00:14:50.639 --> 00:14:53.570 And those two are... definitely being missed 00:14:53.570 --> 00:14:56.570 in sensory stories because in my in my from my 00:14:56.570 --> 00:14:59.169 experience of sensory stories looking around 00:14:59.169 --> 00:15:02.129 and working with lots of other people often it's 00:15:02.129 --> 00:15:05.649 it's texture it smells it's tastes even sometimes 00:15:05.649 --> 00:15:09.049 but they're all quite passive they're still and 00:15:09.049 --> 00:15:11.669 and sitting they do lots of other activities 00:15:11.669 --> 00:15:14.830 that are moving but i feel like maybe often it 00:15:14.830 --> 00:15:17.250 gets forgotten when it's a story maybe something 00:15:17.250 --> 00:15:20.990 in our brain says sit down for story time it's 00:15:20.990 --> 00:15:23.919 still listening and it's passive and actually 00:15:23.919 --> 00:15:25.820 that's not the case and it makes so much sense 00:15:25.820 --> 00:15:27.879 from what you're saying that of course that's 00:15:27.879 --> 00:15:31.059 not the case if we're if people are being pushed 00:15:31.059 --> 00:15:33.320 in their chairs we all sort of wheel around in 00:15:33.320 --> 00:15:35.679 a circle and spin and if people can move themselves 00:15:35.679 --> 00:15:37.539 it's like a chance for a little boogie in the 00:15:37.539 --> 00:15:39.759 middle of the story it's a good one yeah that's 00:15:39.759 --> 00:15:41.100 a great one especially in the middle of the story 00:15:41.100 --> 00:15:46.120 because that's when you need it so one of the 00:15:46.120 --> 00:15:49.379 biggest misconceptions is that somehow it is 00:15:49.379 --> 00:15:52.070 synonymous with occupational therapy or that 00:15:52.070 --> 00:15:54.970 it's the exclusive preserve of occupational therapy 00:15:54.970 --> 00:15:58.690 and it is not sensory integration as a concept 00:15:58.690 --> 00:16:01.870 as a way of working as a way of including people 00:16:01.870 --> 00:16:05.850 is for everyone every single person must be should 00:16:05.850 --> 00:16:08.210 be included in sensory integration there isn't 00:16:08.210 --> 00:16:11.330 a kind of i'm not sensory everybody's in within 00:16:11.330 --> 00:16:13.710 the formal training and formal qualifications 00:16:13.710 --> 00:16:17.250 it is the case and has been for a long time that 00:16:17.250 --> 00:16:19.830 occupational therapists speech and language therapists 00:16:19.830 --> 00:16:24.330 and physiotherapists can train so my training 00:16:24.330 --> 00:16:27.009 as an advanced practitioner in air sensory integration 00:16:27.009 --> 00:16:30.350 is exactly the same as an occupational therapist 00:16:30.350 --> 00:16:32.529 or a physiotherapist who's trained in it i'm 00:16:32.529 --> 00:16:34.690 trained to the same level with the same things 00:16:34.690 --> 00:16:36.950 and in fact in these you know for most of the 00:16:36.950 --> 00:16:38.879 people who are training in the uk The course 00:16:38.879 --> 00:16:41.120 they take now to train, I wrote that course, 00:16:41.200 --> 00:16:43.220 but I was the first speech and language therapist 00:16:43.220 --> 00:16:47.639 to formally train at that advanced level. In 00:16:47.639 --> 00:16:49.159 America, there'd been other speech therapists 00:16:49.159 --> 00:16:52.779 before, and in the UK and in Ireland, other speech 00:16:52.779 --> 00:16:55.620 therapists who were getting it, who wanted to 00:16:55.620 --> 00:16:59.000 work in a neuroaffirming way, who wanted to understand 00:16:59.000 --> 00:17:02.559 how sensory was part of what the children and 00:17:02.559 --> 00:17:05.000 adults they were supporting were doing. So there 00:17:05.000 --> 00:17:07.339 were already people doing it. That was part of 00:17:07.339 --> 00:17:09.380 my clinical work, too. You know, I could see 00:17:09.380 --> 00:17:11.160 there was a missing piece. And I was lucky enough 00:17:11.160 --> 00:17:14.039 to work with an OT who was doing sensory integration. 00:17:14.119 --> 00:17:17.960 And that led me to explore more. And I was the 00:17:17.960 --> 00:17:20.059 first, as I said, the first speech and language 00:17:20.059 --> 00:17:22.539 therapist in the world to formally qualify as 00:17:22.539 --> 00:17:25.519 an advanced practitioner in ASSI. And I'm going 00:17:25.519 --> 00:17:28.160 to just apologize now because it's so exciting 00:17:28.160 --> 00:17:31.220 to me. I get really quick in talking. I love 00:17:31.220 --> 00:17:34.359 it. I love it so much. I love it. It's keeping 00:17:34.359 --> 00:17:37.140 me so excited. Okay, let's talk about what that 00:17:37.140 --> 00:17:40.460 looks like then. So you're working with a young 00:17:40.460 --> 00:17:44.140 person. How do the two come together in that 00:17:44.140 --> 00:17:47.460 beautiful, affirming way? Yeah, it's the same 00:17:47.460 --> 00:17:50.119 thing. It is the same thing. So sensory integration 00:17:50.119 --> 00:17:53.839 is the framework that allows me to look at what's 00:17:53.839 --> 00:17:56.259 going on. So when we say sensory integration, 00:17:56.299 --> 00:18:00.359 what we mean is this person, this young person, 00:18:00.460 --> 00:18:03.799 this older person, they have a brain and a nervous 00:18:03.799 --> 00:18:07.470 system. which has wired up to respond to the 00:18:07.470 --> 00:18:10.349 environment in specific ways and when there's 00:18:10.349 --> 00:18:13.529 a mismatch between this young person's environment 00:18:13.529 --> 00:18:16.250 the young person's nervous system and the environment 00:18:16.250 --> 00:18:19.230 and the demands or the task that's where the 00:18:19.230 --> 00:18:21.710 issue is it's not that there's something wrong 00:18:21.710 --> 00:18:24.230 with them or wrong with their nervous system 00:18:24.230 --> 00:18:27.289 is they have a differently wired nervous system 00:18:27.289 --> 00:18:30.269 where when there's a mismatch that's where the 00:18:30.269 --> 00:18:32.430 issue is so how does that show up for speech 00:18:32.430 --> 00:18:34.819 language and communication If you want to be 00:18:34.819 --> 00:18:37.839 part of any kind of engagement with somebody 00:18:37.839 --> 00:18:40.980 else, you first of all need to feel safe. And 00:18:40.980 --> 00:18:42.759 second of all, you need to understand what the 00:18:42.759 --> 00:18:45.799 heck is going on. So that piece is the sensory 00:18:45.799 --> 00:18:48.359 integration piece. Feeling safe, understanding 00:18:48.359 --> 00:18:51.359 what's going on, and then being able to make 00:18:51.359 --> 00:18:54.700 use of the opportunities. It's what speech language 00:18:54.700 --> 00:18:56.900 therapy is. It's also what learning is. Yeah. 00:18:57.389 --> 00:19:00.710 Regulation before communication. Nobody can speak 00:19:00.710 --> 00:19:03.809 their best speak, however vocal you are, if you're 00:19:03.809 --> 00:19:05.769 being chased by a tiger. And often that's how 00:19:05.769 --> 00:19:07.750 our children feel, isn't it? In those environments 00:19:07.750 --> 00:19:10.549 that aren't matched for them. Absolutely. You 00:19:10.549 --> 00:19:12.910 know, one of the things I say a lot, Jordan, 00:19:12.950 --> 00:19:15.609 is that, you know, a really good way to think 00:19:15.609 --> 00:19:18.009 of this is that your brain is a sense -making 00:19:18.009 --> 00:19:20.329 machine. What does your brain want to do? It 00:19:20.329 --> 00:19:23.069 wants to make sense of what's happening. It will 00:19:23.069 --> 00:19:25.599 use whatever it's... whatever it can to make 00:19:25.599 --> 00:19:29.940 sense of what's happening. So if you feel physiologically 00:19:29.940 --> 00:19:32.740 unsafe or psychologically unsafe, your brain 00:19:32.740 --> 00:19:35.859 tells you this is not safe to be here. It is 00:19:35.859 --> 00:19:39.160 not safe to engage. You are in peril. You can 00:19:39.160 --> 00:19:41.480 save your life. And what do you do when you're 00:19:41.480 --> 00:19:44.279 in that fight, fright or flight mode? You run. 00:19:44.440 --> 00:19:48.000 You might hit out. You might hurt yourself. You 00:19:48.000 --> 00:19:50.319 might hurt others. You might fall to the floor. 00:19:50.400 --> 00:19:53.400 You might freeze. You might hide. All of those... 00:19:53.710 --> 00:19:56.089 Things that some people might be seeing in their 00:19:56.089 --> 00:19:58.910 classrooms or in their homes with, you know, 00:19:58.910 --> 00:20:01.609 people that are in their lives, their loved ones, 00:20:01.730 --> 00:20:03.930 that might be what you're seeing. But what's 00:20:03.930 --> 00:20:07.269 happening internally is exactly that, is that 00:20:07.269 --> 00:20:10.369 survival. I don't feel safe mode, isn't it? Absolutely. 00:20:10.390 --> 00:20:12.910 And I think, you know, particularly as a parent, 00:20:12.950 --> 00:20:16.410 it's so hard when your child is kind of lashing 00:20:16.410 --> 00:20:18.950 out and there's kind of fight behaviours because 00:20:18.950 --> 00:20:22.339 you know they're safe and it's really hard. to 00:20:22.339 --> 00:20:24.859 be in that place where you can't explain to them 00:20:24.859 --> 00:20:27.720 easily that they are safe. That actually, you 00:20:27.720 --> 00:20:29.680 know, it's kind of understanding that this is 00:20:29.680 --> 00:20:33.160 not anything you've done or not done. It's that 00:20:33.160 --> 00:20:36.220 their brain and their nervous system makes sense 00:20:36.220 --> 00:20:39.440 of this environment, of this task, in a way which 00:20:39.440 --> 00:20:41.720 allows their body to go, right, what's on the 00:20:41.720 --> 00:20:46.019 plate? I suppose there's... two different things 00:20:46.019 --> 00:20:48.900 i'm thinking there's the moment when the child 00:20:48.900 --> 00:20:52.640 is in that crisis how you respond will be maybe 00:20:52.640 --> 00:20:54.880 very differently than when they are regulated 00:20:54.880 --> 00:20:58.599 and what yeah what you can work on and what you 00:20:58.599 --> 00:21:02.500 can be like and how you can your yeah how you 00:21:02.500 --> 00:21:03.980 what your expectations of them i suppose can 00:21:03.980 --> 00:21:06.319 be very different can't it Would you like to 00:21:06.319 --> 00:21:08.779 talk about that a little bit, capacity in those 00:21:08.779 --> 00:21:11.700 situations? Yeah, for sure. So that, you know, 00:21:11.720 --> 00:21:13.779 that first piece, safety first, safety first. 00:21:13.839 --> 00:21:17.039 Safety is the priority. That, you know, when 00:21:17.039 --> 00:21:19.420 you're outside and you're seeing this, seeing 00:21:19.420 --> 00:21:22.680 this showing up in the classroom, in at home, 00:21:22.819 --> 00:21:25.519 in different, out in the street, out in the supermarket, 00:21:25.720 --> 00:21:28.859 once you step away from the label behaviour, 00:21:29.579 --> 00:21:32.960 from the word behavior and you look at it through 00:21:32.960 --> 00:21:36.759 the lens of is this a child trying to feel safe 00:21:36.759 --> 00:21:39.900 trying to make sense of what's happening that 00:21:39.900 --> 00:21:43.259 puts you in a completely different place in relationship 00:21:43.259 --> 00:21:46.319 to what you're seeing so the compassion and love 00:21:46.319 --> 00:21:49.099 with which you then respond is in a completely 00:21:49.099 --> 00:21:51.579 different place so i'm not saying it's never 00:21:51.579 --> 00:21:54.200 behavior sometimes it is but actually that's 00:21:54.200 --> 00:21:56.150 communication we'll go there in a Yeah, we'll 00:21:56.150 --> 00:21:58.029 go there in a minute. Talking about sensory piece, 00:21:58.089 --> 00:22:01.589 just that really core understanding that what 00:22:01.589 --> 00:22:03.950 you're seeing is a little brain and a little 00:22:03.950 --> 00:22:07.009 bit nervous system just trying to feel safe, 00:22:07.150 --> 00:22:10.329 just trying to make sense. It puts you in a place 00:22:10.329 --> 00:22:13.789 where you have so much to offer to create safety, 00:22:13.910 --> 00:22:17.109 so much to offer to create sense. That sense 00:22:17.109 --> 00:22:20.670 of, you know, that's all consuming. That sense 00:22:20.670 --> 00:22:24.089 of you cannot move past that. You can't short 00:22:24.089 --> 00:22:27.700 circuit it. You can't hurry it through. You can't 00:22:27.700 --> 00:22:29.519 decide that's enough. They're regulated now. 00:22:30.339 --> 00:22:33.660 Until they're ready, their brain is not going 00:22:33.660 --> 00:22:36.160 to be able to make use of anything else you've 00:22:36.160 --> 00:22:38.920 got to offer. So if you want a child to learn, 00:22:39.079 --> 00:22:41.380 if you want a child to thrive, if you want a 00:22:41.380 --> 00:22:45.039 child to engage, you have to invest in the relationship 00:22:45.039 --> 00:22:47.700 of making them feel safe in the moment. What 00:22:47.700 --> 00:22:49.799 kind of things would you be looking at in that 00:22:49.799 --> 00:22:51.799 moment? And I guess it's different for every... 00:22:52.029 --> 00:22:54.349 person of course but what kind of things would 00:22:54.349 --> 00:22:57.029 you be curious about what would you what would 00:22:57.029 --> 00:22:59.369 your internal monologue be saying as you're trying 00:22:59.369 --> 00:23:01.549 to work through all of these things that's a 00:23:01.549 --> 00:23:03.470 really good that's a really good question of 00:23:03.470 --> 00:23:05.690 course you know for me there's like a whole yeah 00:23:05.690 --> 00:23:07.950 here's what we ran down so i guess you know for 00:23:07.950 --> 00:23:10.910 me that first thing is kind of understanding 00:23:10.910 --> 00:23:14.970 its nervous system environment tasks so the first 00:23:14.970 --> 00:23:17.559 thing i'm doing is Can we just hold off on the 00:23:17.559 --> 00:23:20.140 task, just hold off on the demand? Then I'm looking 00:23:20.140 --> 00:23:22.940 at the environment. What is there that in my 00:23:22.940 --> 00:23:26.279 knowledge of the child is making me think, actually, 00:23:26.359 --> 00:23:29.079 this could be quite challenging. And, you know, 00:23:29.099 --> 00:23:31.720 often it's things that you overlook because you 00:23:31.720 --> 00:23:34.319 feel safe in the environment. So it's how bright 00:23:34.319 --> 00:23:36.819 are the lights? How strong are the smells? How 00:23:36.819 --> 00:23:39.599 close are people? What kind of textures do you 00:23:39.599 --> 00:23:41.720 have to deal with? What's the temperature like? 00:23:42.079 --> 00:23:45.099 all of those kind of physical, physical aspects 00:23:45.099 --> 00:23:47.859 of the environment. And that's stuff that most 00:23:47.859 --> 00:23:51.039 of the time is relatively straightforward, relatively 00:23:51.039 --> 00:23:56.380 easy to address. That's something that I'm supporting 00:23:56.380 --> 00:23:59.339 my team with is about that total communication 00:23:59.339 --> 00:24:03.440 approach. And actually, it's okay if Sammy goes 00:24:03.440 --> 00:24:05.839 over to the sink, gets a cup and brings you a 00:24:05.839 --> 00:24:08.920 cup. That's amazing that they're requesting a 00:24:08.920 --> 00:24:11.569 drink. But also it's okay if Sammy stands at 00:24:11.569 --> 00:24:14.349 the sink with the cup and is stuck and not sure 00:24:14.349 --> 00:24:17.630 what to do. You can then go over and prompt to, 00:24:17.750 --> 00:24:22.029 you know, prompt by using, we have like drink 00:24:22.029 --> 00:24:25.930 symbols to be removed, also a button. And I've 00:24:25.930 --> 00:24:29.250 also now recently put a talking panel that has 00:24:29.250 --> 00:24:31.970 six buttons on it. And it's like drink, wash 00:24:31.970 --> 00:24:33.829 hands, because it's like, you know, if they've 00:24:33.829 --> 00:24:37.079 got sticky hands for a sensory play. cereal reasons 00:24:37.079 --> 00:24:39.359 all their like favorite snacks as well because 00:24:39.359 --> 00:24:42.359 we do allow our children to snack throughout 00:24:42.359 --> 00:24:46.339 the day um you know all they we always want them 00:24:46.339 --> 00:24:49.019 to feel um that they can request those sorts 00:24:49.019 --> 00:24:51.440 of things and actually it's just about that like 00:24:51.440 --> 00:24:53.960 recognizing where you can support the children 00:24:53.960 --> 00:24:57.140 but it's like allowing allowing them if they're 00:24:57.140 --> 00:24:59.940 working on creating a sentence that's okay but 00:24:59.940 --> 00:25:01.759 it's still okay for them just to hand you a part 00:25:02.200 --> 00:25:04.640 And I think sometimes some of, you know, some 00:25:04.640 --> 00:25:06.420 of my support staff have struggled with that 00:25:06.420 --> 00:25:07.960 because they're like, oh, but their target is 00:25:07.960 --> 00:25:10.420 to make a sentence. Yeah. And it's like, that's 00:25:10.420 --> 00:25:14.180 fine. You can extend that. You accept, you can, 00:25:14.180 --> 00:25:16.740 you accept that form of communication. Go over, 00:25:16.859 --> 00:25:19.640 help them with, help them with a drink and then 00:25:19.640 --> 00:25:22.960 model that. I want drink. I'm thirsty is something 00:25:22.960 --> 00:25:24.980 else we're trying. It's not, it's moving away 00:25:24.980 --> 00:25:27.920 from just like I want. So like I'm like labeling 00:25:27.920 --> 00:25:30.299 how we're feeling. I'm thirsty. I need a drink. 00:25:30.940 --> 00:25:33.670 So, yeah. Yeah, it's so true. And again, it comes 00:25:33.670 --> 00:25:36.710 down to modelling, doesn't it? Absolutely. Also 00:25:36.710 --> 00:25:39.170 understanding that in certain situations or on 00:25:39.170 --> 00:25:41.690 certain days, children will be able to access 00:25:41.690 --> 00:25:44.730 language and not access language. So when a pupil 00:25:44.730 --> 00:25:47.250 is dysregulated, for example, their communication 00:25:47.250 --> 00:25:50.849 abilities will reduce massively. I have a pupil 00:25:50.849 --> 00:25:53.650 that's incredibly, I mean, really quick on the 00:25:53.650 --> 00:25:55.369 AAC. It's been doing it for a couple of years 00:25:55.369 --> 00:25:58.250 now. Incredibly quick. But when dysregulated, 00:25:58.329 --> 00:26:01.420 can't even make a choice of objects. just loses 00:26:01.420 --> 00:26:05.980 all ability or want ability, I suppose, to be 00:26:05.980 --> 00:26:08.680 able to communicate in that way. He just needs 00:26:08.680 --> 00:26:12.519 us to make those decisions for him and do that 00:26:12.519 --> 00:26:14.819 for him because he can't make choices. He can't 00:26:14.819 --> 00:26:19.500 look at photos. It is just too much. Too overwhelming. 00:26:20.359 --> 00:26:23.119 Yeah, and it's not that he can't, it's just that 00:26:23.119 --> 00:26:25.779 he can't right now. And I think that's also something 00:26:25.779 --> 00:26:27.400 as well, isn't it? And it might not be as big 00:26:27.400 --> 00:26:29.980 or as obvious as that with your learners. It 00:26:29.980 --> 00:26:32.950 might just be, they might... be seemingly okay 00:26:32.950 --> 00:26:35.210 and and actually just that day they're just a 00:26:35.210 --> 00:26:37.750 bit tired or actually they they've been doing 00:26:37.750 --> 00:26:40.049 it all day and they just want a drink you know 00:26:40.049 --> 00:26:43.710 it's not an every opportunity isn't an opportunity 00:26:43.710 --> 00:26:46.329 to stretch them sometimes they just want a drink 00:26:46.329 --> 00:26:48.390 so i think that's absolutely great it's what 00:26:48.390 --> 00:26:51.069 you just said is do the thing give the thing 00:26:51.069 --> 00:26:54.799 and then model what they could do yeah we have 00:26:54.799 --> 00:26:57.200 people in our class who self -harms and self 00:26:57.200 --> 00:27:00.579 -harms to communicate so self -harms to um wrapped 00:27:00.579 --> 00:27:03.500 or self -harms to get access to a chair or gets 00:27:03.500 --> 00:27:06.079 access to a thing or it is communication it would 00:27:06.079 --> 00:27:08.960 be awful for us while she's punching herself 00:27:08.960 --> 00:27:12.680 in the head to go and get her aac model what 00:27:12.680 --> 00:27:15.299 she wants yeah or give her a choice would be 00:27:15.299 --> 00:27:17.380 even worse yeah but even just modeling the sentence 00:27:17.380 --> 00:27:19.839 like oh she's punching obviously we're not going 00:27:19.839 --> 00:27:23.089 to do that so we absolutely be what she's doing 00:27:23.089 --> 00:27:26.549 we give her what she needs and then we show her 00:27:26.549 --> 00:27:30.009 a safer alternative way that she could have asked 00:27:30.009 --> 00:27:33.029 for that you know in the hope that oh that won't 00:27:33.029 --> 00:27:34.690 hurt me maybe i'll do that you know it is the 00:27:34.690 --> 00:27:37.750 hope but yeah absolutely yes of course we want 00:27:37.750 --> 00:27:40.369 her to do that But ultimately, it's about meeting 00:27:40.369 --> 00:27:42.809 their needs first, isn't it? And honouring that 00:27:42.809 --> 00:27:45.730 communication. Absolutely. And what you just 00:27:45.730 --> 00:27:47.630 said there is something we completely honour 00:27:47.630 --> 00:27:50.589 in our class as well. And across our school, 00:27:50.630 --> 00:27:54.029 it's regulation before communication. We know 00:27:54.029 --> 00:27:57.170 communication is so important and obviously behaviour 00:27:57.170 --> 00:28:01.619 is a form of communication. And I, you know, 00:28:01.640 --> 00:28:04.380 whenever we have behavioural communication training 00:28:04.380 --> 00:28:07.180 across the school, we always say at the end of 00:28:07.180 --> 00:28:09.000 the day, if they are dysregulated in any way, 00:28:09.119 --> 00:28:13.500 then the first thing to almost go is that communication, 00:28:13.720 --> 00:28:16.980 the ability to communicate effectively or in 00:28:16.980 --> 00:28:18.720 their way that they would when they're regulated, 00:28:18.960 --> 00:28:21.440 because they are no longer regulated. So you 00:28:21.440 --> 00:28:24.319 absolutely need, you take, your priority is that 00:28:24.319 --> 00:28:27.119 regulation, not the teaching of communication 00:28:27.119 --> 00:28:29.480 within that moment. Exactly. And I spoke to a 00:28:29.480 --> 00:28:31.700 speech language therapist only last week. And 00:28:31.700 --> 00:28:34.319 it was amazing how much we spoke about sensory 00:28:34.319 --> 00:28:37.940 circuit, sensory diet, sensory integration, because 00:28:37.940 --> 00:28:42.099 it's not separate. It's so interwoven into communication. 00:28:42.579 --> 00:28:45.299 So interwoven. If they don't, if they aren't 00:28:45.299 --> 00:28:47.359 regulated, they cannot communicate. So of course, 00:28:47.359 --> 00:28:49.319 speech and language therapists are going to spend 00:28:49.319 --> 00:28:52.859 a lot of their time regulating children so that 00:28:52.859 --> 00:28:54.839 they can communicate. It just makes sense. But 00:28:54.839 --> 00:28:58.099 listening to her and all of her, you know, there's 00:28:58.099 --> 00:29:02.299 an incredibly occupational therapy you know looking 00:29:02.299 --> 00:29:05.380 and sounding and yeah of course of course they 00:29:05.380 --> 00:29:08.400 are but you know i was taken aback by that thinking 00:29:08.400 --> 00:29:11.059 yeah yeah of course we have to do it all we all 00:29:11.059 --> 00:29:13.460 have to do it all whereas i thought it was oh 00:29:13.460 --> 00:29:15.019 i'm a special education teacher but i'm also 00:29:15.019 --> 00:29:16.599 this and i'm also that and it's like we're all 00:29:16.599 --> 00:29:19.440 are we all are because without one you can't 00:29:19.440 --> 00:29:22.420 do the other and vice versa yeah so i just i 00:29:22.420 --> 00:29:25.410 just thought that was an interesting um thing 00:29:25.410 --> 00:29:27.849 that I got out of um our conversation last week 00:29:27.849 --> 00:29:31.329 was yeah what you've just said is is that regulation 00:29:31.329 --> 00:29:34.769 is is key isn't it in all of it absolutely yeah 00:29:34.769 --> 00:29:37.869 it's it's one of those things that it underpins 00:29:37.869 --> 00:29:41.609 it underpins everything and I mean we've we're 00:29:41.609 --> 00:29:44.589 always changing our timetable I quite often get 00:29:44.589 --> 00:29:46.690 asked online like about my timetable and how 00:29:46.690 --> 00:29:50.180 my day looks like often it's really hard to because 00:29:50.180 --> 00:29:53.559 we change it sometimes daily basis or like we're 00:29:53.559 --> 00:29:56.220 like day to day it's depending on what the children 00:29:56.220 --> 00:29:59.220 need and at the moment we're getting a lot of 00:29:59.220 --> 00:30:02.839 children coming in dysregulated and after their 00:30:02.839 --> 00:30:05.980 transition into school and we just have we are 00:30:05.980 --> 00:30:09.000 closing the blinds we've got our led like farming 00:30:09.000 --> 00:30:11.670 lights on we've got we've got their favorite 00:30:11.670 --> 00:30:15.009 things out and a lot of people come in and be 00:30:15.009 --> 00:30:17.049 like oh it's just a morning choose session yes 00:30:17.049 --> 00:30:18.970 it is a morning choose session because we are 00:30:18.970 --> 00:30:21.329 regulating because if we they come in now and 00:30:21.329 --> 00:30:24.519 i'm like right Let's go and do some story massage 00:30:24.519 --> 00:30:27.900 and let's go and do intensive interaction. It's 00:30:27.900 --> 00:30:30.619 not going to be a positive interaction. What 00:30:30.619 --> 00:30:33.240 we need to prioritise here is getting ourselves 00:30:33.240 --> 00:30:36.299 regulated and ready to learn because otherwise 00:30:36.299 --> 00:30:38.680 we're not going to have a great day. It's valuable, 00:30:39.039 --> 00:30:41.160 isn't it? I think it doesn't have to look like 00:30:41.160 --> 00:30:43.549 table or paperwork. I think that's something 00:30:43.549 --> 00:30:45.829 special education teachers do really well, actually, 00:30:45.890 --> 00:30:48.369 that learning can be in the corridor, learning 00:30:48.369 --> 00:30:50.349 can be outside of the field, learning can be 00:30:50.349 --> 00:30:52.710 on choosing time. In fact, we get the best communication 00:30:52.710 --> 00:30:55.309 at choosing time and golden time or whatever 00:30:55.309 --> 00:30:57.069 you want to call it. There are some of our best 00:30:57.069 --> 00:30:59.130 moments in the toilet, like some of our best 00:30:59.130 --> 00:31:01.910 learning and most important learning moments 00:31:01.910 --> 00:31:04.789 for independence, just because it isn't called 00:31:04.789 --> 00:31:07.710 English or maths or communication at all. problem 00:31:07.710 --> 00:31:09.670 solving whatever you want to call it doesn't 00:31:09.670 --> 00:31:12.109 mean that there's not learning happening um because 00:31:12.109 --> 00:31:14.970 actually some of the most important lessons for 00:31:14.970 --> 00:31:17.750 our learners happen around those subject areas 00:31:17.750 --> 00:31:21.250 the subject areas are kind of the fluff um yeah 00:31:21.250 --> 00:31:24.319 really And actually it's about care needs. It's 00:31:24.319 --> 00:31:25.920 about teaching independence, about teaching communication, 00:31:26.240 --> 00:31:28.720 teaching about to advocate for their sensory 00:31:28.720 --> 00:31:30.819 needs and regulation. It's all of those things. 00:31:30.859 --> 00:31:34.319 It has to be. We're constantly saying we meet 00:31:34.319 --> 00:31:37.240 care needs first and then we learn. And sometimes, 00:31:37.400 --> 00:31:41.579 some weeks, we've just met their care needs, 00:31:41.759 --> 00:31:47.440 actually. And that is okay because we have the 00:31:47.440 --> 00:31:50.019 luxury of that. I feel like all teachers could, 00:31:50.160 --> 00:31:54.170 though. I feel like we're almost granted the 00:31:54.170 --> 00:31:57.069 luxury of that that is just accepted that of 00:31:57.069 --> 00:31:59.410 course you do but it's interesting to me that 00:31:59.410 --> 00:32:02.529 all teachers are SEN teachers these days and 00:32:02.529 --> 00:32:04.589 yeah and it's almost if you're listening to this 00:32:04.589 --> 00:32:07.009 and and you're a mainstream teacher just know 00:32:07.009 --> 00:32:11.569 that you're a SEN teacher too and you also have 00:32:11.569 --> 00:32:14.630 the ability and you know it should should feel 00:32:14.630 --> 00:32:16.869 like you have the ability to support your learners 00:32:16.869 --> 00:32:19.839 in that way that if you know, neurodivergent, 00:32:19.880 --> 00:32:23.579 just disabled or not. If a people comes in and 00:32:23.579 --> 00:32:25.339 they're not ready to learn for whatever reason, 00:32:25.420 --> 00:32:27.140 something, something might've happened in the 00:32:27.140 --> 00:32:28.480 morning. They might not have had a good sleep. 00:32:28.579 --> 00:32:30.759 They might be feeling unwell. They might've fallen 00:32:30.759 --> 00:32:32.559 out with a friend. They might not got picked 00:32:32.559 --> 00:32:34.819 for the football team, whatever it is. They might 00:32:34.819 --> 00:32:37.420 not also be ready to learn. And it's always like 00:32:37.420 --> 00:32:39.779 trusting your instincts there and navigating 00:32:39.779 --> 00:32:43.359 the class, how they are. I think, I think I've 00:32:43.359 --> 00:32:44.799 seen it. I am attached to a mainstream school. 00:32:44.880 --> 00:32:47.220 So I do see it. Say for example, if we've had 00:32:47.220 --> 00:32:50.220 a. event and something really exciting has happened 00:32:50.220 --> 00:32:52.480 in the morning you can see the teachers like 00:32:52.480 --> 00:32:55.519 well you know that's the afternoon gone because 00:32:55.519 --> 00:32:58.720 we need to change or or if it's wet play even 00:32:58.720 --> 00:33:01.000 you can say oh yeah we need to do something else 00:33:01.000 --> 00:33:04.160 so I definitely I definitely see it in my school 00:33:04.160 --> 00:33:06.299 and I really hope that other schools feel like 00:33:06.299 --> 00:33:09.420 they they can do that because yeah if ultimately 00:33:09.420 --> 00:33:11.140 if you want the children to remember what you've 00:33:11.140 --> 00:33:13.299 taught them they're gonna have to be regulated 00:33:13.299 --> 00:33:18.109 aren't they Thinking back to your child that 00:33:18.109 --> 00:33:19.829 you were just talking about that was distressed 00:33:19.829 --> 00:33:22.210 and couldn't have words, well, surely communication 00:33:22.210 --> 00:33:26.029 and regulation are the start of improving mental 00:33:26.029 --> 00:33:28.849 health. Surely. Yeah, I think it's got to be. 00:33:30.079 --> 00:33:32.079 it's then almost again taking that step back 00:33:32.079 --> 00:33:34.859 as to okay so so what's the lens through which 00:33:34.859 --> 00:33:37.500 we're viewing these difficulties and how do we 00:33:37.500 --> 00:33:40.759 then kind of support that communication and regulation 00:33:40.759 --> 00:33:43.539 and i think that is then part of the bigger conversation 00:33:43.539 --> 00:33:47.539 around behavior support and the narrative through 00:33:47.539 --> 00:33:49.680 which we view the way that some of these children 00:33:49.680 --> 00:33:52.200 show up at times i recently did an insect day 00:33:52.200 --> 00:33:55.000 training at school was talking to them about 00:33:55.000 --> 00:33:58.079 how you know Ross Green's work and particularly 00:33:58.079 --> 00:34:00.980 around ADHD children but I think it is for all 00:34:00.980 --> 00:34:03.220 children in my view that kids do well when they 00:34:03.220 --> 00:34:06.539 can and I think for me that is so powerful because 00:34:06.539 --> 00:34:09.760 if the child is not doing well you know firstly 00:34:09.760 --> 00:34:12.280 whose expectation is what is well and that's 00:34:12.280 --> 00:34:14.800 a question in itself um but then if they're not 00:34:14.800 --> 00:34:16.739 like we need to look at what's going on around 00:34:16.739 --> 00:34:18.719 them right and thinking about their internal 00:34:18.719 --> 00:34:21.679 state those basic needs are they met can they 00:34:21.679 --> 00:34:24.139 communicate that do they feel safe and secure 00:34:24.139 --> 00:34:27.320 do they feel you know are they are they fed are 00:34:27.320 --> 00:34:30.019 they watered like have they had a good rest do 00:34:30.019 --> 00:34:32.159 they need the toilet do they know if they need 00:34:32.159 --> 00:34:34.599 these the toilet you know are they uncomfortable 00:34:34.599 --> 00:34:37.780 exactly and I think we then kind of look at that 00:34:37.780 --> 00:34:40.000 and then the next piece around them becomes that 00:34:40.000 --> 00:34:42.800 okay so how do we work out what's going on and 00:34:42.800 --> 00:34:44.659 then teach them the ways to regulate that and 00:34:44.659 --> 00:34:47.519 communicate that and also thinking about for 00:34:47.519 --> 00:34:50.059 me part of that is the environment and that inclusive 00:34:50.059 --> 00:34:52.639 communication environment that's going on but 00:34:52.639 --> 00:34:55.139 I also think sometimes the activities you know 00:34:55.139 --> 00:34:57.780 like I see some kids who perhaps are presenting 00:34:57.780 --> 00:35:00.119 as not doing so well and that kind of challenging 00:35:00.119 --> 00:35:02.119 time but i think is that because the activity 00:35:02.119 --> 00:35:05.179 is too hard or not hard enough and therefore 00:35:05.179 --> 00:35:07.199 they're a bit disinterested and creating their 00:35:07.199 --> 00:35:09.699 own entertainment overstimulating any part of 00:35:09.699 --> 00:35:11.659 that is also recognizing that fluctuating capacity 00:35:11.659 --> 00:35:14.340 of neurodivergent kids right because they might 00:35:14.340 --> 00:35:15.980 be able to do something one day that they can't 00:35:15.980 --> 00:35:18.000 do the next day or even in the morning that they 00:35:18.000 --> 00:35:20.119 can't do in the afternoon and that for a lot 00:35:20.119 --> 00:35:22.320 of people can be quite baffling but if we take 00:35:22.320 --> 00:35:24.420 an affirming approach and an honoring approach 00:35:24.420 --> 00:35:28.210 it is about believing kids tuning in and getting 00:35:28.210 --> 00:35:29.829 to know them and getting to know when are those 00:35:29.829 --> 00:35:32.789 times to perhaps push and perhaps kind of encourage 00:35:32.789 --> 00:35:35.250 a bit more and when are the times to just go 00:35:35.250 --> 00:35:37.780 that's cool i can see you're done we need to 00:35:37.780 --> 00:35:39.699 focus on that regulation piece let's bring your 00:35:39.699 --> 00:35:41.880 energy back in line whether it's too low too 00:35:41.880 --> 00:35:44.739 high to get you in a better place and then we'll 00:35:44.739 --> 00:35:47.199 see what's next you know um and i think for me 00:35:47.199 --> 00:35:49.239 so much of that affirming practice around communication 00:35:49.239 --> 00:35:52.500 starts at that level you know starts at taking 00:35:52.500 --> 00:35:55.340 a step back and just seeing what's going on and 00:35:55.340 --> 00:35:57.880 i'm believing kids you know there's so much power 00:35:57.880 --> 00:36:03.039 in validation um around just listening isn't 00:36:03.039 --> 00:36:05.460 there and i think that's the case for any kind 00:36:05.460 --> 00:36:08.159 of level of learner and support needs you know 00:36:08.159 --> 00:36:09.760 i could work with some really high support needs 00:36:09.760 --> 00:36:12.980 kids and they might be you know communicating 00:36:12.980 --> 00:36:15.880 through self -injurious behavior that their frustration 00:36:15.880 --> 00:36:18.119 and just being able to validate say it's really 00:36:18.119 --> 00:36:19.889 frustrating You know, I think there's sometimes 00:36:19.889 --> 00:36:21.989 this view in our minds that actually children 00:36:21.989 --> 00:36:24.449 don't have capacity for language and don't have 00:36:24.449 --> 00:36:26.570 capacity for understanding because of their lack 00:36:26.570 --> 00:36:29.190 of expressive language. And yeah, they might 00:36:29.190 --> 00:36:31.369 not in that moment, but we can teach it and we 00:36:31.369 --> 00:36:33.409 have to believe that they have capacity to understand 00:36:33.409 --> 00:36:36.769 it. So that kind of validation and giving. My 00:36:36.769 --> 00:36:39.289 supervisor, Kate Boot, talks about language for 00:36:39.289 --> 00:36:41.070 experience. And I think that's it. It's like 00:36:41.070 --> 00:36:42.869 actually in those moments, giving some language 00:36:42.869 --> 00:36:44.989 to the experience that they're having and honoring 00:36:44.989 --> 00:36:47.659 how they're showing up. and then thinking about 00:36:47.659 --> 00:36:49.679 that step back and what do we need to do next 00:36:49.679 --> 00:36:51.679 time to support communication and regulation 00:36:51.679 --> 00:36:54.440 in those situations so would it look like naming 00:36:54.440 --> 00:36:58.380 maybe what they're expressing so i can i can 00:36:58.380 --> 00:37:02.280 see you're frustrated that you can't do this 00:37:02.280 --> 00:37:04.500 like is it is it is that what it sounds like 00:37:04.500 --> 00:37:07.159 yeah i mean for me sometimes it sounds like that 00:37:07.159 --> 00:37:09.059 there is challenge isn't there in trying to name 00:37:09.059 --> 00:37:12.079 emotions yeah how do you know yeah so how do 00:37:12.079 --> 00:37:15.519 you navigate that i think Usually what I find 00:37:15.519 --> 00:37:17.900 myself saying is like, this seems tough or it's 00:37:17.900 --> 00:37:20.699 hard. I like that. Some things I can see this 00:37:20.699 --> 00:37:23.139 is tricky. I sometimes will on an AAC device, 00:37:23.300 --> 00:37:25.940 like we use quite a lot of grid and smart box, 00:37:26.079 --> 00:37:28.179 but anything they've got one on their messages, 00:37:28.219 --> 00:37:30.099 there's just something's wrong. And so I might 00:37:30.099 --> 00:37:32.300 just model that, I think, and say something's 00:37:32.300 --> 00:37:34.719 wrong. Yeah, because that's not putting on to 00:37:34.719 --> 00:37:36.860 them what they're feeling. It's just I can see 00:37:36.860 --> 00:37:40.619 something's wrong. Yeah. That is clear. Yeah. 00:37:40.860 --> 00:37:44.019 That's still validating, isn't it? that that 00:37:44.019 --> 00:37:48.380 I can see something's wrong i .e can I help in 00:37:48.380 --> 00:37:51.900 any way and sometimes I would just say like I'm 00:37:51.900 --> 00:37:54.659 here like you know and I do that on a device 00:37:54.659 --> 00:37:56.460 I do that with my language I do that with my 00:37:56.460 --> 00:37:59.019 body language you know and just be like I'm here 00:37:59.019 --> 00:38:02.059 and I'm gonna you know you're safe like it will 00:38:02.059 --> 00:38:05.860 be okay but so you can give like language I think 00:38:05.860 --> 00:38:08.780 that that kind of validates the experience and 00:38:08.780 --> 00:38:10.920 links in with their experiences but also can 00:38:10.920 --> 00:38:13.809 kind of reassuring nurturing in those moments 00:38:13.809 --> 00:38:16.449 but generally like again that's a practice years 00:38:16.449 --> 00:38:17.889 ago i'd have been like we label the emotions 00:38:17.889 --> 00:38:20.690 and like show them the symbol and now i'm like 00:38:20.690 --> 00:38:23.969 okay no that makes so much sense to me yeah i've 00:38:23.969 --> 00:38:26.510 always struggled with how to say it so that me 00:38:26.510 --> 00:38:29.250 that is makes so much sense and i feel like maybe 00:38:29.250 --> 00:38:32.909 the more we do that then becomes easier to find 00:38:32.909 --> 00:38:36.130 that language to find that script that isn't 00:38:36.130 --> 00:38:40.170 um putting on them what they may not be feeling 00:38:40.960 --> 00:38:44.440 And yet still showing them that you've shown 00:38:44.440 --> 00:38:47.360 up for them. Yeah. And I think like so often, 00:38:47.380 --> 00:38:48.960 you know, the difference between anxiety and 00:38:48.960 --> 00:38:51.320 frustration, like how do we know that their frustration 00:38:51.320 --> 00:38:54.340 is not driven by anxiety? And so I think, you 00:38:54.340 --> 00:38:56.900 know, and some of these kids, they don't necessarily 00:38:56.900 --> 00:38:59.579 have the skills at this point in time to talk 00:38:59.579 --> 00:39:02.280 about what it was, but there is sort of comfort 00:39:02.280 --> 00:39:06.550 in validation. and one of the things i talk a 00:39:06.550 --> 00:39:08.750 lot to staff about is our natural reaction to 00:39:08.750 --> 00:39:10.909 say it's okay and actually what i'm trying to 00:39:10.909 --> 00:39:14.130 get people to say it's not okay yeah because 00:39:14.130 --> 00:39:16.130 again that's that's language of their experience 00:39:16.130 --> 00:39:18.409 that they're having so i think we can say like 00:39:18.409 --> 00:39:21.409 i can see it's not okay you know i can see it's 00:39:21.409 --> 00:39:24.900 tricky like i'm here you're safe it will be okay 00:39:24.900 --> 00:39:27.340 you know those kinds of things and again you 00:39:27.340 --> 00:39:29.699 know the children you're working with to tune 00:39:29.699 --> 00:39:31.980 in and know how much language is too much i mean 00:39:31.980 --> 00:39:34.119 that's the point as well isn't it that if you've 00:39:34.119 --> 00:39:36.000 got a good relationship and a trusting relationship 00:39:36.000 --> 00:39:39.000 with this child already which is what i would 00:39:39.000 --> 00:39:42.860 like it has to be that way then they will also 00:39:42.860 --> 00:39:46.480 know that you mean best as us even if you get 00:39:46.480 --> 00:39:48.980 it wrong or you're too close or whatever if you've 00:39:48.980 --> 00:39:51.590 got that trusting relationship there's there's 00:39:51.590 --> 00:39:53.630 a little bit more leniency there a little bit 00:39:53.630 --> 00:39:54.949 that you can kind of work it through together 00:39:54.949 --> 00:39:57.469 whereas if you come in and you haven't got those 00:39:57.469 --> 00:39:59.010 trustful relationships you haven't built that 00:39:59.010 --> 00:40:01.110 connection yet it's going to be really tricky 00:40:01.110 --> 00:40:02.989 and even if you are saying the right things and 00:40:02.989 --> 00:40:04.550 doing the right things it's going to be really 00:40:04.550 --> 00:40:06.730 hard for them to trust that you in that moment 00:40:06.730 --> 00:40:09.809 when they're completely in fight or flight mode 00:40:09.809 --> 00:40:13.590 yeah yeah yeah so it's so important that when 00:40:13.590 --> 00:40:16.530 it just taking every opportunity to build those 00:40:16.530 --> 00:40:18.869 connections and that looks like being led by 00:40:18.869 --> 00:40:22.130 them doesn't it yeah yeah definitely and validating 00:40:22.130 --> 00:40:25.789 and and you know sort of sharing their joy and 00:40:25.789 --> 00:40:30.639 also being there when it's not so joyful That's 00:40:30.639 --> 00:40:33.280 it for this week's episode. I hope you enjoyed 00:40:33.280 --> 00:40:36.079 taking a look back at some of my favourite moments 00:40:36.079 --> 00:40:38.780 from series one. If you would like to be on my 00:40:38.780 --> 00:40:41.420 podcast for series two, then please get in touch. 00:40:41.639 --> 00:40:45.159 You can email me at oursensorykids at gmail .com 00:40:45.159 --> 00:40:48.019 or just send me a DM on social media and I'd 00:40:48.019 --> 00:40:50.539 love to have you on. See you next time.