Tailored support and strategies for embracing human diversity.
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DAYCARES
My approach and services are intended to be different.
My approach and services are built on the foundation of consciousness, self-reflection, curiosity, wilingness and understanding. They are anchored in the idea of community and collaboration,
and the belief that we have to ability to create change if we want it.
Some children find transition and/or integration to daycare overwhelming, and may meet challenges in various behaviour and developmental areas. It seems that challenging behaviours of children are steadily increasing and that may hinder their integration into groups, leaving daycare teams stumped as to how to intervene. Sometimes these challenges can be an unknown and unexpected puzzle, or sometimes they can be related to a known diagnosis, disability, condition or label.
You are of course the expert in your field, however you may experience difficulties in relation to communicating with non functionally speaking or non speaking children, challenging behaviour, understanding autistic thinking or other complex manifestations of various disabilities. Perhaps you are meeting obstacles in applying your methods within your current environment and reality or meeting success and providing belonging for the child(ren) that you are supporting.
Why work with me?
No matter the age of the child(ren) in your care, nor whether they have a diagnosis or not, here are some examples of situations that you may be experiencing right now:
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you don't know where to start when you suspect or receive a diagnosis for a child
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you feel overwhelmed and unable to take action
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you are struggling to clarify neurodiverse needs
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it feels impossible to approach crisis situations and difficult behaviour
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you find it hard to understand some of the behaviour of your neurodiverse children
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you can't find a realistic way to apply the techniques and strategies you want to in the everyday routines
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you are meeting challenges in working with the multi-disciplinary team to meet the combined needs of individuals and groups
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you aren't clear on how to apply professional recommendations into your everyday reality
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you are seeking new information and ideas for your toolbox
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you can't see what can be done to help beyond what is already being done
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you wish you had time to research services, programs, policies, laws, resources etc.
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you would love to be able to be focus more on promoting and/or maintaining independence of the children in your care.
There are a variety of opportunities, supports, and services available,
each meeting a different need.
ACCOMPANIMENT PACKAGES
My accompaniment services are based on a coaching model and are available for individual educators or daycare teams. They are designed to support you in better understanding the needs of the students you are supporting, clarifying your approach, and integrating practical strategies that are realistic within your context.
Every accompaniment process begins with taking the time to understand your priorities, your goals, and the specific situation you are navigating. Together, we reflect on what is currently working, where challenges are arising, and how to adapt your professional skills to better communicate, respond to, and support diverse needs.
Through this collaborative process, I provide personalized recommendations and guidance based on the unique situation, allowing you to move forward with greater clarity and confidence.
Accompaniment packages can be adapted based on your needs and may include:
• observations, interviews, and review of relevant documentation
• clarification of needs and development of hypotheses
• functional behaviour assessments
• personalized training for involved staff or teams
• step-by-step intervention plans and recommendations
• real-time modeling, coaching, and guided interventions
• support with implementing strategies in everyday situations
• referrals to other professionals or services, when applicable
Whether you are looking for support to better understand a specific situation, develop an intervention plan, or receive ongoing guidance while applying strategies in real time, accompaniment can be tailored to meet your needs.
"Coaching is a process that aims to improve performance and focuses on the ‘here and now’ rather than on the distant past or future.
While there are many different models of coaching, here we are not considering the ‘coach as expert’ but, instead, the coach as a facilitator of learning.
There is a huge difference between teaching someone and helping them to learn. In coaching, fundamentally, the coach is helping the individual to improve their own performance: in other words, helping them to learn.
Good coaches believe that the individual always has the answer to their own problems but understands that they may need help to find the answer."
Definition from: www.skillsyouneed.com/learn/coaching.html
DAYCARE INTEGRATION
The daycare integration service aims to meet individual needs by providing targeted, practical support and solutions with the goal of improving the everyday reality of children and educators in daycare settings.
This service provides support around understanding and addressing the learning and integration of a child who is experiencing difficulties in the areas of language, communication, emotional regulation and social skills.
Specific and personalized interventions provide complimentary information and support to daycare educators and teams in relation to:
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increasing children’s skills in the developmental areas as mentioned above,
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effectively communicating with children who are not yet speaking,
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teaching effective communication skills to children who are having difficulties with using speech,
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managing refusals and aggressive behaviour and teaching appropriate behaviour,
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increasing the participation of children experiencing difficulties in communication and social situations,
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understanding autistic thinking or other complex manifestations of various diagnoses,
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adapting and applying typical methods within individual environments and realities.
Interventions also provide solutions to:
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overwhelming situations,
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gaps in available resources,
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complex needs.
SITUATIONAL CONSULTATIONS
Situational consultations are available in person and online for daycare staff looking for ideas and support for how to make changes in specific situations, including dealing with aggressive behaviour,
lack of progress/change, changes in behaviour, inappropriate behaviour, teaching specific skills etc.
This service provides an opportunity for individual educators or daycare teams to discuss specific situations that you are experiencing, with the goal of brainstorming out of the box ideas to do address it, make changes, modify interventions, and improve the situation.
COMMUNITY OF PRACTISE CONSULTATIONS
Community of practise consultations are available in person and online for daycare staff looking for opportunities to discuss effectively meeting individual children's needs, meeting staff needs, using the staff as effectively as possible, clarifying roles of staff, rethinking group schedules
and/or activities and/or programs in complex situations.
This service provides an opportunity for daycare teams to discuss situations in which they are experiencing challenges and brainstorm outside of the box ideas, in order to actively make changes in the day to day, and more effectively meet the ongoing needs in complex situations.
WORKSHOPS AND LEARNING
Each environment is unique. The people you support, the resources available to you and the role you play all influence how support is provided.
My interactive workshops are designed to encourage professionals to explore current knowledge together, reflect on real situations and discuss practical ways of supporting the individuals in their care within their own environments.
Workshops may be taken individually, as one of the suggested training series, or combined into a personalized training package for your team. They can be offered to staff members or adapted for the parents, family, caregivers, professionals and community members you serve, allowing the learning experience to reflect the unique needs of each environment and audience.
AUTISM ACCEPTANCE
I feel strongly that one of the biggest hurdles for people with autism and their families,
is society's knowledge, or lack thereof, of autism.
My contribution to addressing this, is through offering presentations and workshops for children and adults that provide information to help create autism awareness, that through continued discussion will shift to autism acceptance and inclusion. Autism specific presentations, workshops and information sessions are available to the daycare staff,children and daycare community (parents, guardians etc.)
I also offer a space here on my website in which people can share their personal stories in relation to autism.
If you are staff member who works with autistic children, don't hesitate to contact me if you would like to share your story.
RESOURCE SERVICE
Providing direct care to children requires energy at every turn, not only for the everyday activities but also to seek information and remain up to date on resources. Not to mention the energy required to take care of oneself, and to focus not only on your work but also your personal goals and relationships.
My individualized support offers you assistance in finding social and alternative educational programs, leisure activities, protocols, procedure and laws relevant to your situation, available resources for your needs, and more.
I can also assist you with the paperwork required to gain access to resources.