Proven Self-Regulation Strategies and Interventions for Children With Sensory Disorders, Learning Disorders, ADHD and Autism

Presented by Laura Ehlert, Psy.D.

Friday, October 30, 2015  |  Edmonton, ab

Date & Location

This seminar will help you to better understand and intervene with the challenging child—the one who won’t sit still; doesn’t follow directions; tantrums often; or has difficulty waiting for their turn. They may “hit first and ask questions later”. They often react impulsively and may have difficulty expressing what they need or what is frustrating them. We may know this child is intelligent, caring and kind, but their behaviour doesn’t reflect these positive qualities. These are the children who confuse and frustrate parents and who overwhelm teachers and peers. They struggle to meet basic expectations and are dysregulated and unable to succeed in school, with peers, and at home.

Dr. Ehlert will challenge and enlighten you with a unique approach and insights that are based on her years of working with emotionally and behaviourally disordered youth, and in raising her own children who have self-regulation difficulties.

Through discussion and hands-on experience you will discover how language, executive function and sensory processing deficits lead to misperceptions about the causes of emotional and behavioural dysregulation in these complex children. You will learn strategies for changing perception and creating expectations and environments that will help them to succeed at home, school and with peers.

Who Should Attend

Education and Clinical Professionals: All education and mental health or healthcare professionals who work with children or youth including, but not limited to K–12 Classroom Teachers, School Counsellors, Learning Assistance/Resource Teachers, School Administrators, School Paraprofessionals including Special Education Assistants, Classroom Assistants and Childcare Workers • All other professionals who support behavioural challenges and complex learning needs including but not limited to: Nurses, Social Workers, Psychologists, Clinical Counsellors, Family Therapists, Occupational Therapists, Speech Language Pathologists, Addiction Counsellors, Youth Workers, Mental Health Workers, Probation Officers and Community Police Officers.

Agenda

PART 1: Treatment Approaches using Processing Perspectives

Improve Behaviour with our Increased Awareness

• Perspective taking and processing – paradigm shifts that lead to improved behaviour
• Ping + Ping + Ping = Frustration and dysregulation

Sensory Deficits

• Integration, meaning and perception
• Reduce sensory triggers
• Desensitize strategies to reset the “Panic Switch”
• Manage the environment to reduce sensory overload

Language/Learning Deficits

• Incorporate language processing into our understanding of behaviour
• Filling in the gaps for language impairments
• Accommodations that work and how to provide effective support
• Improve social language skills and insights

Executive Functioning Deficits

• Understand information processing gaps and how to accommodate
• Help kids organize, think and complete tasks
• Managing fidgeting, restlessness and inattention
• Social-emotional regulation
• Inflexible problem-solving
• Improve social boundaries: Access vs. awareness of appropriate social skills

PART 2: Interventions to Address the Child’s Triggers of Dysregulation

Perspective-taking and Meaning

• Understand the child’s perspective and the “set up”
• Strategies for untriggering triggers
• Case examples of transforming the “set up” into positive outcomes

Behavioural Strategies

• Create realistic expectations through better understanding of the child’s process
• Skills coaching: resetting and providing choices to improve self-regulation
• Environmental structures that regulates
• Pacing expectations for success
• Redefine behaviours to reframe and empower the child

Problem-Solving to:

• Reduce stressors
• Improve child’s acceptance and personal responsibility for behaviour
• Create realistic expectations
• Learning/teaching flexibility
• Use language to self-regulate

Neuro-Biological Considerations

• Diet/food
• Supplements/vitamins
• Sensitivities/toxins
• Brain training activities through balance and movement for at home or school

Learning Objectives

• Explain how language impairments, sensory disorders, and executive skills impairments increase dysregulation and behavior issues
• Determine triggers and strategies for using language skills and processing insight to increase self-regulation
• Describe the roles that language, executive and sensory systems play in self-regulation
• Discuss the connection between impaired executive functioning skills and self-regulation
• Identify common emotional and behavioral triggers and how to manage them
• Discuss integration of language competence, sensory processing, and executive skills when teaching self regulation strategies

Your Presenter

Laura Ehlert, Psy.D.

Laura Ehlert, Psy.D. is a child clinical psychologist who has worked with children and adolescents with severe emotional/ behavioral issues for over 25 years. She holds a doctorate degree in Clinical Psychology where her training focused on developmental issues of childhood, and child psychopathology issues. Dr. Ehlert maintains a private practice in Burnsville, Minnesota, where she specializes in working with clients who struggle with information and sensory processing deficits and associated emotional, behavioral and mental health issues. Professionals who have worked with Dr. Ehlert in the past have often commented that interventions she offers succeeded where others have failed.

 

Testimonials

“I appreciate your willingness to share your professional and personal journey with us in your seminar. It has changed my perspective and has helped me to help children struggling with self-regulation. I rate this workshop with you as one of the top two I have attended since I began doing so in 1984.”
– Licensed Clinical Social Worker

Registration & Fees