Parallel Assessment, Growing Together
Parallel Assessment, Growing Together Post #4 in category. We recommend reading posts in numerical order. As the adult mediator learns more about the child, the child is learning more about the mediator. As Parallel Assessment becomes part of everyday interaction, adult mediators gradually learn to see the child and themselves differently. And the child learns […]
Questions Beneath the Behaviors
Post #4 in category. We recommend reading posts in numerical order. “Questions unite people, answers [may] divide them.” – Elie Wiesel A child’s questions begin long before they can speak. Adults use their informed intuition to identify what the child is interested in, what they like and dislike, and what the child wants […]
From Inclusion to Belonging: Side by Side in the Jerusalem Post
Many thanks to Hannah Brown and The Jerusalem Post for featuring my latest initiative, Side by Side: Building Community, Together, created in partnership with the nonprofit Et La’asot. Side by Side brings young adults with disabilities and college students together to volunteer in their communities and enjoy social activities, with the goal of building real […]
The Explanation Phenomenon
Post #3 in category. We recommend reading posts in numerical order. Trust and Connection Children need more than instructions. Trust and connection come before understanding. Before children seek explanations, they seek human attention and interpersonal connection. Before they understand words, they rely on their adult caregiver’s affection, gestures, sounds, and movements. Before they understand reasons […]
Exciting Update! Side by Side: Building Community, Together Receives Initial Funding!
I’ve got great news! My newest initiative, in partnership with the NPO Et La’asot, has received initial funding from several generous donors, and we are moving from planning to launching our pilot program in Netanya, Israel. Side by Side is a new community-based initiative designed to create opportunities for connection, belonging, and meaningful engagement for […]
Sensation, Emotion and Behavior
Post #3 in category. We recommend reading posts in numerical order. For many children with developmental disabilities, their sensory experiences and emotions are interlinked like two sides of the same coin. For some children, a sound, touch, movement, smell, visual pattern, or unexpected change in the environment may trigger an immediate emotional reaction of fear, […]
Interpersonal Relationships, Feelings, Play and the Foundations of Parallel Development
Post #2 in category. We recommend reading posts in numerical order. When parenting, teaching, or treating a child with developmental delays, interpersonal relationships and feelings come first. Before child rearing, teaching, and therapy can be meaningful and lasting, the child must experience a sense of safety, trust, interest, and emotional connection. These are not optional […]
Parallel Assessment: Feelings, Emotion, and Motivation
Post #2 in category. We recommend reading posts in numerical order. Many developmental assessments attempt to measure “What can this child do?” They measure skills, milestones, strengths, challenges, and compare the child’s functioning with that of other children. Other children are considered the “norm,” or are compared with children of the same age, or with […]
E-motion, Mot-ivation and Brain
Post #3 in category. We recommend reading posts in numerical order. E-motion: “Energy and information in motion.” Dan Siegal Mot-ivation: Latin root -mot, meaning “to move”. Vector in mathematics and physics: “Magnitude and Direction. A quantity defined by both how big it is (magnitude) and the way it points (direction).” Emotion is about movement, about […]
Emotion, Motivation and Integrated Development
Post #2 in category. We recommend reading posts in numerical order. Emotion is the energy, motivation, and drive in which thought, action, and interpersonal relationships take shape. Emotion directs us to move toward or away from something. Emotion is a quick response for survival. It is an internal feeling state, a disposition, and a drive […]