Event summary

Date

Start Time

End Time

Portlaoise Educate Together National School, Portlaoise, Laois

Closed

Autism and Reframing Behaviour -

This training will introduce participants to the ongoing paradigm shift in understanding behaviour from a physiological perspective, drawing on research from neuroscience, psychology, and interpersonal neurobiology.

It will encourage participants to pause and reflect on their current beliefs and reactions to the behavioural differences presenting within their autistic students. Participants will be supported to consider behavioural differences that are authentic to the autistic child and their invaluable role in maintaining joy in their lives. Furthermore, participants will be supported to understand the underlying factors contributing to distressed behaviours, and how supporting professionals can help.


Specific topics will include:

  • Understanding the ongoing paradigm shift in how we think about behaviour.
  • Factors that contribute to distressed behaviour for an autistic child.
  • The important role of neuroception and sense of ‘felt safety’ in promoting a balanced regulatory state.
  • The importance of professional self-care in the context of supporting an autistic child in distress.


Participants will:

  • Gain an understanding of the ongoing paradigm shift in how we think about ‘behaviour’ presenting in our autistic children and young people.
  • To support participants to recognise their inner biases, judgements and beliefs that may be impacting upon how they support an autistic child in distress.
  • To understand the underlying and environmental factors contributing to distress and overwhelm within the autistic child.
  • Understand their role in managing their own regulation as an essential process to the co-regulatory support they provide their autistic students.

Course Overview

  • Paradigm shift and reframing our perception of behaviour.
  • Underlying and environmental factors contributing to distressed behaviour.
  • Proactive and reactive supports when working with distressed behaviour.

Location

Portlaoise Educate Together National School
Stradbally Road,
Portlaoise
Laois
R32 HX45
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Joan McDonald

Joan McDonald

Joan is a second level science teacher working independently as Posautive.
Following many years teaching in mainstream classrooms, Joan worked on individual planning in centres for adults with learning disabilities and those with mental health struggles.
She, then, became one of the first SENOs in Ireland, observing and providing school supports for students with atypical needs across eighty rural schools.
While studying for an M.Ed. in Autism, Joan was taught by and met a variety of autistic adults, which ultimately led to her own autism assessment. Prior to meeting such a diverse range of autistic people, Joan would only have recognised autism in people with profound and complex support needs.
Joan is passionate about using students’ interests to support autistic learners of all levels of cognitive ability to access education and contented lives.
She currently works on a variety of projects with agencies such as Middletown Centre for Autism, Dublin City University, Nua Healthcare, Fingal Libraries. In recent years, creating and delivering the Posauteen and Posaudult courses to help autistic people understand and advocate for themselves has been a major focus of Joan’s time.

Event summary

Date

Start Time

End Time

Portlaoise Educate Together National School , Portlaoise , Laois

Closed