Recordings & Media

Your Kids Don’t Suck: Neurodiversity and OccuPLAYtional Therapy in School (Podcast Interview)

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We discuss: Kelsie’s Training and Approach: Rythea and Cara delve into Kelsie’s background as an occupational therapist, exploring what this means and how it shapes her approach to working with children. The Child-Centered Approach: Kelsie discusses her approach to working with kids, emphasizing child-led methods and its alignment with her non-authoritarian parenting style. She contrasts … Read more

Teacher Tom’s Podcast: Rethinking “Normal” in Child Development (Podcast Interview)

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A strong advocate for true inclusion and neurodiversity in schools, Kelsie Olds shares their expertise on therapy methods and the importance of children developing key skills — sensory, core strength, and fine motor — before diving into academics. Welcome to Teacher Tom’s Podcast, which is all about taking play seriously. In each episode, Teacher Tom … Read more

Two Sides of the Spectrum: Strengths-Based OT and Self-Determination In Action (Podcast Interview)

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  Most of us who are trying to work in a way that is aligned with our values have so many moments of doubt. Are we actually doing a “skilled intervention” we are billing for? Is the work we are doing truly making an impact on the child’s life? Are we inadvertently causing harm? Is … Read more

Feeling All The Feelings Webinar (Hosted by Neurodiversity Ireland)

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As more and more parents, caregivers, and adults start undertaking the work of helping the next generation of children feel safe to express their feelings rather than repeat unhealthy habits from the past, it can be hard knowing where to begin or which way is up. Co-regulation, self-regulation, interoception, what do these words mean? What … Read more

Dauntless Grace: Trauma & Play (Podcast Interview)

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I recently appeared on the podcast Dauntless Grace to talk about trauma, play, reparenting ourselves, and that infamous consequences post.  You can listen to the interview on their website, Dauntless Grace. It’s also available on iTunes here, and on Spotify here. If you’d rather read rather than listen, the transcript is available here.

That Early Childhood Nerd: Consequences & Euphemisms (Podcast Interview)

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I had the chance to speak with Heather, the host of That Early Childhood Nerd, about the consequences post that I wrote which became somewhat infamous on Facebook very quickly.  You can listen to the interview on her website, That Early Childhood Nerd, here. It’s also available on iTunes here, and on Spotify here.  If … Read more

Teaching Kids to Write who “Hate Writing”

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I originally recorded this lecture for a group who work tutoring children with dyslexia and other learning difficulties. It’s based on a lot of experiences I’ve had with children getting referred to me in my occupational therapy role, with goals to improve their handwriting. But how can I, an occupational therapist, work within the bounds … Read more

Is it sensory, or is it behavior?

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I had the opportunity to speak to a group at one of the schools where I work on the topic of discerning whether kids’ “behavior” could be motivated by sensory processing, or whether it’s just “acting out”. (If you’ve been following this page for any amount of time, you might guess the spoiler alert that … Read more

An Interview with Mr. The Occuplaytional Therapist

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The long-awaited interview between myself and my husband! We cover topics including: -coming from differing parenting backgrounds -generational parenting styles, wanting to parent the same way your parents did or not -apologizing and repairing with your children -being a stay-at-home dad and its challenges -societal differences in gendered expectations of parents -non-traditional families -disagreeing with … Read more

Early Opportunities: Protecting the Power of Play

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  I had the opportunity to speak about protecting the power of play to childcare providers at the daycare and youth program centers near where I work for my day job. This lecture covers play development and various forms that it takes, explains the step-by-step development of pre-writing skills, and talks about the essential skills … Read more