Worcester Center for Expressive Therapies

School Supply Donations Needed! 🖍📓✏️✂️

It's time and we are collecting school supplies! Please drop off donations at our front desk or shop using our Back to School registry: https://tinyurl.com/B2S-YW-List

Thank you for your support!

Runner Spotlight 🏃🏾🏃🏼‍♀️🏃🏽‍♂️

Edward will be running on Team MDSC for the FOURTH time this year! Edward dedicates his Falmouth Road Race runs to his younger sister, Thais. 💙💙💛💛

To support Edward's run, click here: https://raceroster.com/events/2024/83188/the-2024-asics-falmouth-road-race/pledge/participant/25166037

We had the best time meeting all our visitors today! THANK YOU for coming to our open house and spending some time creative time with us! 🥰

It's never too early to get ready for back-to-school season! Join us for this month's free webinar which explores how caregivers can help their kids have a positive return to school in fall. Register for free at bakercenter.org/back-to-school1

🚨There is time left to register and play in the 16th Annual Fore the Youth golf for charity benefiting MARE!

📆 August 19th 2024
🕑: 11:00am
⛳: Blue Hill Country Club 23 Pecunit Street, Canton, MA

Follow the link below
🔗https://buff.ly/3ztbqH5

Positive talk leads to positive self talk. So important!

Graphic from

AMAZING UPDATE for this event!

If you can't make it to Oregon for the live event, this event is now being LIVE STREAMED via Zoom!

Click in the link to register!

We're talking about Re-Framing Behavior in a way that is compassionate, collaborative, child-centered, and very different from the antiquated behavioral mindset that we see so often in the schools.

Join us on the campus of Oregon State University, or LIVE vis Zoom!

https://iddmhsummit.com/?fbclid=IwY2xjawEjMV5leHRuA2FlbQIxMQABHSlPF0a20XgHA3s6WJ-irMIbVNrmFnzvMGnaswi5GqeLvh65PXESGXK8RA_aem_E-5x16xKhFdrpDY1ygnxiQ

Hopkinton Center for the Arts The region's non-profit cultural destination–where passions emerge, and the creative spirit thrive

As we enter the Fall season I find myself explaining this a lot when people request music therapy services. We are so often told that the children have "adaptive music education it's the same thing as music therapy". While I am SO excited the children have access to music education, it's not the same as having music therapy. Music Therapy is an IDEA regulated service. You have a right to an evaluation to see if your child is eligible for services. We created this graphic to help clear things up. Happy advocating!

WholeHearted School Counseling

Sometimes we face situations where, as adults, we are unsure, which can be really challenging with children around.

I found this graphic incredibly helpful for empathetic responses. As Sarah pointed out in the comments, ALL credit should go to WholeHearted School Counseling- who you should follow enthusiastically, like and share their work!

Amanda P.

Processing Speed: Why Slow Processing Speed Makes Simple Tasks Daunting for Kids - Integrated Learning Strategies Why slow processing speed can make simple tasks at school and at home seem daunting for children.

2024 Summer Splash Pad Meet-Up Series! 2024 Summer Splash Pad Meet-Up Series !Join us for some cooling fountains and fun as we tour some of the best splash pads in Central Mass!

Paul Nordoff believed that the diminished 7th is one of the most important chords in music (Nordoff & Robbins, 1998). The diminished 7th brings with it so many harmonic possibilities. Therefore it is a tremendous asset for the music therapist to have at finger tips when engaging clients in musical experiences. . This post will discuss two functions of the diminished 7th chord: 1) as a passing chord and 2) as a pivot or modulating chord (functioning as a Dominant 7th chord).

🙌🙌🙌

From Girl, I've Got You with Cassie GS

Why it's important to encourage messy play...https://ilslearningcorner.com/2016-05-tactile-learning-how-your-child-learns-through-touch-and-their-tactile-system/

Patrons can watch the butterflies fly away as well as read the story in the StoryWalk! Don't forget, a secret code for the Summer Reading Program is hiding in the StoryWalk! Location: The library's outdoor StoryWalk area (adjacent to the parking lot).

🥰

Discover the connection between midline activities and improved attention span in the classroom. https://ilslearningcorner.com/2015-11-why-crossing-the-midline-activities-helped-this-child-listen-to-his-teacher/

Today is the 34th anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act! To celebrate, we’ve released a video version of our toolkit, "A Self-Advocate's Guide to the Americans with Disabilities Act." Check it out here: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLG18VRFaDwLbDGHjfYO-8cscNJKhi1qG4&si=aoG8ldrYx0ZHPi5j

"Explore Possibility Summit" with the Massachusetts' Rehabilitation Commission - August 28th in Framingham.
"The 2024 Explore Possibility Summit was built for and by the disability community"
Link: https://www.mass.gov/info-details/explore-possibility-summit

This is a great resource from ADDitude!

Over the past year, I’ve been collaborating with an amazing school team who is working to become more interoception- affirming and less ‘behaviory’ (as they call it). It has been a shift in mindset for all of us, and we all humbly know that we are a work in progress. One of our really big accomplishments this year is to regularly consider the “observable behaviors” of our students through an interoception lens, reflecting on what the student might be communicating about their inner feels. For example, one of our students was regularly refusing to do math, often growing very distressed at the mere mention of ‘math time’. Instead of using behavior-based strategies to coerce the student to do math (e.g., via reinforcement systems, etc.), we worked as a team to analyze what it was about math that was creating uncomfortable body sensations. We considered OUR behavior and the context surrounding math to make some respectful guesses about why math was so distressing for the student (the student was not able to tell us exactly what it was about math that was distressing). Did we need to make it more active? Did we need to reduce the amount of words used? Did we need to incorporate more interests? Did we need to make it more predictable? Was there a better time of day to offer it? Were we making the point of the work clear? Was the work intellectually stimulating enough? On and on we went, using the respectful guesses to adapt math. The end of the school year came, and we still did not have a great solution. But the accomplishment in all of this is the major shift in mindset of the team. We are using an interoception lens, seeing student refusals and other ‘behaviors’ as important expressions of internal discomfort/comfort, and attempting to validate the students’ internal experiences by adjusting OUR OWN behavior. I’m looking forward to the next school year with this team!

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Image Description: a pink tile with a woman thinking about math on it. Text on the tile reads “We are using an interoception lens, seeing student refusals and other ‘behaviors’ as important expressions of internal discomfort/comfort, and attempting to validate the students’ internal experiences by adjusting OUR OWN behavior.”

Proud and Supported Series - Autistic Self Advocacy Network Definitions and Beyond There are many ways to identify. Everyone is different and that's good! This guide, “Definitions and Beyond,” will explain some of the ways people identify. Maybe you are LGBTQ+ and want to learn more about the community, or maybe you are looking for ways to be an…