Overcoming Learning Barriers with Maude Le Roux

All parents and teachers want pupils to succeed and realise their potential. Yet there can be barriers to learning for some children and young people. Some struggle with getting organised, exercising self-control, and getting on with others. Whilst others need constant supervision and help far beyond the point their peers are beginning to manage certain tasks on their own. These behaviours can often reveal underlying difficulties with executive functioning and sensory processing. Book a seat today to discover the developmental building blocks that need to be in place for a child to soar into learning.

There’s nothing more frustrating than watching children struggle with everyday tasks like finishing homework, putting away toys, or following instructions at school. These “smart but scattered” children might also have trouble coping with disappointment or managing anger.  There are a great number of young people in our classrooms struggling with a range of executive skill deficits and sensory processing problems across what OT Maude Le Roux describes as the ‘hierarchy to learning’. Such troubles may be long or short term, but coming into school, these pupils are unlikely to be in a state of readiness for learning. These developmental deficits may not only prevent them from learning, but may also be expressed in challenging behaviour, which can quickly disrupt others learning too.

Understanding how different features of executive functioning develops from the early stages of life to being a functioning school student is critical for professionals supporting student learning. This workshop is designed to provide a hierarchy of development that occurs in every school student in order to be ready for the world of academics. Course participants will understand the scope of executive functions, it’s definitions, and impact on learning. The Sensory Building Blocks in early development will provide a frame of intervention that will enable the participants to plan their interventions in a way that will truly support the student in achieving higher outcomes. Maude includes ideas from different modalities across a diverse array of trainings and experiences, which enables participants to feel equipped to plan assessment and intervention according to individual profiles. This course is a timely breath of fresh air that brings course participant back to basics in a way that simplifies the complicated nature of student behaviour and learning, and provides a practical understanding of the brain as it applies to reading, math and written expression. You will learn:

• The neurobiology of different executive functioning skills
• The development of Executive Functioning Skills
• The development of Sensory Building Blocks
• To understand what a student needs to learn to read, do math and perform effectively in written expression
• Practical advice with regards to assessment and intervention including which tests would be helpful to use for different professions.
• Easy-to-follow steps to identify a child’s strengths and weaknesses, activities and techniques proven to boost specific skills, and problem-solve daily routines.
• Additional information with regards to learning disability, and diagnoses such as ADHD and ASD.

This workshop is relevant to any professional working in early intervention as well as intervening with the school age population including intermediate to advanced practitioners. Maude uses case study vignettes showcased through video to help translate theory to practice.

Maude Le Roux OTR/L is an Occupational Therapist and accomplished international trainer in a variety of topics, most notably in executive function, sensory processing as well as emotional processing as it applies to learning.  She has built extensive practical knowledge over the two decades with regards to child and family intervention. She co-authored the 2012 book “Our Greatest Allies”.