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The parenting moves that look “right” on paper can fall apart in real life, especially when you’re raising a neurodivergent child with ADHD, autism, learning differences, anxiety, or executive functioning challenges. I sit down with clinical psychologist Dr. Anna Levy Warren to talk about the moment many families hit after testing and diagnoses: you finally have the report, but you still don’t have a roadmap for mornings, homework, emotions, and the daily friction that can wear everyone down.

We get concrete about collaborative parenting, because collaboration isn’t a vague ideal, it’s a practical method. We talk through how to put the problem on the table, ask what your child needs, and build strategies with buy-in instead of battles. Dr. Warren shares why “take a breath” often fails, how modeling regulation actually teaches it, and why a simple “restart” can be a powerful repair tool after conflict. Along the way, we unpack respect, boundaries, and how to support independence without sacrificing the relationship you’re trying to protect.

We also dig into learning support: how to translate neuropsychological insights into strength-based academic coaching that builds a positive academic self-concept and real metacognition. Dr. Warren explains the work of Organizational Tutors, plus a practical ritual you can try immediately: a weekly family calendar meeting that improves communication, planning, and connection.

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If your child can talk for days but freezes the moment a pencil hits paper, the problem might not be “motivation” or “attention.” It might be handwriting. We sit down with educator and curriculum designer Holly Britton, founder of Squiggle Squad, to unpack why handwriting instruction is a core building block for literacy, written expression, and confident learning, especially in the early elementary years.

We get specific about what handwriting really is: a transcription skill that has to become automatic so kids can use their brain power for planning, organizing, and revising. Holly explains how fine motor skills and cognitive language skills develop together, why the brain treats writing-by-hand differently than speaking, and how overlapping literacy systems make handwriting more than a nice-to-have. We also talk directionality and why early motor patterns can lock in for years, plus a practical example that can help prevent b and d reversals by teaching consistent start points.

Then we zoom out to what developmentally appropriate learning looks like. Holly shares the Squiggle Squad approach of teaching a small set of pre-writing strokes first through gross motor play and finger tracing, before asking young kids to form letters on paper. We also tackle a real classroom issue: kids rarely see adults handwrite anymore, and screen-based “handwriting” demos often fail to model the actual tool, grip, and movement children need to copy.

If you care about early literacy, child development, fine motor skills, and practical handwriting tips for parents and teachers, you’ll leave with clear next steps and a simple chalk challenge you can do today. Subscribe, share this with a parent or educator, and leave a review with your biggest handwriting question so we can cover it next.

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SJ CHILDS - SOCIALS & WEBSITE MASTER LIST

WEBSITES

- Stream-Able Live — https://www.streamable.live-COMING SOON

- The SJ Childs Global Network — https://www.sjchilds.org

- The SJ Childs Show Podcast Page — https://www.sjchildsshow.com

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The fastest way to lose your kid is to keep talking when what they need is to be understood. That’s why I loved this conversation with Dr. Beth Long, a licensed professional counselor and ABA therapist in Montgomery, Alabama, who brings both clinical clarity and real-parent humility to the hardest parts of family life.

We get into what children actually want from parents at different ages: younger kids craving you to join them more, and teens repeating the line Dr. Beth hears constantly in her work, “My parents never listen to me.” We talk about listening without rehearsing your response, how that creates safety, and why connection is not a reward kids have to earn. Dr. Beth also shares how her own parenting “failures” shaped the practical guidance in her book Beyond Words: The Art of Effectively Communicating With Your Child, plus a preview of Beyond Emotions: The Art of Raising Resilient Children.

If you’re parenting a neurodiverse child, we dig into autism communication, gestalt language learners, splintered skills, and the difference between expressive language delays and receptive language delays. We also unpack a game-based approach to emotional regulation, the idea that all feelings are welcome while not all behaviors are, and why a stronger emotion vocabulary can change your whole home. Along the way, we swap tools like Atlas of the Heart and simple feelings-map resources that make “mad” more specific and more manageable.

Subscribe for more practical parenting conversations, share this with a friend who needs it, and leave a review so more families can find the support they’ve been searching for.

Support the show

SJ CHILDS - SOCIALS & WEBSITE MASTER LIST

WEBSITES

- Stream-Able Live — https://www.streamable.live-COMING SOON

- The SJ Childs Global Network — https://www.sjchilds.org

- The SJ Childs Show Podcast Page — https://www.sjchildsshow.com

YOUTUBE

- The SJ Childs Show — https://www.youtube.com/@sjchildsshow

- Louie Lou (Cats Channel) — https://www.youtube.com/@2catslouielou

FACEBOOK

- Personal Profile — https://www.facebook.com/sara.gullihur.bradford

- Business Page — https://www.facebook.com/sjchildsllc

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- The SJ Childs Show — https://www.facebook.com/SJChildsShow

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- Spotify — https://open.spotify.com/show/4qgD3ZMOB2unfPxqacu3cC

- Apple Podcasts — https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-sj-childs-show/id1548143291

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