Non Linear Learning - Rethinking Education for Neurodivergent Learners

Where we raise the bar on Education for children with a disability.Educating a child with a disability isn't for the faint of heart, and if you're a parent or educator who refuses to give up on your child's potential, you're in the right place.Hosted by TEDx speaker and Ph.D. Chemist Dr. Vaish Sarathy [mom to a non-speaking Autistic teen with Down syndrome], this podcast offers a bold new way to support your child's learning, regulation, and independence without burnout or arbitrary busy work.Together we explore how to:- Break learning barriers so your child with Autism / Down Syndrome / ADHD can learn complex Math and Science- Make teaching and learning at home a flow state- Support brain + body health with practical, science-backed tools- Use Non Linear Education strategies to unlock growth in ways traditional systems never couldHear from top educators, researchers, and self-advocates. And most importantly, believe again: in your child, and in yourself.

Non Linear Learning - Rethinking Education for Neurodivergent Learners is a kids podcast hosted by Dr. Vaish Sarathy, with 100 episodes on record and a Required Pod Score of 80.

Dr. Vaish Sarathy hosts Non Linear Learning - Rethinking Education for Neurodivergent Learners, a kids show with 100 episodes published.

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  Episode #211

  211. It's Not Defiance, It's Harold: Brain Science, Behavior, and Intellectual Safety with Dr. Lisa Riegel

  Sep 30, 202645 min

  Your child isn't choosing to melt down. By the time behavior shows up, the brain has already decided, and the thinking brain is out of the room. Dr. Lisa Riegel explains why schools most often miss this, and what to do instead. Tune in to learn: Why context comes before any behavior plan Harold and Bob: a simple brain story any child can learn Why sending a child to the principal keeps the behavior going What intellectual safety means, and why endless "pre-academic" classrooms fail it About Lisa: Dr. Lisa Riegel is an educator, researcher, and author of NeuroWell and Aspirations to Operations . She has spent two decades helping schools apply brain science.

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  Episode #210

  210. 5 Myths We Still Believe About Non-Speakers (with David Kaufer)

  Sep 7, 202634 min

  Why spelled communication is not a guessing game: Dr. Vaish Sarathy speaks with David Kaufer, founder of Communicators for Communication Rights and host of The Lighter Side of the Spectrum, about motor-based typing, the realities of apraxia, and why presumed incompetence blocks education. Access to communication is the foundation for age-appropriate, intellectually rich education. David shares the journey with his son Stone, including school resistance, the harmful use of the message passing test, and how access to supported spelling changed Stone's educational path. They also discuss trauma, regulation, the role of communication partners, and why family persistence matters. 4:05 — Why Message passing tests don't work 25:28 — Non-speaking doesn't mean non-thinking 25:55 — Behavior and Non Speakers 26:45 — The Myths! 29:44 — Why AAC on Ipads don't always work for everyone "We don't force neurotypical people to pass lie detector tests before they take a test."

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  Episode #209

  209. The Data Trap: Why "Proving Readiness" Is Costing Non-Speakers Years of Education

  Jul 21, 202637 min

  We don't make a neurotypical kid prove they can read before we hand them a book. We just teach them to read. But for non-speaking and minimally speaking learners, the rules flip. Sit in the chair first. Imitate first. Get it right four days in a row before we'll believe you got it right the first time. Lisa Mihalich Quinn and Erin Buchanan of Reach Every Voice call this the data trap and they're here to tell you why the data your child's team is collecting might not mean what you think it means. Tune in to this episode to learn: Why "proficiency is not a prerequisite" - and what your child's team should be giving them access to right now, not after they demonstrate readiness The real difference between adapting and modifying curriculum, and why modification can quietly cap your child's academic ceiling for years Why "the data shows" is often a trap that hides more than it reveals - and what questions to ask instead About the guests: Lisa Mihalich Quinn and Erin Buchanan lead Reach Every Voice, a multidisciplinary practice supporting non-speaking learners and learners with communication access needs through in-person and virtual instruction, group programming, and grant-funded initiatives. To kickstart Academic Learning for your non speaking or minimally speaking child (and to learn from Dr. Vaish Sarathy), check out www.studio.com/vaish - an Academic Training App for parents.

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  Episode #208

  208. The Eighth Sense: Understanding Behaviour, Communication, and Meltdowns with Dr. Dana Johnson

  Jun 30, 202644 min

  You've talked to 10 therapists. Tried 20 strategies. And your child still goes from calm to crisis in 30 seconds - for reasons no-one understands. Understanding a body requires that we understand the sensory information coming in. And Dr. Dana Johnson - OT, PhD, and founder of the Spellers Center - tells us that there are not 5 but 8 senses. Dana joins Non Linear Learning for the 3rd time to talk about interoception: the eighth sense, the one almost nobody gets taught, and the one that might explain what's been happening in front of you all along. Listen along to learn: Why your child's meltdown appears so sudden Why self-injury can be the body trying to feel itself , not defiance Why "tell me how you feel" is an impossible question for someone who's never reliably felt anything to name Why professionals push back on all of this — and what actually shifts a paradigm 🔗 Dana's YouTube : The Autism Plus Apraxia Doctor 🔗 Dana's Substack Did you know - you can now have Dr. Vaish Sarathy's teaching and personalized training in your pocket - Sign up for the Non Linear Learning Personalized Coach at www.studio.com/vaish

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  Episode #206

  206. What the IEP Is Not Telling You - A Special Ed Insider Breaks It Down (with Dr. Diana Fannon)

  May 19, 202641 minS0

  <p >The IEP meeting is supposed to be about your child. Have you noticed that it often feels like it's about everyone else's comfort? </p> <p >Dr. Diana Fannon spent 24 years inside public school systems as a bilingual school psychologist and director of special education. She now works with families. And in this podcast, she shares with us a few red and green flags of special education. </p> <p> </p> <p >🎙️ Tune in to this episode to learn: 👇</p> <p >Why "inclusive" school districts still often segregate kids with disabilities - and the one red flag that tells you immediately</p> <p >Th...

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