Sharing the Spectrum: An Autism Canada Podcast

A conversation with Dominique Chabot, Autism Canada Family Services Manager and parent to two autistic children, and Bruce Petherick, Autistic Advocate around how to better navigate the holiday season, including tips for attending and hosting gatherings, shopping, Santa visits, ugly sweaters, gift ideas and more. The music from today's podcast was composed and performed by Bruce Petherick, autistic advocate and neurodivergent musician. To hear more, visit Bruce's website at www.brucepetherick.com

Recording from Au-Some Conference 2022 Megan Pilatzke was formally identified as autistic on May 19, 2021 at 31 years old. Since then, she has become a passionate advocate and public speaker for autism education and acceptance. She focuses her advocacy efforts on quality of life and supports for autistic adults. She also advocates for employment inclusion for all neurodiverse individuals. To date, Megan has been featured in a CBC article and on CBC’s The Current radio show where she discussed her personal experience with late identification and autism assessments. She is a proud member of the Autism Alliance of Canada and is working with their disability policy working group. The group is working toward initiatives to support inclusive employment for autistics within Canada. Megan will also be co-authoring a peer-reviewed study focusing on autistic work experiences. In her spare time, Megan enjoys cross stitching, bird-watching and spending time with her family and three cats. The music from today's podcast was composed and performed by Bruce Petherick, autistic advocate and neurodivergent musician. To hear more, visit Bruce's website at www.brucepetherick.com

As presented at Au-Some Conference 2022, Kara discusses what led her to seek diagnosis and how she navigated the process. Kara Dymond (PhD) is a late diagnosed autistic and ADHD advocate. Growing up, Kara began thinking about differentiation and the potential in every student while working on homework with her younger brother, Danny, who is autistic. She realized the extent of her own neurodivergencies as an adult, often from relating to her students and other neurodivergent adults. Today, Kara is a student-centred educator who teaches autistic children in the Toronto Catholic District School Board, the author of The Autism Lens, and an instructor at the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education at the University of Toronto. Kara also co-hosts a podcast called Autistic Tidbits & Tangents, with Maja Toudal, an autistic psychologist from Denmark. The music from today's podcast was composed and performed by Bruce Petherick, autistic advocate and neurodivergent musician. To hear more, visit Bruce's website at www.brucepetherick.com

(Note that this was initially recorded as a video webinar) A conversation about the ins and outs of heading Back to School with tips and tricks for navigating the transition from our expert panel. PANEL: Kara Dymond is a neurodivergent elementary school teacher, a teacher instructor at the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education (OISE) and an autistic autism consultant with a Canadian school board. Connect with Kara at www.karadymond.com Bruce Petherick is an Autism Canada team member, autistic advocate, neurodivergent musician, teacher and parent to neurodivergent children. Connect with Bruce at info@autismcanada.org or www.brucepetherick.com Dominique Chabot is Autism Canada's Family Support Manager and a parent to 2 children on the Autism Spectrum. Connect with Dominique at info@autismcanada.org SESSION 3: - IEP's and IPP's The music from today's podcast was composed and performed by Bruce Petherick, autistic advocate and neurodivergent musician. To hear more, visit Bruce's website at www.brucepetherick.com

(Note that this was initially recorded as a video webinar) A conversation about the ins and outs of heading Back to School with tips and tricks for navigating the transition from our expert panel. PANEL: Kara Dymond is a neurodivergent elementary school teacher, a teacher instructor at the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education (OISE) and an autistic autism consultant with a Canadian school board. Connect with Kara at www.karadymond.com Bruce Petherick is an Autism Canada team member, autistic advocate, neurodivergent musician, teacher and parent to neurodivergent children. Connect with Bruce at info@autismcanada.org or www.brucepetherick.com Dominique Chabot is Autism Canada's Family Support Manager and a parent to 2 children on the Autism Spectrum. Connect with Dominique at info@autismcanada.org SESSION 2: - Self-care for the whole family - What to do after school on the first days back - Asking for Learning Strategies (AKA: Accommodations) - Tips for Homework ----more---- The music from today's podcast was composed and performed by Bruce Petherick, autistic advocate and neurodivergent musician. To hear more, visit Bruce's website at www.brucepetherick.com

(Note that this was initially recorded as a video webinar) A conversation about the ins and outs of heading Back to School with tips and tricks for navigating the transition from our expert panel. PANEL: Kara Dymond is a neurodivergent elementary school teacher, a teacher instructor at the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education (OISE) and an autistic autism consultant with a Canadian school board. Connect with Kara at www.karadymond.com Bruce Petherick is an Autism Canada team member, autistic advocate, neurodivergent musician, teacher and parent to neurodivergent children. Connect with Bruce at info@autismcanada.org or www.brucepetherick.com Dominique Chabot is Autism Canada's Family Support Manager and a parent to 2 children on the Autism Spectrum. Connect with Dominique at info@autismcanada.org SESSION 1: - Preparing for the first days back: What to do the week before, trial runs, back to routines, etc. - Self-care for caregiver(s), student(s) and family - Getting back to routines ----more---- The music from today's podcast was composed and performed by Bruce Petherick, autistic advocate and neurodivergent musician. To hear more, visit Bruce's website at www.brucepetherick.com

In this episode, we welcome guest Jude Morrow and guest host Luke Silinski to the podcast. Jude is an autistic entrepreneur, TEDx speaker, consultant, philanthropist, and the founder of Neurodiversity Training International, the world’s premier neurodiversity-led training and consulting firm (neurodiversity-training.com). In 2001, Jude was diagnosed autistic at the age of eleven, after having been viewed as having communication and social difficulties. Jude’s journey to becoming a proud autistic adult is chronicled in his first book Why Does Daddy Always Look So Sad?, which also follows Jude’s experience of being an autistic dad to his non-autistic son, Ethan. His latest book is Loving Your Place on the Spectrum: A Neurodiversity Blueprint. Jude graduated with an honors degree in social work in 2012 and brings his personal and professional experiences to all the work he does. You can connect with Jude on social media or via his website, https://www.judemorrow.com Luke is an autistic self-advocate and Autism Canada Ambassador. He is currently a high school student in Alberta, Canada and the founder of Ag Tech STEAM, where he brings "coding and ag tech to rural kids and educates those not familiar with ag and ag tech to offer options for the future with agriculture, ag tech and STEAM." Check out Ag Tech STEAM here: https://agtechsteam.ca ----more---- The music from today's podcast was composed and performed by Bruce Petherick, a neurodiverse musician and friend of Autism Canada. To hear more, visit Bruce's website at www.brucepetherick.com

"How you view your child's behaviour is going to inform how you address it". - Sue Simmons Sue Simmons is a mom, autism advocate, Certified Professional Coach and Certified EFT practitioner who, while exploring ways to help her son, discovered that looking at autism from a developmental perspective and working on adjusting the way she responded to her son's behaviour, helped both of them to decrease frustration and feel more successful every day. Sue talks about her personal story and shares how she helps other families explore and initiate this new perspective in their lives. To connect with Sue: https://equinoxfamilyconsulting.com *NOTE: Autism Canada does not endorse any specific treatments, therapies or medical interventions. Our goal is simply to provide resources and information for family's and individuals.*----more---- The music from today's podcast was composed and performed by Bruce Petherick, a neurodiverse musician and friend of Autism Canada. To hear more, visit Bruce's website at www.brucepetherick.com

Loved chatting with Katie Emde this episode. She is a no-holds- barred mom who is as honest as she is inspiring. We talk about her kids, their autism, and how and why she does "all the things". Katie lives in Saskatchewan with her husband and three kids Avery, Natalie and Jackson, and is known to people across Canada as the face and voice behind the popular Facebook page A Journey for Avery. Her boys Avery and Jackson are both diagnosed with autism; Avery with severe non-verbal autism and Jackson with autism, ADHD and pica. She writes about her family honestly and without holding back on her Facebook page A Journey for Avery, she has started a program called Help Us Help More where she gives back to organizations that support others, and coming soon, a book about her life. Have a listen to our conversation with this amazing mom and member of our incredible community. ----more---- You can connect with Katie on her Facebook page (A Journey for Avery) or via email at journeyforavery@gmail.com. ----more---- The music from today's podcast was composed and performed by Bruce Petherick, an autistic advocate, neurodivergent musician and friend of Autism Canada. To hear more, visit Bruce's website at www.brucepetherick.com

Blake "Crash" Priddle is an accomplished radio host, artist and author. His book Good Morning, Blake: Growing Up Autistic and Being Okay is a compelling and inspiring account of his life from childhood to current day. In this episode of Sharing the Spectrum, Blake and I talk about his life on the Autism Spectrum, his success, some of the challenges he faced and how and why he wrote his book. To learn more about Blake and his book: https://www.blakecrashpriddle.com ----more---- The music from today's podcast was composed and performed by Bruce Petherick, an autistic advocate, neurodivergent musician and friend of Autism Canada. To hear more, visit Bruce's website at www.brucepetherick.com

Jason is the Client Program Manager at Rangam Consultants where he works with organizations to create more inclusive hiring and employment. Join us as we discuss the hiring process and the work Rangam is doing to support businesses and individuals on the spectrum connect and work together. About Jason: Jason develops disability integration programs for corporations, government agencies, non-profits and national funders. He works with clients to understand their work culture and needs, then matches them with disability industry resources. He combines his experience with a focused passion to find innovative solutions for talent acquisition and retention. Jason’s work has been vital to the creation of multiple collaborative groups that connect businesses with job seekers and disability support providers, resulting in positive outcomes and confirmation that disability hiring is a sound business decision. Connect with Jason: jwepp@rangam.com Learn more about Rangam: http://www.rangam.com/ Learn more about SourceAbled: http://www.sourceabled.com/ The music from today's podcast was composed and performed by Bruce Petherick, an autistic advocate, neurodivergent musician and friend of Autism Canada. To hear more, visit Bruce's website at www.brucepetherick.com

Kara Dymond is an elementary school teacher, a teacher instructor at the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education (OISE) and an autism consultant with a Canadian school board. Her new book, The Autism Lens is a resource for teachers to help them confidently connect with and support students on the autism spectrum. Offering practical solutions that foster inclusion, prevent challenging moments, motivate, develop strengths, boost resilience and help teachers respond proactively to student needs, this book is a resource for every classroom. Primarily meant for teachers, this book is also an excellent resource for parents who are looking for tips and ideas to help their student succeed and for engaging with teachers to ensure this success. To connect with Kara and for more resources, visit her website: https://www.karadymond.com The music from today's podcast was composed and performed by Bruce Petherick, a neurodiverse musician and friend of Autism Canada. To hear more, visit Bruce's website at www.brucepetherick.com

Introducing Blair Durnan, founder of Spectrum Skateboard Society, an organization that teaches skateboarding to kids on the spectrum. Join us as we chat about how skateboarding can help with social skills, self-esteem, communication and persistence and about how Blair is using his experiences on a board to share these lessons with kids and families. Connect on Instagram: @spectrumskateboardsociety ----more---- About Blair Durnan BLAIR FOUNDED SPECTRUM SKATEBOARD SOCIETY IN 2020 OUT OF A SHEER PASSION FOR SKATEBOARDING AND KIDS WITH AUTISM Blair’s skateboarding story started back in Ontario in the mid 80s at the age of 11. He always found skateboarding to be an incredible outlet for energy and creativity. Blair has lived on the North Shore for the past 20 years and he has continued to skateboard regularly. Blair graduated with a diploma in Therapeutic Recreation and has extensive experience working with children and youth on the Autism Spectrum. Now that Blair has his own kids, one of whom is on the Autism Spectrum, he’s been reminded first hand of the power of skateboarding for fun and also for building social connections and skills. Blair is so grateful to have the opportunity to bring skateboarding into kids’ lives. Blair’s ultimate goal with Spectrum Skateboard Society is to give children and youth on the Autism Spectrum a chance to feel cool and a chance to feel like they truly belong. The music from today's podcast was composed and performed by Bruce Petherick, a neurodiverse musician and friend of Autism Canada. To hear more, visit Bruce's website at www.brucepetherick.com

Join us for this conversation with Vicki McGrath, late-diagnosed woman on the Autism Spectrum. Vicki shares her story of determination & perseverance before and after diagnosis, her Extra Sensory Perception, how she sees her autism as a gift and, in her words, her extraordinary life. About Vicki: Vicky McGrath is a wife, mom, and business owner and was diagnosed with ASD in 2019, at 50 years of age. Vicky has an undergraduate degree from Trent University and a master’s degree from Cambridge University. Vicky spent 20 years in the government sector in the environmental field before making the jump to business ownership. Currently, she is owner of a private home care company, caring for elderly clients in the safety of their own homes and also a professional speaker. Vicky is also a runner and triathlete, having completed several marathons, half marathons and triathlons including half Ironman and three full Ironman triathlons. It was during a long training ride in 2006, before her (not to be) third Ironman that Vicky crashed her bicycle, broke some ribs, punctured her lung and sustained a concussion and launched her path of self-discovery, resulting in her autism diagnosis in 2019. ----more---- The music from today's podcast was composed and performed by Bruce Petherick, a neurodiverse musician and friend of Autism Canada. To hear more, visit Bruce's website at www.brucepetherick.com

Caris Park is an 11 year old autism ally and advocate who, with her parents support, started educating the kids in her school about autism when she was in grade 4. Her "What is Autism?" class presentation ended up reaching over 90,000 people via social media! Today, Caris, her mom Sara and her brother Carter, who is on the Autism Spectrum, work to educate and create acceptance with their series of educational videos and through their social media pages. Their videos include information about autism including things like stimming, sensory concerns and communication and are perfect tools for teaching anyone about the special characteristics of autism. As Sara says, early education is one of the keys to increasing acceptance and inclusivity for individuals on the spectrum and the videos that she, Caris and Carter are developing are excellent resources for anyone working to educate and learn. Caris is a role model for other kids out there who want to work towards a more accepting world and we are excited to share her enthusiasm today. Watch the videos HERE Follow Caring with Caris on Instagram HERE Follow Clever Carter on Instagram HERE ----more---- The music from today's podcast was composed and performed by Bruce Petherick, a neurodiverse musician and friend of Autism Canada. To hear more, visit Bruce's website at www.brucepetherick.com

You may know her as the award-winning Canadian children's entertainer Boots from Splash'N Boots but to us, she is also Taes, creator of My Big Autism Journey, a mindfulness and meditation program for kids on the spectrum and their families. Taes is passionate about working with and helping kids and as we chat, she talks about her experiences as a performer meeting and connecting with kids at shows and online and why she wanted to share the benefits of a mindfulness and meditation practice...

This episode of Sharing the Spectrum is a repost from the 2019 Au-Some Conference. This years conference is on Saturday, November 28 from 1 PM EST to 4 PM EST. JOIN US Hello, my name is Kevin Chapman and I am diagnosed with Asperger's syndrome, which has enabled me to do other things that I would not have expected. For example, I have fine memory skills, I’m good at numbers, and I am able to focus on tasks I love. I am an accounting major, but I knew I was in trouble when I realized...

Shanyn Silinski is the Program Manager for Search & Rescue for Autism (SARA), a first of its kind program to train families, caregivers and the Responder community around preparedness and safety for people on the autism spectrum. Shanyn joins us to discuss the importance of this program, who it is for and how it will help ensure better outcomes in emergency situations involving autistics. To learn more about Search & Rescue for Autism or register for the launch and learn, click...

Paul Finch is the treasurer and chief financial officer of the British Columbia Government and Service Employees’ Union (BCGEU). He is also on the autism spectrum. Paul discusses the advantages and disadvantages of being on the spectrum as well as the importance of social engagement, developing and connecting with your skills, the value of having routines and why understanding etiquette is critical to success. Paul is a vocal advocate for people on the spectrum and we are grateful that he...

Bruce Petherick, neurodiverse musician and adult-diagnosed autistic, shares his thoughts on being a parent on the spectrum. As well, he introduces us to his daughter Kayleigh and they openly discuss her neurodiversity (ADHD) and their relationship as neurodiverse parent and child. This engaging conversation between a father and daughter is not only heart-warming but is also funny, sweet and full of great information for autistics and their families. Thanks to Bruce and Kayleigh for...