With Dr. Rae Leeper, Director of On Campus Programs in Early Childhood Special Education & Studies in Education Bank Street College of Ed.
Celebrating Autistic and Neurodivergent Forms of Play
Educators are often tasked with assessing the behavior of children in their classrooms for any autism-related “red flags” which includes lining up objects, collecting items, and stimming. These kinds of behaviors are often framed as a distraction to learning; therefore, correcting them becomes the goal of many interventions. This workshop will support participants to reframe their understanding of these “behaviors” and instead view them as expressions of neurodivergent play. Through video examples, small group activities, and group discussion, participants will leave the workshop with concrete strategies on how to foster and join autistic forms of play with their young children.
Presented by Dr. Rae Leeper
Rae Leeper is Faculty and Director of the On Campus Department of Early Childhood General and Special Education at Bank Street Graduate School of Education. Dr. Leeper received her doctorate from the Department of Curriculum and Teaching at Teachers College, Columbia University after working as a classroom teacher and parent coach for over 15 years. Her work is theoretically grounded in an intersectional framing of Disability Studies (DS) and Disability Studies in Education (DSE), specifically the intersections of feminist theory, queer theory and DisCrit (Disability Studies and Critical Race Theory).
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