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  • ADHD Coaching with Sharon Collon
    2025/09/01
    In this episode, I am joined by Sharon Collon from The Functional Family. We discuss ADHD coaching and how it works to support students living with ADHD, their teachers and families. We focus on practical strategies for supporting executive function, increasing engagement, dealing with emotions, and solving predictable problems. Sharon is an award-winning, credentialed ADHD Coach & Parent Consultant (who is families trained). She is passionate about helping families navigating ADHD create joyful, functional lives with ADHD. She loves anything that makes life easier with ADHD! Her husband and her three sons all live with ADHD (throw in some Autism, Tourettes, ODD, OCD, SPD and SLD too). As well as Sharon’s lived experience, she has been researching ADHD for over 17 years, studied at ADDCA in New York and is PCC credentialed with the International Coaching Federation. Sharon has runs on the board, assisting over 40,000 families since The Functional Family was created. Sharon has won multiple awards, including Business Awards – Outstanding Education Service, AusMumpreneur – Disabled Business Excellence, People’s Choice Leadership, People’s Choice Making a Difference and the Cook’s Community Award. Sharon lives in Southern Sydney and enjoys being near the sea, spending one-on-one time with her boys and her two boxer dogs… who are more like living cartoon characters than dogs. Are you interested in working with Sharon? Book a FREE 15-minute discovery call with Sharon HERE. During this call, Sharon will learn more about you and provide information about what services best suit your needs. Show notes I invited Sharon on because ADHD and learning difficulties often go hand in hand, with around 40% of people living with ADHD also living with dyslexia, dyscalculia or dysgraphia. We know that attention, attitude and positive relationships have a significant impact on learning outcomes, particularly for students living with learning difficulties. Sharon shares some fantastic strategies for engaging students and supporting their (and our) mental health. What does an ADHD coach do? We start by looking at what ADHD coaching covers. It’s about making day-to-day life easier for students living with ADHD and their families and teachers. That includes things like time awareness, transitions, getting started on tasks, and building routines that actually work. Coaching is not therapy. It’s focused on how you make practical day-to-day activities easier. One of the big ideas in Sharon’s work is “predictable problems.” These are the same kinds of friction points that show up every day like getting dressed, brushing teeth, leaving the house and doing homework. The example Sharon gives about the toothbrush is a great one. The assumption was that it was a sensory issue. But it turned out the real problem was needing to go back upstairs after breakfast. The solution? Move the toothbrush downstairs. Done. Co-designing solutions A big part of Sharon’s process is co-designing solutions with the child. When students living with ADHD have a say, they often come up with smart ideas, and they’re more likely to stick with them if they’ve been part of designing the solution. You’ll hear us talk a lot about building autonomy and doing the planning when everyone is regulated. Not during the heat of the moment. What do Pinball Flippers have to do with ADHD? Sharon also explains her brilliant “Pinball Flippers Open / Closed / Neutral” model. It’s a way to quickly understand what state a student is in and how to respond. When a brain is open, it can take things in. When it’s closed, it’s overwhelmed and in fight, flight, freeze, or fawn mode. Our job is to help open the brain through praise, encouragement, novelty and whatever it takes to get our students engaged and open to learning. We also talk about how to support students in tutoring and classroom settings. I share one of my own strategies a collaborative whiteboard story that students add to each week. This builds in anticipation and (almost) guarantees a positive start to each session. Sharon suggests small “important jobs” like delivering a note to the office to give students a chance to regulate and reset. She also talks about planning exits in advance, so students don’t wait until they’re overwhelmed to step away. Body-doubling (getting expert help like tutors) can help a lot. Kids often respond well to the novelty of an external person, and as parents, we can’t take on everything! Homework – often a predictable problem Homework is a big, predictable problem for many students. For younger students, Sharon often works with families to step away from homework altogether unless it’s something that really matters. For older students, she focuses on breaking tasks down, setting time limits, and choosing the right time of day to work. Often, that’s not after dinner! Five-minute entries work well: “Let’s give it five minutes, ...
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    1 時間 11 分
  • The Safe House Framework with Valli Jones
    2025/08/08
    Full Show Notes available at dyscastia.com In this episode, I talk with Valli Jones, a clinical psychologist from Queensland, about what it means to create a safe learning environment for students who live with autism, ADHD, dyslexia, and other learning difficulties. We focus on the idea that students learn best when they feel safe — not just physically safe, but emotionally and psychologically safe too. Valli Jones Valli Jones is a clinical psychologist and an autistic woman. She brings together professional expertise and lived experience to support families, educators, and health professionals in creating safe, respectful environments for neurodivergent children and young people. She is the creator of the Safe House Framework — a model that blends years of clinical practice, formal training, and personal insight into what it really means to feel safe. Her work focuses on helping adults understand behaviour through a neurodiversity-affirming lens and on building strong, collaborative support systems around each child. At the heart of her work is a simple goal: to help create a world where all children know what it feels like to be understood. Show notes Valli walks us through a model she developed for supporting neurodivergent students called the Safe House Framework, which is designed to support everyone around a child — parents, teachers, tutors, psychologists, speech pathologists, OTs to collaborate more effectively. The framework is built around the idea of a house, with each part of the house representing a part of what students need to feel safe and understood. We also talk about what behaviour really means, what might be happening when a student shuts down or refuses to comply, and how important it is that we shift the way we think about neurodivergence in schools. This is especially relevant for teachers and tutors working with students who might seem ‘difficult’ or ‘defiant’ but are really just overwhelmed. What is the Safe House Framework? The Safe House Framework is a way of thinking about support for neurodivergent students that focuses on psychological safety and respect for difference, rather than control or behaviour management. Each part of the house is a metaphor: Foundations – The mindset of the adults involved. This means starting from a neurodiversity-affirming perspective: recognising that differences are natural, not signs of something broken that needs fixing.Floor Plan – The specific profile of a student: their strengths, their needs, and the kinds of support that will help. This includes things like sensory processing, communication differences, and interests.Windows – How we view behaviour. Instead of assuming students are being naughty or defiant, we try to see behaviour as communication. Often, it tells us a student is overwhelmed, anxious, or just not coping.Walls – The people involved: parents, teachers, allied health professionals, tutors — anyone who supports the student. The more these people can share information and work together, the stronger the support.Door – The connection we build with the student. Relationships based on trust and understanding are at the core of psychological safety.Roof – The systems that protect students: legislation, policies, and broader supports.Landscape – The broader context: the school community, cultural attitudes toward difference, and the general level of understanding. The framework is available to download for free at embracingneurodiversity.co. What behaviour might be telling us One of the most important parts of the conversation was around how to understand behaviour. When students act out, shut down, avoid tasks, or insist on controlling things, it’s often not a matter of defiance or laziness. It’s a nervous system response. Valli describes five common stress responses: Fight – A student lashes out, argues, or becomes aggressive.Flight – A student leaves the room or tries to escape a situation.Freeze – A student goes still, zones out, or appears to stop functioning.Fawn – A student over-complies, masks distress, or tries to please everyone, but is exhausted or anxious underneath.Flop – A student shuts down completely, maybe lying on a desk or becoming non-verbal. All of these are signs that the student may not feel safe in that moment, whether because of sensory overload, anxiety, fear of failure, or feeling misunderstood. Many of these behaviours get misinterpreted, especially in schools where compliance is expected. The idea here is not to excuse unsafe behaviour, but to understand what might be driving it — and to work proactively, not reactively. Making practical adjustments in schools Some key suggestions came up around how teachers and tutors can support students before issues escalate: Flexible seating (e.g. standing desks, rocker stools, floor spaces)Fidgets that don’t distract othersGiving processing time (Michael talks about using a 30-second pause)Being careful ...
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    1 時間 15 分
  • The Literacy Support Kit with Sally Andrew
    2025/02/10
    In this episode, Michael Shanahan is joined by experienced specialist dyslexia tutor Sally Andrew to discuss The Literacy Support Kit (LSK)—a comprehensive set of resources designed to support children for whom standard literacy intervention programs are too difficult. Sally Andrew Sally holds a Postgraduate Diploma in Dyslexia and Literacy from the University of York, UK. Sally has been tutoring students with dyslexia for 25 years and has trained many parents and educators in evidence-based multisensory interventions for dyslexia. Sally is the director of By Your Side Tutoring. Sally formally ran the popular Teaching Students with Dyslexia (TSD) suite of training for Specialist Multisensory Literacy Teachers. Sally co-developed the Literacy Support Kit and Word Cracker suite of morphology resources. Show notes Michael and Sally explore the challenges faced by students living with dyslexia, dysgraphia, intellectual disability, and fine motor difficulties, sharing strategies and practical solutions to bridge gaps in literacy instruction. They emphasize the importance of customized resources, multi-sensory learning, and breaking skills into fine-grained steps to ensure student success. Key Topics Discussed 1. Why Some Students Struggle with Standard Intervention Not all students progress at the expected rate in structured literacy programs.Some need more fine-grained steps to break down learning concepts.Kids living with dyslexia, dysgraphia, ADHD, and intellectual disability often require additional scaffolding.The LSK provides targeted resources to address these challenges. 2. The Importance of Teacher Discretion in Literacy Instruction Teaching should not be one-size-fits-all.Experienced tutors develop custom resources based on student needs.If a student is struggling with a concept, slowing down and focusing on prerequisite skills is essential.Using varied formats to present the same material helps build automaticity. 3. Supporting Kids with Alphabet Difficulties Many students, even in Year 5 or 6, do not truly know the alphabet beyond the song.Some students believe “LMNOP” is a single letter due to how they learned the alphabet song.Intervention strategies: Using picture alphabets to build phoneme awareness.Matching games to reinforce letter recognition.Writing letters over pre-written models to build confidence. 4. Helping Students Blend Sounds (Phonemic Awareness) Some students struggle to blend sounds into words, making decoding very difficult.Key strategies in LSK: Chunking sounds together rather than focusing on individual phonemes.Onset and rime activities (e.g., working on “at,” “it,” “in” before full words).Repeated exposure through varied activities to build automaticity. 5. Handwriting as a Literacy Barrier Fine motor control issues can make writing exhausting.Poor handwriting can lead to low confidence and avoidance of writing tasks.LSK handwriting support includes: Pre-writing activities (tracing, erasing letters, solving mazes).Cursive instruction to improve fluency.Explicit teaching of letter formation and spacing. 6. Keeping Students Engaged with Repetitive Learning Students need hundreds of repetitions to master basic literacy skills.Standard drills can be boring and frustrating.LSK provides a variety of engaging activities, including: Chunky Pig – A game reinforcing phoneme blending.Make-a-Chunk sheets – Matching and handwriting exercises.Tracking sheets – Strengthening phonemic awareness.Close reading sheets – Filling in missing words from context. 7. Addressing Sticking Points in Phonics Programs Some students get stuck on complex spelling rules (e.g., C/K rule, open/closed syllables).LSK removes these difficult concepts temporarily so students can continue making progress.Focus remains on: Mastering short vowel sounds before moving to long vowels.Learning suffixes before tackling multi-syllable words. 8. High-Frequency Words: A Key Component High-frequency words are essential for reading fluency.Traditional word lists cause stress for many students (e.g., weekly school spelling tests).LSK includes: Traceable worksheets for repeated practice.Snakes and Ladders game using high-frequency words.Word search puzzles for additional reinforcement. 9. The Power of Repetition and Daily Practice Flashcard Decks: Each new letter or sound is added to a child’s personal deck.Spelling Drills: Structured practice with traceable letters for extra support.Daily reinforcement builds automaticity without overwhelming students. 10. Who Can Use the Literacy Support Kit? Teachers and tutors looking to support struggling students.Parents who want a structured, easy-to-follow literacy program.Intervention specialists who need additional materials to customize instruction.The LSK is simple enough that parents can use it at home, even without formal training. Resources & Links The Literacy Support Kit (LSK) Word ...
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    1 時間 3 分
  • What high-performing countries are doing in maths. With Liana McCurry
    2024/04/05

    In this episode, we have Liana McCurry back to talk about her Churchill Fellowship findings on what the top PISA performing countries are doing with maths instruction and how we can use that information to improve outcomes for kids living with learning difficulties.

    Show notes

    Liana McCurry’s Churchill Fellowship has come just in time. Liana travelled abroad to investigate best practices in teaching mathematics that provide the best outcomes for all students.

    Australia’s PISA ranking plummeted from 10th internationally in 2003 to 30th in 2018, where it fell below the average for the first time. How we teach mathematics in Australia is the prime suspect for this decline.

    Dyscastia Episode 14 was recorded prior to Liana’s departure, where we discussed intervention in Maths.

    Early in the conversation, constructivist learning theories are discussed as a big part of the problem in the context of how this approach to learning and teaching exacerbates cycles of social disadvantage. Anyone who taught in the late 80s and 90s in Australia has (tried) to work with curriculum frameworks that are broadly based on constructivist theories.

    In discussing the differences between the curricula of the countries Liana visited and Australia’s mathematics curriculum, Ben Jensen’s work was mentioned. The ERRR Podcast #77 is well worth a listen if you want to know more about the shortcomings of Australia’s curriculum.

    Greg Ashman gets a mention, as Greg is an outspoken critic of the direction of the Australian maths curriculum. Greg recently gave an excellent interview on the Science of Reading Podcast, where he gives a stunning account of cognitive load theory. Greg also sits on the other side of the mic in his own podcast, where he and Amanda VanDerHeyden talk maths instruction.

    Comments and questions are welcome!

    We would love to hear about your experiences teaching mathematics directly and explicitly as opposed to other methods. We’re also interested in your experiences with bringing review and maths fluency into your instructional approaches. If you’ve taught in any of the countries Liana visited, we’d love to hear your reflections.

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    1 時間 20 分
  • The Importance Of Daily Review
    2024/01/18
    In this episode, we chat about daily review with David Morkunas, current head of teacher efficacy at Brandon Park Primary School, previously a teacher at Bentleigh West Primary School. David Morkunas is a primary school teacher from Melbourne and currently works at Brandon Park Primary School, where his role is to help support whole school improvement in maths. David first made a name for himself by speaking about the importance of Daily Review at conferences, including Sharing Best Practice and ResearchED. David is a fierce advocate for evidence-based teaching and learning, with a particular interest in how knowledge is transferred to long-term memory. Bill first met David as a graduate teacher while running the Bentleigh West Primary School Study Tour for South Australian educators, and he and David have remained in touch since. Show notes In this episode, Michael and Bill talk with David about something very close to all our hearts – review. Anybody working in the explicit (direct) instruction and evidence-informed instruction space has become familiar with the importance of deliberately planned and scheduled review of previously learned material. For educators new to review, it’s a case of “Where have you been all my life?” Once maligned as non-progressive ‘rote learning’ or ‘drill and kill’ in teaching circles, review has come back to classrooms with a vengeance, and teachers are seeing the difference in student learning outcomes. Review is strongly supported by evidence and features in Barak Rosenshine’s Principles of Instruction. We cover a wide range of topics and ideas in this episode. David mentions EDI (Explicit Direct Instruction) as an instructional method used at his previous school, Bentleigh West Primary School. The conversation moves to the role of review for transferring new information into long-term memory. Bill mentions a Research Ed talk by Emeritus Professor John Sweller (the father of Cognitive Load Theory), which discusses the narrow limits of change principle, a master stroke of evolution which made working memory a protective mechanism for long-term memory due to its extremely limited ability to deal with novel information, thus making it very difficult for new information to change long term memory without multiple repetitions. Shortly after, David mentions Ebbinghaus’s forgetting curve, a famous model teachers use to explain the importance of spaced reviews to lessen the rate at which newly learned information degrades over time after being first learned (flatten the curve of forgetting). The importance of gaining and holding student attention first and foremost is discussed, and David mentions an episode of the ERRR podcast where the importance of having students pay attention is discussed and how this supersedes any other instructional/pedagogical considerations. OCHRE Education gets a few mentions from as a source of materials schools can use if they aren’t building their teaching materials in-house. The difference between active review and students just reciting what is on a screen is discussed. David explains that students must actively pull something (retrieving) from long-term memory in active review. This distinction is explored, and David mentions a conversation with Ingrid Sealey from Teach Well that changed some of his thinking on how to structure the review. Spaced retrieval apps are mentioned as a way for us (grownups) to learn new things. One such app is Anki, which both David and Bill have used. Next, the question of when to review is tossed around, and David, Michael and Bill search for the holy grail – some rule of thumb or algorithm that tells us when the best time to review information is. Bill talks about how, in the Playberry Laser Literacy Program, he and his colleagues are always thinking about how to achieve the review sweet spot. Success comes up as the driver of student attention and genuine motivation. David, Michael and Bill discuss how Australia’s infatuation with making learning fun instead of focusing on effective teaching has had disastrous results. David talks about digital tech and books by Cal Newport, one being “Deep Work”, which talks about all of us (adults and kids) needing to cultivate the ability to concentrate for long periods to create good things in the world. David mentions a podcast episode by Greg Ashman on student motivation. David’s presentation for LDA is well worth a watch David’s Webinar on Spaced, Interleaved and Retrieval Practice for LDA is worth watching. Playberry Laser has some lessons up online where review can be seen in action, as well as some other excellent teaching at St Francis School Lockley’s South Australia. Comments and questions are welcome! If you’re an educator, we would love to hear about your experiences with integrating structured daily review into your teaching. If you have a child in a classroom or ...
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    1 時間 14 分
  • SLDs And Individual Learning Plans
    2023/11/15
    Sue Griffith Sue is a registered teacher with many years of experience in primary teaching. She has specialist Maths training in programs designed to support students experiencing difficulties or delays in Maths skills, including students with dyscalculia and/or dyslexia. QuickSmart Numeracy InterventionRon Yoshimoto Multisensory Maths program – based on the Orton-Gillingham principlesSingapore Maths Sue designs individual courses that are explicit, structured, multisensory and manipulative-based for students who are underachieving in Maths. Programs utilised are all evidence-based interventions. Students learn to think mathematically and develop understanding beyond rote memorisation. Programs focus on fostering a positive attitude towards Maths and the foundational skills, including but not limited to: Place value and the decimal systemBasic Mathematical operations of addition, subtraction, multiplication and divisionBasic number fact knowledge and multiplication tablesFractions, decimals, percentages and ratiosProblem solving strategiesApplication of Number knowledge to concepts of Time, Money and Measurement Sue also offers young people support in Literacy. She has specialist training in ‘Teaching Students with Dyslexia’ and follows the Multi-Sensory Playberry Dyslexia Program which is based on the Orton-Gillingham approach.Sue also has a Graduate Diploma in Education, specialising in Literacy and Language.Sue designs literacy support programs such as ‘The Writing Process’ to suit individual student needs. Sue believes all children can succeed in improving their reading, writing and mathematical skills. Please contact her to discuss how she can best support your child in their learning. Lilly Shanahan Lilly Shanahan is a dedicated Year 12 student at Sacred Heart College in Adelaide, South Australia. As someone who lives with dyslexia and dyscalculia, Lilly has navigated a variety of educational settings and individual learning plans (ILPs) throughout her academic journey. Her varied experiences in different school environments have given her a unique understanding of the challenges and opportunities presented by learning with specific learning disabilities (SLDs). Lilly’s personal insights into effective ILP strategies are invaluable. As a guest interviewee in this episode, Lilly shares her firsthand experiences and offers practical advice for kids, parents, and teachers. Her contributions provide a relatable and insightful perspective on how to navigate and optimize ILPs, making her story a source of inspiration and guidance for those facing similar educational challenges. Show notes During the episode, we mention a few things that may not be familiar to every listener. We always try to be as accurate as possible about what we say in all Dyscastia Podcasts. However, things do change, and if we have accidentally omitted information or something we have said is no longer the case, particularly in regards to policies in the individualised education plan space. Here are some links that might help. Special Provisions in Exams: Students can apply in all states of Australia for special provisions in tests and exams. Different authorities generally for a documented history of special provisions for timed assessments. IEPs that document special assessment provisions will be an important part of this evidence. South Australian Certificate of Education (SACE) Currently, South Australia looks to have the best information page of all the states and territories. This section of the SACE Board website provides information on how students can apply for the types of special provisions discussed during this episode. A quick look took me to these pages for other States and Territories: Victoria: Special provisions Fact Sheet New South Wales: Disability provisions for exams Queensland: Access arrangements and reasonable adjustments (AARA) — formerly known as special provisions Australian Capital Territory: Equitable Assessment and Special Consideration Northern Territory (it seems the NT have adopted SA’s approach) : Special provisions in the SACE Western Australia: Special Provisions Tasmania: Reasonable Adjustments for TASC External Assessments USA We live in Australia, so we are not familiar with US processes, but these links seem like a good place to start: The 13 disability categories under IDEAUnderstanding IEPsThe Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) Special Provisions Mentioned – What to consider when deciding what to offer a student. Below are some of the topics discussed in the episode. A key takeaway is that any provision or accommodation that might make its way into a student’s plan will have upsides and downsides that need to be balanced. A glaring omission from our conversation was assistive technology. Unfortunately, the conversation just didn’t take us there. Assistive tech is an incredibly important part of the picture for students with difficulties ...
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    1 時間 38 分
  • Maths and learning difficulties
    2023/07/21

    In this episode, we chat with math teaching expert Liana McCurry. We delve into best practices for all students when teaching maths. We hope Liana's insights will help create inclusive learning environments where every child can succeed.

    For the full show notes, including Liana's R-6 scope, sequence and content breakdown, visit our website.

    https://dyscastia.com/episodes/episode-14-maths-and-learning-difficulties/

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    1 時間 16 分
  • ADHD and learning difficulties
    2023/05/21

    In this episode, we talk with Psychologist Benita Ranzon about one of the most misunderstood and stigmatized conditions that affect kids and adults - ADHD.

    About Benita

    I have been working in private practice at Fullarton House since 2005. The focus of my practice is on educational issues for students and adults.

    • I offer diagnosis of specific learning difficulties such as dyslexia, dysgraphia, and dyscalculia.
    • I provide learning and support strategies for home, school and work to enable people with reading, spelling, writing or maths difficulties to be successful.
    • I offer diagnosis and advice to parents of children with ADHD, as well as adults with ADHD.
    • I identify students with high intellectual or academic potential, sometimes called ‘gifted’ students, using the WPPSI-IV or WISC-V cognitive tests. I provide recommendations on curriculum differentiation and other supportive strategies at school and home
    Show notes

    While ADHD is not a specific learning difficulty like dyslexia, dysgraphia and dyscalculia, it does have a high association with these difficulties. Approximately 40% of people living with ADHD will also be living with dyslexia. This has big implications for parents and teachers in terms of being vigilant about ADHD symptoms in our kids and being knowledgeable about how ADHD and learning difficulties may impact on each other.

    ADHD, or Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder, is a neurodevelopmental disorder that typically begins in childhood and may continue into adulthood. It is characterized by persistent patterns of inattention, impulsivity, and hyperactivity that can impact various aspects of a person’s life, including academic performance, work productivity, and relationships.

    ADHD is typically identified based on specific criteria outlined in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5). They have a PDF fact sheet about AHD available to download. You can see that the last time this was updated was in 2013! These criteria include the presence of symptoms in multiple settings, impairment in daily functioning, and the exclusion of other possible causes for the symptoms.

    ADHD related links and resources we mention Additude magazine

    ADDitude is an online resource for families and adults living with ADHD and related conditions and for the professionals who work with them.

    They have great resources about kids living with ADHD.

    • For teachers
    • For parents
    • For adults

    They also have an excellent YouTube channel.

    Jessica McCabe - How to ADHD

    Jessica runs a YouTube channel that she describes as an ADHD toolbox. It’s mostly aimed at adults but has great tips and resources for understanding ADHD from a lived experience perspective.

    Jessica’s TED talk sharing her ADHD success story.

    Dr Russell Barkley

    We referred to Dr Russell Barkley a number of times during this podcast. YouTube is scattered with lots of bits and pieces of Dr Barkley’s numerous talks. Dr Barkley talks about ADHD from a medical perspective, and the video below goes into the clinical details of ADHD for parents. He is engaging, compelling and highly knowledgeable.

    Comments and questions are welcome!

    We would love to hear about your experience with ADHD and any tips you can share about supporting kids living with ADHD. Please leave a comment on our website https://dyscastia.com/episodes/episode-13-adhd

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    1 時間 56 分