Let's Talk Sense: 2024 Community Workshop

This workshop series is for parents, caregivers, and individuals of all ages!

You will walk away empowered through understanding and promoting sensory health and regulation within yourself and your family. Through targeted webinars, you will gain practical strategies for establishing consistent and calming evening routines, navigating and supporting sensory needs during unexpected changes, and planning and enjoying vacations while maintaining sensory health.

By attending this series, you will be equipped with the tools needed to support sensory health and foster positive relationships, enhancing the overall quality of life for everyone involved.

Each week, a new recorded topic will be released on our online event community platform to watch at their own pace. You are encouraged to engage with others to discuss the presented information, share breakdown strategies, network, and ask questions. In addition to the prerecorded sessions, there will be two live sessions where you can interact with STAR therapists and live-experience advocates to ask questions and gain further insights.

Discussions You Don't Want to Miss:

  • Supporting Evening Routines from Post-Work/School to Falling Asleep
    • In this session, we will look at evening routines that support sensory health and regulation for children and families. We will look at: supporting the transition from school/work to home, dinner time, and preparing for a good night’s sleep. You will walk away with practical tools to establish and understand effective evening routines that promote sensory regulation and restful sleep. 
  • Supporting Sensory Needs and Regulation When Routines are Disrupted
    •  Parents, caregivers, and individuals will learn strategies to support sensory regulation when routines are disrupted. We will look at how to handle unexpected changes, tips for play dates and social gatherings, and even how to prepare for school field trips and outings. You will gain a toolkit of strategies to help navigate and thrive in situations where regular routines are disrupted. 
  • Planning and Enjoying Trips with Sensory Health in Mind
    • Let’s explore how to plan and enjoy vacations and trips while considering sensory health and regulation. We will dive into how to best prepare for your trip, strategies for traveling by plane, keys to a fun and safe trip, and how to unwind from your travels. You will walk away equipped with knowledge and strategies to plan and enjoy travel experiences without compromising your health and safety. 


Mark Your Calendar:

  • September 24, 2024 | 5:00pm - 6:00pm MT: Live Q&A with STAR therapists
  • October 24, 2024 | 5:00pm - 6:00pm MT: Live Community Check-In - Our STAR team will answer additional questions and talk through strategies and resources

STAR Voices You'll Hear From:

Virginia Spielmann, PhD, OTR/L (she/her) 
Executive Director

Virginia is a well-travelled speaker, coach and educator on topics including sensory integration, DIR/Floortime, child development and infant mental health. She has conducted trainings in Kenya, Australia, the Philippines, Vietnam, Hong Kong, and the USA and leads workshops at international conferences.

Virginia is a founder and former Clinical Director of SPOT (Speech, Physical, and Occupational Therapy) Interdisciplinary Children's Therapy Center in Hong Kong, where she led a large and widely respected inter-disciplinary team.

Virginia obtained her BSc in Occupational Therapy in Oxford England (2002) and her Masters in Occupational Therapy from Mount Mary University, Milwaukee (2018). She is a DIR/Floortime Training Leader and Expert and clinical consultant for the Interdisciplinary Council for Development and Learning (ICDL). Her extensive pediatric experience includes children on the autism spectrum, as well as those with Sensory Processing Disorder, infant mental health issues, adoption, developmental trauma.

Virginia has considerable post-graduate training, she is certified on the SIPT and is currently completing her Ph.D. in Infant and Early Childhood Development with an emphasis on mental health, with Fielding Graduate University, in Santa Barbara. She is a published author and contributed to the STAR Frame of Reference as part of the 4th Edition of Frames of Reference for Pediatric Occupational Therapy, alongside Dr. Miller and Dr. Schoen.

 

Sarah Anne Hart, OTD, OTR/L (they/them)
Occupational Therapist

Sarah Anne graduated from the University of North Carolina - Chapel Hill with a double major in human development and family studies and psychology and was co-president of UNC's Disability Advocates Committee. Their honors thesis investigated occupational barriers for autistic youth with and without a co-occurring mental health condition. They completed their Doctorate of Occupational Therapy at Wingate University magna cum laude and received the Outstanding Fieldwork Student Award.

Sarah Anne served as their school's co-chair for the Coalition of Occupational Therapists Advocates for Diversity chapter and developed a campus inclusion project for students with disability in conjunction with the Collaborative for the Common Good. They also studied as an AHEC Scholar focusing on social determinants of health. Sarah Anne's doctoral capstone researched self-advocacy in the context of disability. Sarah Anne has presented on trans-inclusive healthcare, creating neurodiversity-affirming cultures, and using lived experience as a therapeutic tool. Sarah Anne has experience practicing in sensory integration and acute-care mental health.

Sarah Anne is passionate about providing neurodiversity-affirming, trauma-assumed, evidence-based care across the lifespan. They love helping people better discover and rediscover joy in their daily occupations. They have a special interest in the effects of autistic burnout, the impact of active rest, and cultivating third spaces. 

 

Paulina Pei, MS, OTR/L (she/her)
Occupational Therapist

Paulina received her Bachelor of Science degree in Biology from Aquinas College in Grand Rapids, Michigan. She then completed her Master of Occupational Therapy degree from the University of Illinois at Chicago. Paulina’s training and clinical experience began centered around the DIR/Floortime model in outpatient pediatric settings both in Chicago and Italy. Paulina has completed the STAR Institute Intensive Mentorship Program Level 1 and holds a Profectum Level 1 Certificate in the Developmental, Individual Difference, Relationship-based Model/Clinician (CL1).

Paulina’s special interests include supporting gifted and twice exceptional students and their families. Prior to coming to STAR, Paulina worked closely with a local gifted academy to provide individual assessment and treatment, host social groups including social skills learning and cooking classes, and provide parent/teacher education. Paulina’s treatment approach embraces the individual differences of the whole child and their family systems, further supporting their participation in meaningful occupations.

 

Lindsey Rowe Parker
Author / Advocate

Lindsey Rowe Parker is the author of the award-winning book about sensory differences, Wiggles, Stomps and Squeezes Calm My Jitters Down. A mom with a home full of neurodivergent minds, she is embracing the next phase of parenting while learning to navigate and advocate for her autistic daughter.  With a recent adult diagnosis of ADHD, and a new deeper understanding of her own sensory experiences, she has begun to delve into the neurodiversity community learning all she can from neurodivergent voices. 

Lindsey is also the creator of the #SensoryStories campaign that brings together authors, illustrators, educators, and advocates to raise awareness of sensory differences during Sensory Awareness Month this October. The aim is to increase mainstream understanding of the importance of sensory integration and processing. Visit her at https://www.wigglesstompsandsqueezes.com

 

Rachel Balderrama, M.Ed., LPC
Feeding Program Coordinator / Counselor

Rachel graduated with her Bachelor of Arts from the State University of West Georgia and received her Masters in Education in School Counseling from Georgia State University. Following three years of work as a high school counselor, Rachel served for two years in Burkina Faso as a Peace Corps volunteer, working in the sector of Girls’ Education and Empowerment. Prior to coming to STAR Institute, Rachel worked in community mental health with families of children and teenagers who were in the foster care, adoptive, juvenile or truancy court systems. This multi-faceted work included assessment and therapy, as well as mentoring and training other staff. Rachel has completed the STAR Institute Intensive Mentorship Program Level 1, Research Mentorship, and the Temple Level 1 Certification course. She is trained in DIR/Floortime, and has also completed the certification process to become a certified therapist in the SOS Approach to Feeding framework.

Rachel has been mentored by Dr. Kay Toomey for 7 years as well as having received direct mentorship from Dr. Lucy Jane Miller for 5 years. She is committed to the provision of respectful, relationship based, person-affirming, feeding therapy and counseling services. The ultimate goal always being that the client is able to achieve autonomy, mastery and self-direction. Her work involves the whole family and prioritizes supporting parents to enable their children to become their favorite selves.