WLA/SPED*NET: The ‘Big Picture’ of Promoting Positive Behavior and Developmental Growth

Our neurodivergent kids are complex—and the ways we think about promoting their development must respond to those complexities. Simply using Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) is insufficient to truly influence a child’s actions. So, what should be included in an effective “behavior plan?”  Clinical psychologist Michael J. Weiss, PhD, will address the key issues to consider when developing a successful treatment plan, in addition to ABA: (1) a child’s diagnosis in terms they can understand; (2) an “Authoritative Parenting” approach and parental credibility; (3) the influences of other psychological factors, such as Anxiety and Depression; (4) requiring children to leave their comfort zones in their routines; (5) the use and misuse of screentime; and (6) how and why you would intentionally confront a child’s behavior, rather than trying to avoid confrontation.

Michael Weiss is the Director of Applied Developmental Analysis (ADA) Therapy, LLC, a licensed clinical psychology and educational consulting group working with children, families and schools managing developmental differences. After receiving his doctorate from Tufts University in 1986, Dr. Weiss served as a faculty member in the Schools of Medicine at McGill and Harvard Universities and as a staff psychologist at the Jewish General Hospital in Montreal and the Children’s Hospitals in Montreal and Boston. He was also an Adjunct Professor in psychology at Fairfield University from 2004 to 2016.  Dr. Weiss has worked for more than 40 years consulting with families and school boards across the United States and eastern Canada. He was the senior editor of the textbook Newborn Attention: Biological Constraints and the Influence of Experience (1991, co-edited with Philip R. Zelazo, PhD, McGill University) and has published numerous articles, chapters, and abstracts related to infancy, children and families, and developmental differences and disabilities. Dr. Weiss, along with Sheldon Wagner, PhD, and Susan Goldberg, MA, has co-authored a book about managing children’s behavior, titled Drawing the Line: 10 Steps to Constructive Discipline and Achieving a Great Relationship with Your Kids (2006; Warner Books Publisher). He was the featured host of the Canadian syndicated television show “Real Families with Dr. Michael Weiss” and has been a regular contributor to Parents Canada.

Presented by SPED*NET in partnerships with Wilton Library, Wilton Public Schools and Newtown Sped PTA.  Registration suggested.