Lessons Learned from Children Exposed  to Trauma: Implications for Learning  Differences and Developmental Disabilities

Infants and children diagnosed on the autism spectrum, as well as those with learning and other developmental disorders, have unique neurosensory profiles that often lead to problems in self-regulation - perhaps rendering them less available for  engagement and communication. The panel will review the research and clinical  practice surrounding the impact of trauma on children, and use this review as a lens through which the experiences of children with autism and their families can be understood and supported.

Panel Presentation: Lessons Learned from Children Exposed to Trauma: Implications for Learning Differences and Developmental Disabilities
Joy Osofsky, Ph.D., Barbara Lemann Professor, Departments of Pediatrics and Psychiatry, LSU Health Sciences Center

• Brief Bio

Panel Presentation: Making Sense of What We See and What We Expect But Not See
Barbara Kalmanson, Ph.D., Clinical Psychologist and Special Educator, San Francisco, CA and Dean, ICDL Graduate School

• DIR/Floortime Discussion:
  • Welcoming Parents in the Room

• Brief Bio
  

Panel Presentation: Intergenerational Transmission of Trauma and Anxiety: Recognizing and Alleviating Trigger Patterns
Rebecca Shahmoon-Shanok, L.C.S.W., Ph.D., Director, Institute for Infants, Children & Families; Jewish Board of Family and Children’s Services

• DIR/Floortime Discussion:
  • Welcoming Parents in the Room
• Brief Bio
  

Panel Presentation: Mapping Underlying Dimensions of Trauma and Autistic Spectrum Disorders Using Neurorelational Framework (NRF)
Connie Lillas, Ph.D., M.F.T., R.N., National Graduate Zero to Three Leadership Fellow

• DIR/Floortime Discussions:
  • The Neurodevelopmental Framework (NDF) and the DIR/Floortime Model: In Search of New Approaches to Complex Problems
• Brief Bio

Panel Presentation:  Response to Stress and Trauma in Young Children with Autism: A Neurobiological Vulnerability
Charles Cartwright, M.D., Director, YAI, Autism Center, YAI Network, and Chief, Premier HealthCare Autism Research and Treatment Institute

Panel Presentation: Functional Emotional Development, The Neurosequential Model of Therapeutics and Lessons from Trauma: When the Subcortex Hi-jacks the Cortex

Gerry Costa, Ph.D., Director and Senior Lecturer Center for Autism and Early Childhood Mental Health College of Education and Human Services Montclair State University, and Clinical Assistant Professor, Psychiatry, UMDNJ- New Jersey Medical School

• DIR/Floortime Discussions:
• "Hello, My Name Is”—Creating a Child’s Individual Profile from a Child’s Perspective
• Brief Bio