Neurominded

This first photo pretty much sums up the energy of the day! 💚

On Saturday, our Leanne had the absolute pleasure of delivering the keynote at the Central Great Southern Early Years Conference, inviting educators to reflect on the lens through which we view children, and how shifting that lens can shape the way we understand, respond to and ultimately support neurodivergent identities.

Such an incredible conference and such a fantastic opportunity for educators across the Great Southern to come together, connect, learn and share.

A huge thank you to everyone involved in organising such a brilliant day, and to all of the educators who joined Leanne for the keynote. It was pretty special to have so many passionate Educators in one room!

We’ve also loved hearing from and connecting with so many of you since Saturday - we’re very happy to have you as part of our growing Neurominded community.

Thanks for having us 💚

We’re looking forward to being part of this one! 🌱

Next month, our very own Gee van der Watt will be joining Larissa Muir from 12 Buckets for Breakfast Connect: Conversations about Neurodiversity – Supporting Every Child to Thrive.

Hosted by Communities for Children Mirrabooka in partnership with the City of Stirling, the morning will bring together local community leaders for conversations about neurodiversity in children, greater awareness, early support and the role strong community connections can play in supporting neurodivergent children and their families.

We love opportunities like this to keep conversations about neurodiversity happening beyond individual services and settings, and across the communities children and families are part of.

Thursday 22 October 2026
7:15am–9:00am (registration from 7am)
Hammersley Golf Club – The Sunny Social, Karrinyup

Bookings are open now - scan the QR code on the flyer to join us.

Just one week to go!

Our next Neurominded Early Learning Webinar, Supporting Neurodivergent Play, is coming up next Tuesday, 22 September.

We’ll explore the many ways neurodivergent children may use play to connect, regulate, explore and communicate; and challenge some of the assumptions we can unknowingly bring to children’s play.

We’re also very excited to welcome the door prize winners from the West Australian Association of Teacher Assistants Inc. - WAATA conference, who had the opportunity to choose between joining us for this session or our October webinar, The Power of Visual Supports. We can’t wait to have you join us! 💚

There’s still time to register if you’d like to come along - simply scan the QR code in the post.

Tuesday 22 September | 6:30–8:30pm AWST

What if we stopped asking neurodivergent children to play differently? 🌱

Our next Neurominded Early Learning Webinar explores Supporting Neurodivergent Play; looking beyond traditional ideas of what play should look like and considering the many ways neurodivergent children may use play to connect, regulate, explore and communicate.

We’ll unpack different expressions of play, challenge some of the assumptions we can unknowingly bring to children’s play, and explore how educators can create environments that genuinely support participation, autonomy and belonging.

💜 Supporting Neurodivergent Play
📅 Tuesday 22 September
⏰ 6:30pm–8:30pm AWST
💻 Online webinar

Perfect for early childhood educators, leaders and anyone wanting to deepen their understanding of neurodivergent children through a more affirming lens.

Bookings are now open - scan the QR code to register.

And as always, please feel free to share with a colleague or service who might benefit. 🌿

Sometimes our parenting sessions look a little like this. 💚

We talk a lot about connection, co-regulation, responding to what’s in front of us, and recognising that real life doesn’t always fit neatly around a workshop.

So when a little person needed some extra comfort mid-session, Leanne’s instincts kicked in; up she came, and the session carried on without missing a beat.

There’s something about this photo that captures a little of what we hope people feel when they come into a Neurominded space.

We get it. Life happens. Kids need us. And everyone is welcome.

What if we stopped asking neurodivergent children to play differently? 🌱

Our next Neurominded Early Learning Webinar explores Supporting Neurodivergent Play; looking beyond traditional ideas of what play should look like and considering the many ways neurodivergent children may use play to connect, regulate, explore and communicate.

We’ll unpack different expressions of play, challenge some of the assumptions we can unknowingly bring to children’s play, and explore how educators can create environments that genuinely support participation, autonomy and belonging.

💜 Supporting Neurodivergent Play
📅 Tuesday 22 September
⏰ 6:30pm–8:30pm AWST
💻 Online webinar

Perfect for early childhood educators, leaders and anyone wanting to deepen their understanding of neurodivergent children through a more affirming lens.

Bookings are now open - scan the QR code to register.

And as always, please feel free to share with a colleague or service who might benefit. 🌿

We’re coming to Albany! 🌿

We’re so excited to be heading to Albany this September to deliver two parent and carer workshops exploring emotional wellbeing in neurodivergent children and young people.

Across the day, Gee will be facilitating two sessions tailored to different stages of childhood and adolescence:

🌱 Supporting Your Neurodivergent Child’s Emotional Wellbeing
For parents and carers of preschool and primary school-aged children.

🌿 Supporting Emotional Wellbeing in Neurodivergent Young People
Exploring the teenage years through a neuro-affirming and strengths-based lens.

Both sessions will explore emotional wellbeing, regulation, connection and behaviour through a neuro-affirming lens, while sharing practical strategies that families can take into everyday life.

A huge thank you to Uplyft through Parenting Connection WA – Great Southern, for making these sessions possible and bringing us to the Great Southern.

📍 Albany | Thursday 17 September 2026
Bookings are essential, all the details and booking links are on the flyers.

If you know a parent, carer or family in the Albany/Great Southern region who may benefit, please share this with them or tag them below. We’d love to see them there. 💚

TOP TIP OF THE MONTH | Presume competence 🌱

What we see on the outside doesn’t always tell us what a child understands, knows or is capable of.

A child may communicate differently, need more processing time, find it difficult to demonstrate their learning, or participate in ways we don’t immediately recognise.

Presuming competence means starting from possibility, rather than limitation.

Try:
✨ Speaking to children, not about them when they’re present
✨ Giving enough time to process and respond
✨ Offering different ways to communicate, contribute and participate
✨ Avoiding assumptions based on speech, behaviour or support needs
✨ Asking, “What might this child understand that they haven’t yet been able to show me?”

Sometimes the most important shift isn’t changing the child or even the environment.

It’s changing what we assume is possible.

There is something so powerful in this reminder.

Our role isn’t to decide who children should become, but to create the conditions where they feel safe, valued and supported to discover that for themselves.
To notice what lights them up. To make space for difference. To listen to what they’re showing us about who they are and what they need.

Because when children are genuinely accepted for who they are, they don’t just participate; they thrive.

A beautiful reminder to keep making space for every child to unfold. 🌱

Disability rights aren’t an optional extra in inclusive practice, they’re an obligation.

From 1 August 2026, the Disability Standards for Education 2005 were extended to most early childhood education and care services, clarifying how existing obligations under the Disability Discrimination Act 1992 (DDA) apply across the sector.

For services, this means understanding not only the rights of children with disability, but the practical responsibility to identify barriers, make reasonable adjustments and support children to access and participate in education and care on the same basis as their peers.

And importantly, these aren’t entirely new expectations.
Inclusion, equity and diversity are already embedded throughout the National Quality Framework, National Quality Standard and Approved Learning Frameworks. The recent changes provide further clarity around the legal obligations that sit alongside good inclusive practice.

ACECQA has now released an excellent suite of free Disability Rights and Obligations resources, including a six-session Team Meeting Package that supports teams to:

• understand disability discrimination and their obligations
• critically reflect on current policies and practice
• identify barriers to access and participation
• consider reasonable adjustments
• develop actions for continuous improvement.

We strongly encourage early childhood leaders and teams to explore these resources.

And if your team is ready to move beyond understanding the requirements and into what inclusion actually looks like on the floor, Neurominded can help.

Through tailored professional learning, consultancy and capacity-building projects, we work alongside services to translate inclusive principles into practical, sustainable approaches that make sense for your children, families, educators and context 💜

Children with disability have the right to access and participate in education on the same basis as children without disability, including with reasonable adjustments where required.

The Disability Standards for Education clarify how you meet your existing obligations under the Disability Discrimination Act.

ACECQA has free resources to support you.

Find the 🔗in the first comment.

We’re looking forward to joining Connect and Access: Bridging Support in the Community this September 🌿

This free community event brings together local services, organisations and specialists to help neurodivergent individuals and their families better understand and connect with the supports available in their community.

Neurominded will be sharing a little about the supports available for children and families within early learning services, as well as our broader family support programs and services.

📅 Wednesday 16 September
⏰ 10am–12pm
📍 The Rise, Maylands

A great opportunity to hear about a range of local services, ask questions and learn more about the supports and pathways available.

Please share with anyone you think may benefit from coming along. 💛