Supportable Solutions

04/06/2026

Communication fluctuates.

A student might use speech in the morning…
and need gestures, AAC, or silence later in the day.

That’s not regression.
That’s the nervous system.

All ways of communicating are valid.

Our job is to notice, honor, and respond - right where they are.

04/04/2026

Join us for a virtual book club focused on Becoming a Trauma-Informed Restorative Educator.

This four-week series offers a dedicated space to engage with the text and connect with others through guided discussion.

The final session will include a live Q&A with the authors!

Tuesdays, April 14 – May 5
4:00–4:45 PM CT | Zoom

Register here: https://supportablesolutions.com/book-clubs/

03/26/2026

Zero seclusion and restraint incidents. In 50 school days.

A non-speaking autistic middle schooler went from 7 seclusion and restraint incidents in 50 school days to zero in the next 50.

Major behavior incidents dropped 20%.

Documented dysregulation dropped 90%.

Following consultation and implementation support, environmental supports were increased and the adults around this student shifted how they interacted and responded. And so did the data!

The focus was not on changing the student.

03/25/2026

🌊 That behavior you’re seeing? It’s a wave and you can learn to read it.

When a student is dysregulated, they’re moving through a stress response. The Wave of Distress resource helps you identify exactly what that looks like and what to actually do about it.

Sign up for the Supportable Solutions email list and get this FREE 23-page PDF instantly!

Inside you’ll find tools to:
✅ Recognize where a student is in their wave of distress

✅ Map out calming and co-regulation strategies that meet their actual needs

✅ Support staff AND caregivers to respond not react

This isn’t about managing behavior. It’s about understanding it. 👇

Sign up at the link:

Join our mailing list for occasional updates and resources for families and educators including books, articles, videos, courses and more!

03/17/2026

Not every difficult moment needs an office discipline referral.

Research consistently shows that ODRs disproportionately impact students of color and disabled students - often for subjective behaviors like “disrespect” or “defiance” that are handled very differently for other students.

And while ODRs don’t always result in exclusionary outcomes, the research is clear that exclusionary discipline is linked to lower academic achievement, higher dropout rates, and greater involvement in the juvenile justice system.

This tool is a pause button. 🛑

Save these and share them with an educator who needs it. 👇

03/15/2026

Last week a kiddo wrote a swear word on his paper mid-session.

My first instinct? He’s upset. We were working on an anger hierarchy so it made total sense.

But instead of reacting, I got curious.

“Are you mad right now?” Nope.
“Why did you write that?” …He was trying to be funny. 😅

If I had redirected or corrected him, he might have escalated or shut down completely.

Instead I got to use that information AS information, and explain: “Hey, most people who saw that would think you were really angry, not that you were joking.”

That’s not a behavior problem. That’s a communication misunderstanding.

Get curious before you get reactive. Every single time.

03/11/2026

Wisconsin friends the Alliance Against Seclusion and Restraint has created a dashboard to help us look at data reported by DPI - I have found it makes the data so much more accessible!!! Check it out.

An analytical platform designed to monitor and visualize student restraint and seclusion data across Wisconsin school districts to promote safer educational environments.

03/10/2026

Session prep today… Minecraft style. 🎮

Working with a student on interoception, so we’re starting with a Head Check-In to notice how their head feels - clear, foggy, cloudy, heavy, buzzy, throbbing, dizzy… or their own word.

There’s no right or wrong answer, just what’s true for them.

Connecting body awareness to something a student already loves can make all the difference.

Minecraft meets interoception.

Have you tried connecting interoception to a student’s special interest? What worked?

03/06/2026

When teams get curious about the specific why behind a behavior, the focus shifts.

Instead of trying to change the child, we start looking at the task, the expectation, and the supports around them.

That shift opens up far more possibilities for support.

03/05/2026

When we believe a student “just won’t do it,” it’s easy to feel stuck… and frustrated.

Because if a student simply won’t, there’s not much we can do.

But when we pause and ask “What might be getting in the way?”, everything changes.

Curiosity opens the door to possibilities - scaffolds, supports, and new ways to help students succeed.

Sometimes the most powerful shift in supporting behavior isn’t a strategy.

It’s getting curious.

03/01/2026

What if the function of behavior isn’t what we’ve been taught?

What if “attention-seeking” is connection-seeking?
What if “escape” is overload?
What if behavior is an adaptive response to stress - not manipulation?

Last week and again this week, I’m in Illinois training teams on reframing the way we see behavior, aligning practice with neuroscience and neurodiversity-affirming principles.

When we see behavior differently, we respond differently.

And that changes everything.

02/22/2026

If you’re struggling with the traditional FBA and BIP process, check out The Why Toolkit®.

The Why Toolkit® is a structured tool that helps teams assess behavior and build a support plan using a more updated lens.

It supports teams to:

• Rethink
• Reframe
• Reimagine

This process is not rooted in traditional behaviorism and does not reduce behavior to “escape” or “seeking attention.”

It is trauma-sensitive, neurodiversity-affirming, and aligned with what we know now about behavior, stress, and the nervous system.

If you’re ready for an approach that reflects current understanding, you can learn more here:

https://supportablesolutions.com/thewhytoolkit/