Helping Neurodivergent Kids Thrive - 6 hours

To access the discount form for registering for multiple workshops or participants, please click here.

When & Where:

• Date: Friday, April 10, 2026
  • If you cannot attend this workshop on 4/10, you can pre-register for the on-demand version here: https://www.theknowledgetree.org/p/neurodivergent-...
• Time: 10:30am – 5:30pm Eastern Time
• CE Hours Included: 6 (please see below for details)
• Location: Live Interactive Webinar (“Synchronous”) on Zoom
• Investment: $140 before Friday, March 27th at 5:00pm Eastern Time, $160 after
• Presented by: Brandon Browne, LPC (see bio below)
• Workshop Recording: A recording of this workshop will be available to review for 60 days, and should be available within two weeks of the live presentation. However, participants must attend live to receive the "Synchronous" CE Certificate.
• Instruction Level: Intermediate
• Target Audience: Psychologists, Counselors, Social Workers, Marriage & Family Therapists

Educational Objectives:

After completing this workshop in its entirety, you will be able to:

• Describe the core traits, developmental needs, and common co-occurring challenges experienced by neurodivergent children, and discuss how understanding these foundations enhances diagnostic clarity, therapeutic empathy, and effective collaboration with parents.
• Explain the neurobiological, sensory, and executive-function factors that shape behavior in neurodivergent kids, and identify clinical strategies—including psychoeducation, reframing, and environmental supports—that help parents interpret behavior more accurately and reduce overwhelm.
• Identify how emotional regulation challenges, big feelings, and nervous-system sensitivity manifest across neurotypes, and describe interventions that strengthen co-regulation, promote felt safety, and build adaptive coping skills in children.
• Assess the interaction between neurodivergence and family dynamics—including communication patterns, stress cycles, and parental neurodivergence—and apply systemic, whole-family approaches that support healthier rhythms and relational functioning.
• Apply evidence-informed parent-coaching strategies—including collaborative problem-solving, sensory-informed adaptations, and strengths-based skill-building—to help parents respond effectively to challenging moments and support their child’s development.
• Utilize multidisciplinary and developmentally sensitive interventions—including environmental structuring, emotional-regulation skills training, school collaboration, and individualized supports—in order to enhance treatment planning and improve outcomes for neurodivergent children and their families.

Workshop Description:

Course Outline:

• SECTION ONE — Foundations: Core Traits, Needs, and Co-Occurring Challenges (60 mins)
  • Learning objectives (covers all points in this section):
    • State the course purpose and describe how a neurodevelopmental foundation supports diagnostic clarity, therapeutic empathy, and parent collaboration.
    • Define neurodiversity (population-level variation) and neurodivergence (individual-level minority neurotype descriptor), and explain the shift from deficit models to context-sensitive, strengths-based care.
    • Explain a transdiagnostic neurodevelopmental framework, including why overlap occurs and how profiles differ in pattern/driver across conditions.
    • Identify shared trait domains (EF, emotion regulation, sensory processing, social communication, motor planning, spiky profiles) and describe why comorbidity is common, and profiles are rarely “pure.”
    • Describe asynchronous development and explain why chronological age can overestimate functional capacity and why trajectories are modifiable with support.
    • Identify key developmental needs across emotional, cognitive/learning, sensory, social, and adaptive/daily living domains.
    • List common co-occurring challenges to screen for (anxiety, ADHD, learning differences, emotion regulation difficulties, sleep disruption) and explain implications for assessment/treatment planning.
    • Differentiate neurodevelopmental skill differences from “noncompliance” by analyzing context, demand, transitions, and sensory load.
    • Use non-blaming, shared language to build a collaborative formulation with parents (“what makes sense about this child in this context?”).
  • Sub-points (content to teach):
    • Title/Framing: Understanding Neurodivergent Children (diagnostic clarity, empathy, parent collaboration)
    • Neurodivergence vs. neurodiversity; person–environment mismatch; strengths-based, context-sensitive care
    • Transdiagnostic framework: shared domains, distinct profiles; comorbidity; spiky cognitive profiles
    • Asynchronous development: IQ vs adaptive functioning; variability; modifiable trajectories
    • Developmental needs across domains: emotional, cognitive/learning, sensory, social, adaptive/daily living
    • Co-occurring challenges: anxiety, ADHD, learning differences, emotion regulation, sleep/fatigue (as relevant)
    • Diagnostic clarity: context/demand analysis; avoid surface-only interpretations; assess profiles not labels
    • Empathy + parent collaboration: non-moralizing language; shared formulation; transition to behavior drivers
• SECTION TWO — Behavior Drivers + Parent Interpretation: Neurobiology, Sensory Processing, and Executive Function (60 mins)
  • Learning objectives (covers all points in this section):
    • Explain why neurodivergent behavior is often misunderstood and describe behavior as communicationrather than character.
    • Summarize high-level neurobiological foundations (development/connectivity differences; neurotransmitter systems as commonly discussed) and explain why reasoning access decreases during overload.
    • Describe stress response/autonomic reactivity (fight/flight/freeze/shutdown), including faster activation, slower return to baseline, and common triggers (sensory input, novelty, cognitive demand).
    • Differentiate sensory over-responsivity and under-responsivity, and explain how sensory discomfort can present as “behavior problems.”
    • Define executive functions and identify common EF challenges (initiation, working memory, transitions/time awareness, impulse control under demand).
    • Apply an integrated model (sensory load + EF demand + stress state) to explain escalation cycles and parent/child experience.
    • Deliver parent psychoeducation that shifts “won’t” to “can’t yet,” connects stress to behavior, and prioritizes skill-building over compliance.
    • Teach parent-facing reframes and language that separate intent from impact and reduce shame/blame.
    • Recommend environmental supports that reduce load and increase access (routines/visuals, simplified instructions, transition cues, movement opportunities).
    • Identify strategies clinicians reinforce to reduce parental overwhelm (pattern tracking, seasonal expectation shifts, parent recovery, collaboration, progress markers).
  • Sub-points (content to teach):
    • Why behavior is misunderstood; discipline models missing root causes; stress amplification
    • Neurobiological foundations (high-level): state shifts, reduced reasoning access in overload
    • Autonomic reactivity: fight/flight/freeze/shutdown; accumulated stress; triggers
    • Sensory processing differences: over-/under-responsivity; sensory load → fatigue/rigidity/irritability
    • Executive function: what it impacts; uneven development; stress effects; common EF challenges
    • Integrated “systems collide” model: why children look oppositional/lazy; escalation cycles
    • Parent psychoeducation: normalize differences; stress–behavior link; skill-building frame
    • Reframing language parents can use; developmental vs moral interpretations
    • Environmental supports: routines/visuals, reduce sensory load, simplify demands, transition warnings, movement
    • Reducing overwhelm: identify patterns, adjust expectations, parent regulation/recovery, track progress markers
    • Key takeaways + transition to emotional regulation interventions
• SECTION THREE — Emotional Regulation Interventions: Felt Safety, Co-Regulation, and Coping Skill-Building (60 mins)
  • Learning objectives (covers all points in this section):
    • Explain emotional regulation as a developmental, relationship-supported skill rather than willpower.
    • Describe nervous-system sensitivity and “big feelings” (baseline arousal differences, heightened cue sensitivity, faster activation, slower recovery, feelings outpacing language/reasoning).
    • Identify how regulation challenges present (meltdown/shutdown/flooding; aggression/withdrawal/rigidity; mood shifts; stuckness; post-episode exhaustion/shame).
    • Compare common regulation profiles across neurotypes (ADHD impulsivity/rapid escalation; autism cumulative sensory/social load; anxiety hypervigilance; highly sensitive deep processing/reactivity).
    • Define felt safety and explain how tone, posture, and presence support regulation before skill-building.
    • Describe co-regulation as the foundation for self-regulation and explain why repair matters more than perfection.
    • Demonstrate in-the-moment co-regulation strategies (slow environment, name emotions without amplifying, regulate through proximity/voice/rhythm, stay present without fixing).
    • Plan “outside the moment” coping skill teaching (teach when calm; body-based first; notice early signs; reinforce effort).
    • Select coping skills that match nervous-system needs (movement/pressure/rhythm, developmentally adapted breathing/grounding, sensory tools as supports, visual/concrete options).
    • Anticipate common adult pitfalls (expecting logic during dysregulation, over-teaching in the moment, escalating in response) and plan corrective clinician coaching.
  • Sub-points (content to teach):
    • Regulation as developmental/relational; “borrowed” regulation from caregivers
    • Nervous-system sensitivity + big feelings: intensity/speed; language lag during overwhelm
    • How challenges show up: meltdowns/shutdowns, rigid thinking, shame/exhaustion after episodes
    • Differences across neurotypes (ADHD, autism, anxiety, highly sensitive profiles)
    • Felt safety: conveyed through presence; safety precedes skill-building
    • Co-regulation foundation: modeling calm, repair, and connection vs. consequences during overload
    • In-the-moment co-regulation strategies
    • Skill-building outside crisis: body-based regulation, early warning signs, reinforce effort
    • Coping skills matched to development/neurotype; sensory tools as supports
    • Co- to self-regulation progression; expected regression under stress; adult pitfalls
    • Key takeaways + transition to family systems
• SECTION FOUR — Family Systems: Dynamics, Stress Cycles, and Whole-Family Support (60 mins)
  • Learning objectives (covers all points in this section):
    • Explain families as interconnected systems where nervous systems influence one another and symptoms can reflect system strain.
    • Describe how multiple neurotypes can co-occur in families and how overlapping sensory/emotional/EF needs shape adaptations.
    • Identify communication patterns common in neurodivergent families (high emotion/low clarity cycles, intent–impact mismatch, verbal processing differences).
    • Map common stress cycles (child dysregulation → parent stress → reactive response; repeated crises without recovery; burnout; short-term fixes reinforcing strain).
    • Assess the impact of parental neurodivergence (EF strain, sensory overload, shame/self-blame) on consistency and emotional bandwidth.
    • Explain emotional contagion/co-escalation vs co-regulation, including how repairs get delayed or skipped.
    • Design whole-family supports: shared rhythms/routines, transition planning, recovery time, predictability without rigidity.
    • Implement family communication and attachment supports (slow conversations, concrete language/visuals, safe repair routines, role adjustments to match capacity).
    • Choose systemic clinical interventions (psychoeducation, cycle mapping, coaching co-regulation/repair) and define progress markers (reduced intensity, faster recovery, improved emotional safety, clearer expectations).
  • Sub-points (content to teach):
    • Families as systems; nervous system interdependence
    • Neurodivergence in family context; overlap of needs; stress reshaping patterns
    • Communication patterns: misunderstanding-driven escalation; processing differences
    • Stress cycles: burnout, accumulated fatigue, crisis without recovery
    • Parental neurodivergence: EF strain, sensory overload, shame/self-blame
    • Nervous systems syncing: emotional contagion, co-escalation, delayed repair
    • Whole-family regulation/rhythms: routines, transitions, recovery, predictability
    • Support communication/roles/attachment: concrete language, visuals, safe repair, capacity-based responsibilities
    • Systemic interventions + measuring progress; transition to parent coaching
• SECTION FIVE — Parent Coaching: Collaborative Problem-Solving, Sensory-Informed Adaptations, Strengths-Based Skill Building (60 mins)
  • Learning objectives (covers all points in this section):
    • Explain the purpose of parent coaching as capacity-building (not compliance) and its role in reducing crises and improving generalization across settings.
    • Identify evidence-informed coaching principles (collaborative/relational > punitive, guided practice, regulation before reasoning, consistency over intensity).
    • Describe the Collaborative Problem-Solving (CPS) model as unmet-needs focused, neutrally defined, flexible, and revisable.
    • Demonstrate the key CPS steps: empathy/child perspective, adult concerns, joint brainstorming, testing/revising solutions.
    • Apply CPS across time (not just “in the moment”): stabilize regulation, use brief support language during incidents, return to problem-solving after safety is restored.
    • Integrate sensory-informed adaptations using the child’s sensory profile to reduce load and adapt environments rather than pushing endurance.
    • Implement strengths-based skill building: leverage interests/natural abilities, incremental skill steps, and reinforce effort over perfection.
    • Coach parents through setbacks: normalize regression, treat setbacks as data, adjust expectations/supports, reduce comparison/self-blame, coordinate caregivers, protect recovery time.
    • Identify indicators of effective coaching (reduced intensity/duration, increased parent clarity/calm, improved engagement/flexibility, stronger connection).
  • Sub-points (content to teach):
    • Role of parent coaching; parents as agents of change; skills generalize
    • Coaching principles: collaborative, guided practice, regulation precedes reasoning, consistency
    • CPS overview: unmet needs, neutral problem definition, flexible solutions
    • CPS steps: empathy → adult concerns → brainstorm → test/revise
    • CPS across time: postpone problem-solving during dysregulation; revisit after repair
    • Sensory-informed adaptations + strengths-based skill building
    • Setbacks/confidence: regression as expected; setbacks as data; caregiver coordination; recovery time
    • Indicators of effective coaching + transition to treatment planning
• SECTION SIX — Treatment Planning + Multidisciplinary Supports: Developmentally Sensitive, Integrated Care (60 mins)
  • Learning objectives (covers all points in this section):
    • Explain why multidisciplinary care matters for neurodivergent children (multi-domain needs; coordination improves outcomes; unified messaging reduces confusion).
    • Apply developmental sensitivity by matching interventions to developmental stage (not chronological age), accounting for uneven skill emergence and nonlinear progress.
    • Construct an integrated treatment plan that combines: environmental structuring (Section Two), regulation skills training outside crisis (Section Three), parent coaching for generalization (Section Five), whole-family fit/rhythms (Section Four), and evolving individualized supports.
    • Collaborate with schools by identifying mismatch points and using shared language to improve consistency across settings.
    • Recommend practical school-based supports (IEP/504 accommodations, sensory breaks/movement, modified workload, transition supports, home–school communication).
    • Clarify multidisciplinary roles (clinician, OT, educators, medical providers) and implement coordination strategies to align goals and reduce conflicting advice.
    • Define meaningful outcomes (reduced distress, improved flexibility/participation, stronger family functioning) and anticipate common barriers (resources, fragmentation, burnout, compliance overemphasis).
    • Synthesize a clinician roadmap from assessment to sustained outcomes across all six sections and state key course takeaways.
  • Sub-points (content to teach):
    • Why multidisciplinary care matters: unified messaging
    • Developmental sensitivity: stage vs age; uneven domains; nonlinear progress
    • Integrated treatment plan pulling prior sections together
    • School collaboration/advocacy; mismatch reduction; shared language
    • Practical school supports: IEP/504, sensory breaks, workload modifications, transitions, communication
    • Roles + coordination: clinician, OT, educators, medical; align goals/share observations
    • Outcomes + barriers: participation, flexibility, family functioning; time/resources, fragmentation, burnout, compliance focus
    • Closing integration: clinician roadmap (Sections One–Six)
    • Final key takeaways (development + context; stress/sensory/EF drivers; felt safety/co-regulation; whole-family + multidisciplinary alignment)

Workshop Schedule (Eastern Time):

• 10:00am - 10:30am | Sign-In and Welcome
• 10:30am - 12:00pm | Session
• 12:00pm - 12:10pm | Break
• 12:10pm - 1:40pm | Session
• 1:40pm - 2:20pm | Lunch Break
• 2:20pm - 3:50pm | Session
• 3:50pm - 4:00pm | Break
• 4:00pm - 5:30pm | Session
• 5:30pm | Continuing Education Certificates Available

Presented by: Brandon Browne, LPC

Brandon Browne, MA, LPC, is a Licensed Professional Counselor since 2009 and a Certified PEERS® for Adolescents Provider. He has devoted his career to helping individuals, couples, and families navigate life’s challenges with resilience and compassion. His clinical expertise includes ADHD, autism spectrum presentations, trauma, marriage and relational dynamics, and ketamine-assisted psychotherapy, with a focus on integrative approaches that address both mental and physical health. Brand is the Owner and Clinical Director of Mind & Body Christian Health Group in Kennesaw, Georgia.

In addition to his clinical work, Brandon is a seasoned workshop presenter and podcast guest, known for making complex mental health topics accessible and practical for clinicians. From 2009 to 2015, he served in youth and counseling leadership at Eagle’s Landing Christian Counseling and has since continued to lead a multidisciplinary team of healthcare professionals at Mind & Body Christian Health Group. He is the co-author of The Whole Self ADHD Guide: Cultivating Focus, Connection, and Joy (with Brittany Browne) and the author of Mind & Body: Christian Health Group Therapy Guide.

In this workshop, Brandon brings together his extensive experience to illuminate the realities of rejection-sensitive dysphoria across ADHD and autism, offering research-informed insights and strategies to strengthen emotional regulation, trauma recovery, and relational well-being.

6 Core CE Hours Included - Details by License Type Below:

• PSYCHOLOGISTS: The Knowledge Tree, A Summit Professional Education Company is approved by the American Psychological Association to sponsor continuing education for psychologists. The Knowledge Tree, A Summit Professional Education Company maintains responsibility for this program and its content. For more detailed information on the current CE ruling in Georgia, or if you are licensed in another state or country, please click here.
• COUNSELORS: The Knowledge Tree, A Summit Professional Education Company has been approved by the National Board for Certified Counselors (NBCC) as an Approved Continuing Education Provider (ACEP), ACEP No. 7153. Programs that do not qualify for NBCC credit are clearly identified. The Knowledge Tree, A Summit Professional Education Company is solely responsible for all aspects of the programs. Please click here for more detailed information.
• SOCIAL WORKERS: TKT has applied for approval for this workshop through the Georgia Society for Clinical Social Work (GSCSW). If you are licensed in another state or country, please click here for more detailed information.
• MARRIAGE & FAMILY THERAPISTS: TKT has applied for approval for this workshop through the Georgia Association for Marriage & Family Therapy (GAMFT). If you are licensed in another state or country, please click here for more detailed information.

We are an approved vendor for the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs for easy reimbursement of educational expenses for VA employees.