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Together We Grow Calm Classrooms Start with Confident Teachers. We train the coaches and leaders who develop teachers.
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Together, we create the conditions where challenging behaviors decrease and children thrive.

10/18/2026

WE DID IT. ❤️

More than 1,000 people joined us LIVE today for Hitting, Biting, and Screaming… Oh My! and I am still taking it all in.

The engagement was off the charts. The chat was flying. And reading through the feedback afterward, I keep seeing the same messages come back:

❤️ Connection changes behavior.
🔎 Get curious about what’s underneath the behavior.
🧠 Regulation starts with us.

People are leaving saying they want to listen more, get on children’s level, change the environment instead of trying to “fix” the child, join the play, regulate themselves first, and connect before they correct.

THAT is why we do this work.

Because when we change the way we see behavior, we change the way we respond to children.

More than 1,000 people showed up live today ready to do that differently.

I am overwhelmed with gratitude. ❤️

Thank you for showing up for children. Thank you for showing up for educators. And thank you for being part of this movement to bring more connection, curiosity, and JOY back into early childhood.

This one felt special. ❤️

10/18/2026

🎉 REGISTRATION IS OFFICIALLY OPEN!

You've been asking, joining the waitlist, and waiting for this announcement... and it's finally here!

Our 2027 Behavior Coaching Certification is now open for registration!

This certification is designed specifically for early childhood directors, administrators, and leaders who coach teachers.

Because teachers are overwhelmed, challenging behaviors are everywhere, and leaders are spending WAY too much time putting out fires.

Over five live sessions, I'll teach you practical coaching strategies to help your teachers build confidence, navigate challenging behaviors, and solve classroom problems without constantly relying on you to step in.

📅 March 2 – April 27, 2027
💻 Five live Zoom sessions
🎓 Up to 12.5 leadership training hours
💛 Early-bird registration: $575 through January 31

Last year's certification SOLD OUT, and we only have 200 spots available this year!

I can't wait to welcome our next group of behavior coaches!

Comment COACH and I'll send you the registration link! 💛

Some days leave you tired in the very best way. ❤️Yesterday was one of those days.I spent the day with the team at Littl...
10/13/2026

Some days leave you tired in the very best way. ❤️

Yesterday was one of those days.

I spent the day with the team at Little Learners Children’s Academy in Chicago—educators, coaches, leaders, and directors from their four locations.

We began with one simple question:

What are you struggling with right now?

Hitting. Biting. Tantrums. Transitions. Big emotions. Children who “won’t listen.”

And underneath many of those questions were words we hear so often about children:

Manipulative. Defiant. Stubborn. Strong-willed.

That became our starting place.

Because when we change the lens through which we see a child, we begin to change how we respond to that child.

Instead of “How do I stop this behavior?” we can begin wondering:

What is this child communicating?
What is happening underneath the behavior?
What might this child need from me?

At the end of our three hours together, their takeaways said so much:

“Start connecting, stop correcting.”

“Connection before redirection.”

“I learned to be a brain detective.”

“I hear. I see. I understand.”

That’s the kind of shift that fills my cup. ❤️

Then in the afternoon, I spent time with a smaller group of leaders and coaches—including four members of my Behavior Coaching Academy whom I finally got to meet in person!

Our conversation shifted from children to adults.

How do we stop constantly putting out fires?

How do we empower teachers instead of rescuing them?

How do we move from telling someone what to do to helping them understand the WHY so they can take ownership of the change?

Different conversation. Same underlying principle:

Curiosity before judgment. Connection before correction. Empowerment instead of control.

These trips are tiring. But getting to witness an aha happen in real time—to see someone suddenly look at a child, a teacher, or their own role in a way they hadn’t considered before—is incredibly rewarding.

I am so grateful that I get to live my life’s purpose by serving others and helping create better experiences for children and the adults who care for them.

And I even squeezed in a hike by a beautiful lake with hundreds of Canadian geese. 🪿

Tired feet. Full heart. Very grateful. ❤️

Sometimes we just need to ask and listen. 💛An eight-year-old little girl was getting restless and distracted in class.He...
10/10/2026

Sometimes we just need to ask and listen. 💛

An eight-year-old little girl was getting restless and distracted in class.

Her teacher noticed.

But instead of immediately correcting the behavior or telling her to pay attention, she connected with her one-on-one and asked her what was going on.

And this little girl knew.

She shared that sometimes she doesn’t understand something, but she’s too shy to keep asking for help because she worries the teacher will get frustrated with her.

She shared that she was feeling anxious because tests were coming up.

And she shared that she knew she was getting distracted and was having a hard time focusing.

I was so struck by her self-awareness.

Sometimes I think we underestimate how much children know about what is happening inside of them. When we slow down, create a safe space, and ask the right questions, we give them the confidence to begin identifying what they’re feeling, what they’re struggling with, and what they might need.

And then we can actually help.

After listening to her, her teacher created this little resource specifically for her—with practical ideas for asking for help, preparing for tests, focusing in class, and remembering what she reads.

I loved it and asked if we could share it, because I thought perhaps another child, teacher, or parent might find it helpful too. 🌱

But for me, there’s an even bigger takeaway:

The restlessness was what we could see.
The conversation helped us understand what we couldn’t see.

Before we rush to correct a behavior, perhaps we can get curious.

Ask.

Listen.

Children may have so much more to tell us than we realize. ❤️

There’s something powerful about seeing what educators write down at the end of a training—the thing they want to rememb...
10/05/2026

There’s something powerful about seeing what educators write down at the end of a training—the thing they want to remember, try, or do differently. ❤️

Today I had the joy of spending time with the team at United Methodist at Caruth, an The National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) accredited program that continues to invest in the learning and growth of their educators.

We talked about challenging behaviors, the brain, and the lens through which we see children.

Words like defiant, stubborn, manipulative, or spoiled can quickly become labels.

But what happens when we replace the label with curiosity?

What is this behavior trying to communicate?

That was the shift I could see happening today.

And then I got to read their takeaways. 🌱

Things they want to try.
Things they want to remember.
Things they want to see differently.

That’s the part I love.

Because professional learning isn’t just about walking away with more information. It’s about walking back into the classroom seeing something differently—and doing something differently because of it.

One conversation. One shift. One brain at a time. ❤️

10/05/2026

Beyond the “What to Do” — Understanding the Why

“What do I do in the moment?”

It’s one of the biggest questions educators have when children’s behaviors feel challenging.

Stephanie invited me to work with their team hoping educators would walk away with tangible strategies they could actually use—and I love hearing that they did. ❤️

But she also shared something even bigger: understanding the WHY behind behavior and how the brain connects to what we see on the outside.

Because strategies matter.

But when we understand the why, we begin to see the child differently. 🌱

Thank you, Stephanie, for sharing what landed for you.

10/05/2026

What If We Got Curious About Behavior?

What if, instead of labeling a child’s behavior, we got curious about it?

After today’s staff training at United Methodist at Caruth, Director Libby shared one of her biggest takeaways: inspiring educators to pause, get curious, and wonder what a child’s behavior might be communicating.

This is the shift. ❤️

From judgment to curiosity.
From labeling to wondering.
From simply reacting to behavior to trying to understand it.

Thank you, Libby, for sharing what landed for you today. 🌱

We are officially LESS THAN TWO WEEKS AWAY! 🎉On October 18, we are getting together LIVE to talk about the challenging b...
10/05/2026

We are officially LESS THAN TWO WEEKS AWAY! 🎉

On October 18, we are getting together LIVE to talk about the challenging behaviors you are seeing every day: the hitting, biting, screaming, power struggles, and everything in between. 😅

And most importantly, we are talking about what you can actually DO.

You’ll leave with practical strategies to help you:

💛 Prevent challenging behaviors before they happen
💛 Respond effectively in the moment
💛 Understand what behavior is communicating
💛 Create calmer, more connected classrooms

Hitting, Biting, and Screaming... Oh My!

📅 October 18 | 2:00–3:30 PM CT
💻 LIVE on Zoom
🎓 FREE 90-minute PD Certificate for LIVE attendees
🎥 30-day access to the recording

And did I mention it is FREE?!

Comment FREE and I’ll send you the registration link. Register now and come join us!

Some speaking experiences stay with you. This was one of them. 💛What an honor to lead a breakout and deliver the closing...
10/01/2026

Some speaking experiences stay with you. This was one of them. 💛

What an honor to lead a breakout and deliver the closing keynote at Minnesota’s Got CLASS®, hosted by CEED at the University of Minnesota.

I was so impressed by the coaches in the room. The thoughtful questions, honest conversations, laughter, and willingness to look at their own practice made our time together so meaningful.

In the breakout, we explored: Are we opening a teacher’s thinking, or completing it for them? Sometimes our desire to help means we jump in with an answer before someone has had the chance to discover their own.

CLASS focuses on the quality of interactions between educators and our little humans. You can imagine how much that resonates with me. Relationships and connection are at the heart of learning, for children AND the adults supporting them.

And what a gorgeous setting! The Plymouth Community Center had such a beautiful hall and surroundings. Emily, Christina and the whole CEED team went all out with their hospitality and created such a welcoming space for learning. Thank you for taking such wonderful care of us and inviting me to be part of this day.

A walk and talk around the lake with a friend was an extra treat! 😊

I left feeling grateful and energized. Definitely a speaking highlight I’ll carry with me.

09/29/2026

If you needed to hear this today: your work matters. So very much. 💛

Every connection you make, every little hand you hold, every moment you spend helping a child feel safe, seen, and loved is shaping a developing brain.

What happens early in life lasts a lifetime.

So on the hard days, when you are tired and wondering if what you do really makes a difference, remember:

You are a brain architect. And you have a HUGE impact.

And if you could use a few more tools to support you in this incredibly important work, then comment TOOL and I’ll send you access to our Resource Library filled with practical resources for you and your classroom. 💛

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