PHILOSOPHY
We human beings need to get outside, breathe slowly and connect deeply during the day and sleep soundly at night. Fueling our bodies, minds and souls with simple, unprocessed foods, all weather outdoor
unstructured play, proper breathing habits and sound sleep allows us to heal and grow from the cradle to the grave. We believe that shoring up these areas must not only preclude, but perhaps replace all other developmental interventions. Nature loves diversity and we truly treasure neurodiversity in our practice.
INDOOR/OUTDOOR SERVICES
(We always prefer/encourage outdoor!)
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Myofunctional Therapy
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Full and Half Day Nature Adventures
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Reeducation for screen addictions
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Wellness Coaching
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Breathing reeducation
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PROMPT therapy
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Child-directed intervention for autism
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Yoga classes and private lessons
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Speech and Language evaluation and therapy
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Strength based intervention
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Transition Services
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Whole Child Assessments
MISSION
To provide programs that celebrate neurodiversity, build on strengths, and focus on health, wellness and connection with self, community and nature.
Based on my experiences:
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practicing speech pathology since 1997
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raising two daughters
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growing up with a disabled sibling
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completing advance training in sleep, respiratory and feeding disorders and yoga
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participating in and developing outdoor education programs
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having a screen-free practice
I have come to realize that our first, and many times only, intervention in children's lives should center around wellness: healthy nourishment through sleep, breath, nutrition and time spent in nature. Once those things are in place, development can flourish, whatever that means for an individual. In our center, we focus on nature-based healing to allow development to take its natural course. In many cases, the healing requires intervention for the environment/community rather than the child.
Unstructured Nature Play
Both Jodi and Max have training in the Floortime approach to intervention and believe passionately in respectful, child-directed services for all children, particularly those with disabilities. We lead nature expeditions in the great outdoors and find that unstructured play allows children to build resilience and develop creativity, problem solving, initiation and negotiation skills among many other benefits.
MYOFUNCTIONAL THERAPY
Nature 120
What is Nature 120?
We are a group of educators and therapists who believe that children and adults thrive when they eat properly, breathe well, sleep soundly and engage nature in unstructured, open-ended, playful ways. We have been profoundly moved by our experiences with children from different racial, cultural, socio-economic and neurological backgrounds. There is a growing body of research that supports what we have seen. When we open up opportunities for children to play without imposed structure in a natural setting, and we mindfully insert minimal, simple exercises to sharpen awareness around eating and breathing, we see them effortlessly soften, heal, connect, learn and grow. It’s breathtaking to witness.
Here are additional resources speaking to the importance of spending time outdoors:
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-019-44097-3
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/06/190613095227.htm
Myofunctional therapy is the "neuromuscular re-education or re-patterning of the oral and facial muscles." The therapy includes facial and tongue exercises and behavior modification techniques to promote proper tongue position, improved breathing, chewing, and swallowing. https://aamsinfo.org.
Our therapist have training in oro-facial myology and provide myofunctional therapy under the supervision of Jodi who is a certified oro-facial myologist We also provide wellness coaching targeting sleep hygiene, postural and facial alignment and habit cessation/formation for health and wellness for children, adults and families. Jodi is currently training in Buteyko breath reeducation and John Barnes myofascial release techniques.
PROMPT THERAPY
PROMPT therapy was developed by Deborah Hayden (http://www.promptinstitute.com). Jodi received certification in this technique in 2008 and Max is currently working on his final certification project.
PROMPT (PROMPTs for Restructuring Oral Muscular Phonetic Targets) uses a system of tactile-kinesthetic facial prompts within a developmental framework to target coarticulation patterns with an emphasis on alignment and coordination of movement across spacial planes.