Behaviorally Speaking

On this episode, Angela and Kristin are joined by Vicki Westra, the founder of Autism Shifts and mother of a young adult woman with autism. Vicki shares her perspective on parenting stress, how to tackle it by being intentional and aware, and the power of harnessing sources of support. Vicki explains how an acceptance of her daughter has improved her outlook on life and expanded into a career supporting the neurodiversity community with their employment goals. Although not always easy, getting into what Vicki calls “the green zone, ” essentially a happier place with your family, is a goal we think is pretty great!Angela Nelson, MS, BCBA, and Kristin Bandi, MA, BCBA, are Board Certified Behavior Analysts with expertise on human behavior and child development. They spend their days working with parents and caregivers of both typically developing children as well as children with learning, social, and behavioral challenges, or developmental disabilities. This podcast is brought to you by Whil, A Rethink Division. If you need support as a parent or caregiver of a child, we encourage you to ask your Human Resources team if Whil’s a part of your employer-provided benefits.  Whil, A Rethink Division reaches millions of lives globally through partnerships with top organizations and Fortune 1,000 companies.

On this episode, Angela and Kristin are joined by two guests to discuss the very important topic that families should be talking about - inclusion. Nicole Kelly is a well-known disability speaker and openly shares her lived experiences as a person with a disability. Danny Jordan shares his journey as an author of the award-winning series, The Capables, a TV producer, and a dad raising a toddler with a disability. Together, Angela and Kristin get a chance to ask some deep questions many parents wonder about but don’t know where to get the answers around disability and building inclusivity.Angela Nelson, MS, BCBA, and Kristin Bandi, MA, BCBA, are Board Certified Behavior Analysts with expertise on human behavior and child development. They spend their days working with parents and caregivers of both typically developing children as well as children with learning, social, and behavioral challenges, or developmental disabilities. This podcast is brought to you by Whil, A Rethink Division. If you need support as a parent or caregiver of a child, we encourage you to ask your Human Resources team if Whil’s a part of your employer-provided benefits.  Whil, A Rethink Division reaches millions of lives globally through partnerships with top organizations and Fortune 1,000 companies.

On this episode, Angela and Kristin discuss the importance of helping kids set achievable goals. They walk parents through how to set SMART goals with their kids, when to talk about goal setting, and remembering who’s goal it really is. They share ideas on how to successfully achieve goals through breaking them down, making them visual, and remembering it’s ok to revise them.  They highlight that barriers may pop up and give insights on how to course correct.Angela Nelson, MS, BCBA, and Kristin Bandi, MA, BCBA, are Board Certified Behavior Analysts with expertise on human behavior and child development. They spend their days working with parents and caregivers of both typically developing children as well as children with learning, social, and behavioral challenges, or developmental disabilities. This podcast is brought to you by Whil, A Rethink Division. If you need support as a parent or caregiver of a child, we encourage you to ask your Human Resources team if Whil’s a part of your employer-provided benefits.  Whil, A Rethink Division reaches millions of lives globally through partnerships with top organizations and Fortune 1,000 companies.

On this episode, Angela and Kristin discuss how to teach time management and prioritization skills to kids and teens. They walk parents through ideas such as the Time Detective (i.e., how much time you think it takes you to get ready for school vs. how much time it actually does), breaking large tasks into more manageable ones to prevent procrastination, and using those handy-dandy visual supports to support organization. They also infuse some variations of tips for different age ranges, including how to start teaching the first stages of time management to toddlers and how to promote independence for teens so they can make it to school on time! Angela Nelson, MS, BCBA, and Kristin Bandi, MA, BCBA, are Board Certified Behavior Analysts with expertise on human behavior and child development. They spend their days working with parents and caregivers of both typically developing children as well as children with learning, social, and behavioral challenges, or developmental disabilities. This podcast is brought to you by Whil, A Rethink Division. If you need support as a parent or caregiver of a child, we encourage you to ask your Human Resources team if Whil’s a part of your employer-provided benefits.  Whil, A Rethink Division reaches millions of lives globally through partnerships with top organizations and Fortune 1,000 companies.

On this episode, Angela and Kristin talk about one of those frustrating parenting scenarios that goes something like this: “Jordan, it’s time to start homework….Jordan, you need to start your homework…Jordan, get going on homework!!” Starting tasks, especially those which are non-preferred, can be hard for kids (and parents too). Homework, chores, and many other things we need our kids to do can cause stress for the family. Angela and Kristin talk about what might be causing this “not getting started” behavior and strategies to address it. Angela Nelson, MS, BCBA, and Kristin Bandi, MA, BCBA, are Board Certified Behavior Analysts with expertise on human behavior and child development. They spend their days working with parents and caregivers of both typically developing children as well as children with learning, social, and behavioral challenges, or developmental disabilities. This podcast is brought to you by Whil, A Rethink Division. If you need support as a parent or caregiver of a child, we encourage you to ask your Human Resources team if it’s part of your employer-provided benefits.  Whil, A Rethink Division reaches millions of lives globally through partnerships with top organizations and Fortune 1,000 companies.

On this episode, Angela and Kristin are joined by 3 parents of tweens and teens to discuss all things pertaining to parenting teens. Angela and Kristin ask their guests questions to gain insight on the joys, wins, and challenges with this age group.Angela Nelson, MS, BCBA, and Kristin Bandi, MA, BCBA, are Board Certified Behavior Analysts with Rethink Benefits.  They spend their days working with parents and caregivers of children with learning, social, and behavioral challenges, or developmental disabilities.  This podcast is brought to you by Rethink Benefits.  If you need support as a parent or caregiver of a child, we encourage you to visit www.rethinkbenefits.com to learn more about the program.  Not sure if you have access to Rethink?  Ask your Human Resources team if the program is part of your employer-provided benefits.  Rethink reaches millions of lives globally through partnerships with top organizations and Fortune 1,000 companies.

On this episode, Angela and Kristin talk about two hot topics in school and parenting- growth mindset and resiliency.  They break down what each concept is and give lots of tips on how to teach these skills to both children and teens.Angela Nelson, MS, BCBA, and Kristin Bandi, MA, BCBA, are Board Certified Behavior Analysts with Rethink Benefits.  They spend their days working with parents and caregivers of children with learning, social, and behavioral challenges, or developmental disabilities.  This podcast is brought to you by Rethink Benefits.  If you need support as a parent or caregiver of a child, we encourage you to visit www.rethinkbenefits.com to learn more about the program.  Not sure if you have access to Rethink?  Ask your Human Resources team if the program is part of your employer-provided benefits.  Rethink reaches millions of lives globally through partnerships with top organizations and Fortune 1,000 companies.

On this episode, Angela is joined again by special guest, Jennifer Wilkens, a Board Certified Behavior Analyst, to talk about the transition back to school.  Angela and Jen will dive into how to prepare kids socially, emotionally, and academically for being back on campus with peers and educators again.  They will also provide reminders to get to know state, local, and school guidelines around Covid-19 safety as well as tips for getting back into those school routines. Angela Nelson, MS, BCBA, and Jen Wilkens, MA, BCBA, are Board Certified Behavior Analysts with Rethink Benefits.  They spend their days working with parents and caregivers of children with learning, social, and behavioral challenges, or developmental disabilities.  This podcast is brought to you by Rethink Benefits.  If you need support as a parent or caregiver of a child, we encourage you to visit www.rethinkbenefits.com to learn more about the program.  Not sure if you have access to Rethink?  Ask your Human Resources team if the program is part of your employer-provided benefits.  Rethink reaches millions of lives globally through partnerships with top organizations and Fortune 1,000 companies.

On this episode, Angela is joined by special guest Jennifer Wilkens, a fellow Board Certified Behavior Analyst, to talk about understanding how habits form, developing healthy habits and creating a framework for them. Angela and Jen will discuss some elements of social/emotional learning, including stress management, goal setting and resilience.You’ll hear ideas for setting goals and creating reward systems for healthy habits and learn how to implement them in your own home.Angela Nelson, MS, BCBA, and Jennifer Wilkens, MA, SpEd, BCBA, are Board Certified Behavior Analysts with Rethink Benefits. They spend their days working with parents and caregivers of children with learning, social or behavioral challenges, or developmental disabilities.This podcast is brought to you by Rethink Benefits. If you need support as a parent or caregiver of a child, we encourage you to visit rethinkbenefits.com to learn more about the program. Not sure if you have access to Rethink? Ask your Human Resources team if the program is part of your employer-provided benefits. Rethink reaches millions of lives globally through partnerships with top organizations and Fortune 1,000 companies.

On this episode, Angela and Kristin talk about siblings. They cover the all-too-common fighting, addressing what contributes to fighting and when – or if – to draw the line. Their practical, easy-to-implement advice is geared toward helping promote good, strong relationships.You’ll hear ideas for listening without taking sides, giving siblings the opportunity to resolve their own conflicts and proactively praising positive interactions.Angela Nelson, MS, BCBA, and Kristin Bandi, MA, BCBA, are Board Certified Behavior Analysts with Rethink Benefits. They spend their days working with parents and caregivers of children with learning, social or behavioral challenges, or developmental disabilities. This podcast is brought to you by Rethink Benefits. If you need support as a parent or caregiver of a child, we encourage you to visit rethinkbenefits.com to learn more about the program. Not sure if you have access to Rethink? Ask your Human Resources team if the program is part of your employer-provided benefits. Rethink reaches millions of lives globally through partnerships with top organizations and Fortune 1,000 companies.