We’ll start by explaining the degree of overlap between neurodiversity and gender diversity (spoiler alert: it’s considerable!), and why it makes sense to talk about them together. Then we’ll explore best practices for supporting students who present as neuro- or gender-diverse.

We’ll talk about gender dysphoria and gender euphoria, and the ways gender-affirming medical care can impact your students’ training. We’ll explore gender-affirming practices for running classes and workshops. You’ll learn easy ways to practice someone’s pronouns (you can practice this? yep!), and how to create norms in your classes around respectful use of pronouns. We’ll talk about best practices for supporting gender expression and gender diversity in kids and youth as well as adults.

We’ll also talk about how neurodiversity can show up differently in kids classes and adult classes, and how to support neurodivergent folks of all ages. For kids, we’ll explore ways to support the compulsive spinners, wanderers, talkers, and other neurodivergent types in your classes. For adults, we’ll talk about the ways those same traits can show up in a more subtle ways, and how to create a supportive and affirming environment with appropriate challenges for all of your students. You’ll learn to identify a variety of common neurodivergent traits as they tend to manifest in martial arts and self-defense classes. We’ll learn about “stimming” — what it does, why they do it, and how to introduce pro-social alternatives to stimming behaviors so they don’t disrupt classes. We’ll explore activities and tools for supporting younger folks with sensory difficulties, and talk about what norms and rules to enforce and what to let go.

Bring: n/a

Wear:  comfortable clothes