Write to Thrive: Inspiring, Engaging, and Empowering Every Writer - August 15, 2026
Presentation 1: Inspiring Neurodiverse Learners to Love Writing: Practical, Trauma-Informed, Evidence-Aligned Approaches from 20 Years in the Field
Speaker: Amy Henderson
Description:
Writing is often taught as a performance. For many neurodiverse learners, that performance quickly becomes associated with pressure, correction, perfectionism, or shame. Over time, students may stop taking creative risks, lose trust in their own voice, or begin to believe they are “bad at writing.”
In this interactive workshop, writer and facilitator Amy Henderson shares trauma-informed, community-based writing practices developed over two decades of leading writing groups with neurodiverse teens, adults, unhoused populations, and individuals recovering from profound academic and emotional disconnection.
Rather than focusing first on grammar, structure, or output, Amy’s approach begins with nervous system regulation, psychological safety, and relational trust. Participants will learn how low-stakes writing structures can support executive functioning, emotional regulation, self-expression, and intrinsic motivation for students with ADHD, dyslexia, autism, anxiety, and histories of academic shame.
The workshop will include:
- Brief case studies from Amy’s work with vulnerable and neurodiverse populations
- An overview of the structure and facilitation principles behind a “Writing Jam”
- Concrete practices for creating safe, inclusive, and emotionally attuned writing environments
- A live mini Writing Jam experience
- Group reflection and discussion about how these practices can be adapted for specific therapeutic and educational settings
- Participants will experience firsthand how short, timed writing stints combined with clear structure, choice, body awareness, and community support can reduce resistance and help learners access authentic voice and creativity.
- Attendees will leave with practical, evidence-aligned tools they can immediately integrate into their work, along with a deeper understanding of how writing can become not just an academic task, but a pathway toward confidence, connection, and self-trust.
Learning Outcomes:
- As a result of this activity, participants will be able to:
- Explain how low-stakes, community-based writing structures support executive functioning, emotional regulation, and internal motivation in neurodiverse learners.
- Demonstrate the power of short, structured writing stints to unlock voice and reduce anxiety.
- Apply evidence-informed, low-stakes strategies for writing.
- Identify inclusive, trauma-aware facilitation moves that support learners with dyslexia, ADHD, autism, anxiety, or a history of academic shame.
- Apply 3–5 concrete tools to cultivate confidence and joy in writing.
Presentation 2: Using Hands-On Activities to Teach Writing
Speaker: Dr. Michal Reznizki
Description:
In this interactive workshop, participants will engage with specific active learning lessons from the book Dynamic Activities for First-Year Composition: 96 Ways to Immerse, Inspire, and Captivate Students (2023). The hands-on activities, such as using question clouds or reflecting on subordinating conjunctions, will address student challenges and model activities in an interactive and developmentally appropriate way. This research-informed workshop bridges active learning to a "high level of critical thinking" (Faust & Paulston, 1998; Bean, 2011). The workshop will also offer participants opportunities to collaborate and reflect on the activities, thus preparing attendees to immediately implement their learning into client sessions.
Learning Outcomes:
- As a result of this activity, participants will be able to:
- Describe and use active learning-based interventions supported by research.
- Apply active learning-based interventions that promote critical thinking.
- Develop and expand resources for sessions or classroom lessons that engage learners through hands-on activities.