{"version":1,"type":"rich","provider_name":"Libsyn","provider_url":"https:\/\/www.libsyn.com","height":90,"width":600,"title":"199 Evidence, Rage, and Relief: A Mom\u2013Son Team on Finding Spelled Communication","description":" When 8-year-old non-speaking autistic Rafael found text-based communication, he didn\u2019t just start \u201canswering questions.\u201d He started telling the truth about his body, his anxiety, and the frustration of being misunderstood.   If you\u2019ve ever looked at your non-speaking child and thought, \u201cI know there\u2019s more in there\u2026 I just don\u2019t know how to reach it,\u201d this conversation is for you.   Today I\u2019m joined by Daria and her 8-year-old autistic, non-speaking son Rafael, co-creators of Spelling the Tea on Autism on Substack and Instagram. After discovering text-based communication, they realized how deeply Rafael had been misunderstood - and started documenting both his words and the science that helps explain them.   Inside the episode, we talk about: Rafael\u2019s \u201cgoner mindset\u201d before communication and what typing changed about his sense of the future. How apraxia creates a gap between intention and movement and why that gap gets mislabeled as \u201clow IQ,\u201d \u201cbehavior,\u201d or \u201cnon-compliance.\u201d The concept of an \u201cinterference score\u201d for food! How Rafael would redesign first in schools for non-speakers. Why regulation, communication, and learning are inseparable\u2026 and why independence in cognition does not mean independence in motor and sensory systems.   This is a humbling, practical, and very human reminder that: We can\u2019t keep separating \u201cbehavior,\u201d \u201csensory,\u201d and \u201ccognitive\u201d boxes. Research on autism that excludes non-speakers cannot be our only compass. And most importantly: sitting still is not a pre-requisite for real thinking or rigorous education.   You can find Daria and Rafael at https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/spelling_the_tea_on_autism\/ and https:\/\/spellingthetea.substack.com\/   You can find Dr. Vaish Sarathy at https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/drvaishsarathy\/ Check out her 6 foundational tips on education at https:\/\/www.drvaishsarathy.com\/nonlinearlearning ","author_name":"Non Linear Learning - Rethinking Education for Neurodivergent Learners","author_url":"https:\/\/www.drvaishsarathy.com\/","html":"