As of the end of 2021, think social publishing, also known as social thinking, began to discontinue the sale of the full body listening larry series (books and poster), and we will no longer publish this material.
Thanks to input and advocacy from the neurodivergent community, the authors, Elizabeth Sautter and Kristen Wilson, are making important and needed updates to resources throughout the body Listening to Larry.
You are reading: Whole body listening books
write to the authors at: everydayregulation@gmail.com if you want to receive notifications about these new inclusive products that are currently being developed.
See Also: Louise Jensen – Book Series In Order
the need for the whole body to listen to larry in order to evolve
by elizabeth sautter and kristen wilson
Thanks to input and advocacy from the neurodivergent community, we’re making important and much-needed updates to the whole body listening to larry resources we’ve developed. these revised resources will encourage strategies for regulation, awareness, and advocacy so children can learn what their unique brain and body needs to help them regulate and listen to learn and connect.
To provide some background, the concept of whole-body listening was developed by Susanne Truesdale to help break down one of the most critical, challenging, and abstract components of social communication and learning: listening. we’ve adapted the core concept of truesdale to help us all explore wbl as a multifaceted, multisensory process involving all parts of the body, including the ears, brain, eyes, mouth, hands, feet, body and heart (to show affection). truesdale developed the concept of whole body listening following a conversation with his first grade class about the difference between “hearing” and “hearing” in 1989. taking inspiration from truesdale, we created larry whole body listening to introduce the concept to children in an age-appropriate manner.
See Also: Life Insurance Books – 10 Best Books to Read in 2022
We sought to create a tool that would break down this abstract and complex process so that children would better understand what was being asked of them when told to “pay attention” and “listen to me”. In an attempt to make this concept explicit, full-body listener Larry created standards for listening behaviors (i.e., eyes looking at the speaker, calm hands in his lap), instead reflecting on how each of body parts supports the hearing needs of an individual. We have since learned that by providing set standards for how to listen, we create a blueprint for compliance without creating awareness and advocacy of individual needs. this approach ultimately marginalized other behaviors (such as avoiding eye contact, waving hands, and/or fidgeting) as inferior or incorrect strategies, fueling the stereotypes we want to get away from.
Active listening and processing can be viewed in many different ways. some people hear better when moving, while others can only hear when looking away. some people hear better when they wave their hands, while others need to have a quiet space. These various forms of listening and learning needs are not deficits, they are differences. When we provide information and tools to help children become aware of their specific needs and how to regulate their bodies to listen, we ultimately empower them to understand and advocate for themselves.
We acknowledge our responsibility in revising Larry’s resources to align with the neurodiversity paradigm and reflect current research in interpersonal neurobiology. larry has heard a lot and is evolving. it is learning and growing and taking a stand against harmful stereotypes, ableism, discrimination and social prejudices that devalue people because of their different needs or diagnoses. we are in the process of creating more inclusive resources to share with the public as soon as possible.
some of the many resources larry is learning from that focus on awareness, regulation and acceptance include but are not limited to:
See Also: The Best Titanic Books for Kids
- the interoception curriculum (kelly mahler)
- awekids (mariela diaz)
- the zones of regulation (leah kuypers)
- zones of training
- zone products