NeuroInclusivity for Early Years
We are delighted with the results of our Professional Development pilots for Early Childhood Educators!
NeuroInclusivity for Early Years
A unique opportunity to share simple self-management tools with 3-5 year olds…preparing them for school.
NeuroInclusivity for Early Years provides professional development for early childhood educators, introducing simple, practical strategies to help young children manage their energy, relax, focus their minds and prepare their bodies for learning.
Through two pilot initiatives, The Whole Dyslexic Society has been exploring how these tools can be incorporated into early learning environments to support self-regulation, honour different ways of learning, and help create more inclusive experiences for all children.
Building on the experience and feedback gathered through these pilots, WDS is working towards making this professional development more widely available, with plans for further development and exploration of university partnerships.
Our vision is to help create learning environments where children are better understood, supported in their individual needs, and given opportunities to thrive—laying the groundwork for greater neuroinclusivity from the earliest years.
Pilot 1 - British Columbia | 2024-2025
Bccampus/Ministry-supported pilot
With funding from the BC Ministry of Education and Child Care in partnership with BCcampus, The Whole Dyslexic Society delivered a professional development pilot for early childhood educators between October 2024 and February 2025.
The pilot introduced educators to Davis® Learning Strategies for Early Years through online learning modules, information sessions, a two-day workshop offered online and in person, and follow-up assignments. The training focused on practical tools to help young children relax, manage their energy, develop focus and prepare for learning.
Twelve participants took part in the pilot, and eight submitted evaluation responses. Their feedback highlighted the value of the self-management strategies in supporting children's self-regulation and participation in everyday classroom activities. Educators also identified opportunities for continued practice and further development of the program.
The Story Behind the Pilot
Sue Blyth Hall, January 5, 2024
In 2023, the Ministry of Education and Child Care in British Columbia, asked BCcampus to invite new opportunities for the professional development of Early Childhood Educators.
Davis Dyslexia Association International in San Francisco created the Davis Learning Strategies for K-3 teachers Workshop many years ago, and The Whole Dyslexic Society has hosted several in BC.
One of our Board, Julie Brewer, who is a Montessori Pre-School teacher took one of those Workshops. She adapted the tools and strategies to use with her pre-school 3-5 yr olds with incredible and unexpected success. They learned to relax, to control their energy levels, focus, and master their alphabet letters individually.
This gave us the courage to apply and to our shock and delight, we were awarded the grant! It was a RUSH ! We were accepted in August 2023, didn’t get through the paperwork till October and the whole pilot had to be completed by the end of January 2024. No pressure!
Our advertisement for Davis Learning Strategies for Early Years, attracted an amazing response response from Early Childhood Educators. We received 60 enquiries within one week! They were attracted by the idea of their children learning how to self-manage and who wouldn’t be? After the interviews, our Administrator, Laura O’Neill got everyone familiar with the Thinkific e-learning platform, and it was all systems go!
We had to be as accessible as possible and ECEs have very little spare time, so we decided on live webinars that would be recorded and placed on their Thinkific accounts. We created a Theory Module and a History Module to give them as much background information on learning challenges and Davis Learning Strategies as possible. They had to complete a simple assignment to go from one Module to the next… no skipping our classes 😊.
Julie and I modified the Davis Learning Strategies for K- 3 Classroom teachers Manual for the Early Years. We had to offer the DLS for Early Years 2 Day Workshop both Online and In-Person and were thrilled that Stacey Smith was our very enthusiastic Presenter for both.
Julie found a venue and we were excited to have Stacey and Larry come to Vancouver Island, and although the Online Workshop was perfect… the In-Person one had the extra fun element as attendees were able to share experiences, tips and creations.
Following the Workshop we created Assignments, one week for Release, the next week Dial and the third week Focus and the last week, Koosh ball toss. Some ECEs managed to start individual Letter Mastery in the fourth week. We collected all the Assignments and Julie’s Google Evaluation form produced colourful pie charts and comments that confirmed it was a huge success.
Some of the ECEs decided to continue to the end of June and some are even planning their next academic year. These are the comments that warm our hearts and stoke the fire to keep this course going… plus one little boy learned to ride his bike thanks to his 3 tools!
“I have attended a great deal of professional development and this was by far, the most inspiring, engaging and applicable by a long shot. Please keep me informed of other workshop opportunities, and any developments from the pilot. It was a great experience and I am committed to creating NeuroInclusive classrooms where all children can thrive. I believe this program has better prepared me to be able to do that.”
“The main reason that I love the DLS tools is that they are collaborative/used collectively as a group in the classroom (including teachers) instead of pointing particular children out. The children have ownership in the atmosphere of their classroom and can help themselves, friends, and teachers to kindly check on each other. The language is wonderful- “check your dial”, “hmm, let’s see if a release can help us feel better” , “it looks like “Bobby’s” dial is at a 5, where is your dial at? Maybe see if you can try matching Bobby’s dial and then give another try at sharing and playing together”
“They are so helpful for children to start being able to self-regulate and be more aware of how they feel and how others are feeling around them. It makes a huge difference in their ability to have calm bodies, keep their hands to themselves, and be able to fully participate and engage in learning activities.”
“The release technique in particular has been a game-changer for our group of 20 kids. We have attempted various relaxation/focus strategies in the past without long term success. The difference in attention for our circle times since using release has been absolutely incredible!”
“I plan to continue working on this. i have seen the value in it for the children and the class as a whole. it has reduced problem behaviors, and staff stress levels. I have been telling everyone about it! thank you for letting me be a part of this pilot project. I can’t think of anything to improve on in this workshop.”
Pilot 2 - Alberta | 2025-2026
AAHSA/The WDS-supported pilot
Building practical strategies for more inclusive early learning
Following the first pilot in British Columbia, The Whole Dyslexic Society delivered a second Davis® Learning Strategies for Early Years pilot in collaboration with the Alberta Aboriginal Head Start Association. The program involved 20 participants from nine early childhood centres across Alberta.
The pilot began on December 9, 2025, with a screening of WHO KNEW Dyslexia is a Way of Thinking. Participants then took part in professional learning that included a two-day workshop, learning activities and practical strategies to explore in their early learning environments. The pilot concluded with an evaluation session on May 24, 2026.
Practical tools for everyday learning
The program introduced educators to Davis Learning Strategies, including Release, Focus and Dial — practical tools intended to help young children manage their energy, develop focus and prepare for learning.
Participants explored how these strategies could be incorporated into everyday classroom activities and support children's self-regulation. Their feedback also highlighted the value of learning together with colleagues from the same centre, helping teams develop a shared understanding of the approaches.
What participants told us
Thirteen of the 20 participants completed the evaluation survey, representing a 65% response rate.
Among those who responded:
85% agreed or strongly agreed that the two-day workshop met their expectations.
85% said they would recommend the workshop to other early childhood educators.
69% strongly agreed that the program had improved their understanding of learning styles.
85% strongly agreed that having multiple participants from the same centre was helpful.
Written feedback described ways educators were incorporating Release, Focus and Dial into their classrooms. Some participants reported that children were beginning to use strategies such as Release independently and described positive changes in self-regulation and focus.
Participants also identified opportunities to strengthen future delivery, including allowing more time to practise the strategies in the classroom, improving scheduling and pacing, clarifying expectations, and encouraging participation across entire centre teams.
Learning from the pilot
The Alberta pilot provided valuable feedback on both the potential usefulness of these practical tools and the conditions that may help educators implement them consistently. The findings will inform the continued development of NeuroInclusivity for Early Years and future professional learning opportunities.
“The 2 day in person workshop was absolutely the best! All the clarity came flooding in!”
“The children have started to do the release on their own and are responding to us when we model it without saying anything.”
“I have noticed the children intentionally talking about what level of energy they like to be at, which opens a way for us to talk about what level is appropriate or safe for a certain environment.”
“The two-day in-person session was the most beneficial for me. I learn best through hands-on experiences, so it was valuable to apply what we were learning and see tangible evidence supporting it.”
Looking Ahead: Continuing the Journey
The two pilot initiatives have provided valuable experience, thoughtful feedback and practical insights to guide the continued development of NeuroInclusivity for Early Years.
We are deeply grateful to the early childhood educators and centres who took part, shared their experiences and helped us explore how Davis® Learning Strategies can support young children's self-regulation, focus and readiness for learning.
Our hope is to build on what we have learned, continue refining this professional development offering, and make these practical tools available to more educators and early learning communities.
Every child deserves to be understood, supported and given the opportunity to thrive. By introducing tools that help children recognize and manage their own energy and focus from an early age, we hope to contribute to learning environments where different ways of thinking and learning are recognized and supported—before difficulties become labels that define a child.
A collaboration in Learning
The Whole Dyslexic Society gratefully acknowledges Davis® North America as a collaborating partner in the development of this innovative professional learning initiative.
Together, we are exploring how Davis Learning Strategies can equip early childhood educators with practical tools to support young learners and foster more inclusive early learning environments.
With heartfelt thanks to everyone who contributed to these exciting pilot initiatives. Your participation, insights and commitment have helped shape the journey ahead.
If you represent a school, early childhood education center, or government agency and are interested in exploring how this project could support your community, we’d be happy to share our findings and discuss next steps.