#307 - Social Emotional Learning, Sensory Corners, and Fidgets with Jewelisa Blanks, M.Ed, Founder of Gifts of Joy

Jewelisa Blanks, a respected public speaker and seasoned educator, has devoted her professional life to empowering teachers and students. A proud graduate of The Ohio State University, Jewelisa spent over seven years serving in the public education sector, fostering a deep understanding of the field over her ten years of educational experience.

Leveraging her knowledge and experience, she has drawn on cutting-edge emotional health research to affect meaningful change within the education system. Feeling the call for greater impact, Jewelisa transitioned into a full-time educational consultant role, where she continues to collaborate with administrators and district leaders nationwide.

She is committed to restoring the whole educator and child by educating teachers on the power of sensory-informed practices and their direct connection to social-emotional learning. Her reach now extends to over 1,500 schools across the United States, and she has trained more than 5,000 educators in her innovative methodologies. Jewelisa's dedication and influence continue to reshape education and student well-being in schools nationwide.

Follow Jewelisa on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/shopgiftsofjoy/

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www.jewelisablanks.com

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CASEL - Social Emotional Learning
Understanding Emotional Intelligence and the Connection to the Sensory System

Transcript

Jewelisa Blanks: 0:00

We can't just give students a fidget and think that that's the only option. Right? That is just one strategy. If we're trying to focus on improving social emotional learning, we also have to address their ability to calm and regulate themselves in other ways as well and that includes breathing strategies. And so within our kids, we have the tangible fidgets. But we also have the visuals as well. We have two breeding strategies and then we have something called the five steps to calm. So I actually has five chronological things that you should do when you get to the space and so that also helps, especially educated, it allows them to have additional structure for the space. So that when students go over it, they know exactly what they should be doing when they're in the space.

Rachel: 0:47

I'm Rachel.

Jessica: 0:48

And I'm Jessica and this is All Things Sensory by Harkla.

Rachel: 0:51

We are both certified occupational therapy assistants and together with Harkla, we are on a mission to empower parents, therapists, and educators to help raise confident and strong children of all abilities.

Jessica: 1:03

On this podcast, we chat about all things sensory, diving into special needs, occupational therapy, parenting, self care, overall health and wellness and so much more.

Rachel: 1:13

We're here to provide raw, honest and fun strategies, ideas and information for parents, therapists and educators as well as other professionals to implement into daily life.

Jessica: 1:24

Thank you so much for joining us.

Rachel: 1:30

Hey there, welcome back to All Things Sensory by Harkla. You're listening to Rachel and Jessica and today we have an exciting interview with.

Jessica: 1:38

Well, you usually say unique.

Rachel: 1:40

unique.

Jessica: 1:41

Well, it is unique. They're all unique and exciting.

Rachel: 1:44

They're also good, but today we're talking with to Jewelisa blanks.

Jessica: 1:49

Jewelisa Blanks is a respected public speaker and seasoned educator, who has devoted her professional life to empowering teachers and students. She graduated from Ohio State University and spent seven years serving in the public education sector, fostering a deep understanding of the field over her 10 years of educational experience. Leveraging her knowledge and experience she has drawn on cutting edge emotional health research to affect meaningful change within the education system. Feeling the call for greater impact, Jewelisa transitioned into a full time Educational Consultant role, where she continues to collaborate with administrators and district leaders nationwide. She is committed to restoring the whole educator and child by educating teachers on the power of sensory informed practices and their direct connection to social emotional learning. Her reach now extends to over 1,500 schools across the United States and she has trained more than 5,000 educators in her innovative methodologies. Jewelisa's dedication and influence continue to re-shape education and student wellbeing in schools nationwide.

Rachel: 2:59

So as you can tell, very unique, very exciting. We're gonna jump in and talk to Jewelisa now. All right. Hello, Jewelisa, welcome to the podcast.

Jewelisa Blanks: 3:09

Hi, thank you for having me.

Jessica: 3:11

We start all of our interviews with five secret questions. So that's what we're gonna do first. Okay. And our first question is, Who is your celebrity crush?

Jewelisa Blanks: 3:23

Hmm. Man, that is a hard question. I don't really keep up with celebrities. So it's like really hard to answer that question. Can I just say my husband?

Rachel: 3:33

Yes.

Jewelisa Blanks: 3:35

He's my crush. He always will be.

Rachel: 3:37

I love that. Good answer.

Jessica: 3:39

He'll probably appreciate that when he listens to this.

Jewelisa Blanks: 3:41

I definitely got about 10 brownie points for that one.

Rachel: 3:45

At least 10.

Jewelisa Blanks: 3:46

At least.

Rachel: 3:47

You know, I almost said these questions aren't super spicy, but I think they are.

Jewelisa Blanks: 3:54

That was. that was a little spicy.

Rachel: 3:56

But we're starting off fresh. Okay. What is your dream vacation or where is your dream vacation?

Jewelisa Blanks: 4:03

Okay, so I really love like clear blue water. Like the white sand that you see in like Destin and like Pensacola and I love the clear blue. Like just water. Like sitting on the beach on some white sand with my clear blue water. That would be great. So I don't really have like a care location. I don't have like a specific location. I just care about the aesthetics.

Rachel: 4:35

Exactly. That's the most important thing.

Jessica: 4:39

Do you prefer to listen to podcasts or to read books?

Jewelisa Blanks: 4:46

I will probably say read books.

Rachel: 4:48

Yeah, reading anything great right now or have you recently?

Jewelisa Blanks: 4:53

I actually am reading a book. Let me see the actual name, but it's called actually pick this up at the thrift store. My favorite place to be. The emotional intelligence 2.0. I think it's backwards on my screen. Yeah, I just started it maybe about a week ago, maybe less than a week ago, and yeah, I love it so far. It's like, oh, this is nice. So yeah, that's what I'm reading right now.

Rachel: 5:15

I feel like it's right up your alley too.

Jewelisa Blanks: 5:17

Yes, it is hitting every like, it's amazing. Love it.

Rachel: 5:22

I love that. Okay, what is your favorite sport to watch?

Jewelisa Blanks: 5:26

Track. 100%.

Rachel: 5:29

Did you do track?

Jewelisa Blanks: 5:31

I did. So I tell everybody that I was just on a team. My husband was actually good. But we actually ran at Ohio State University. And so both of us ran track. And so I love, like that's the only sport I can watch. All other sports, I don't know, unless it's a championship game. I'm not interested. But track. I can go watch a random track meet and not know anyone and just love it. So.

Rachel: 5:54

What event did you run or do?

Jewelisa Blanks: 5:56

The 400 hurdles.

Jessica: 5:59

Ugh. Bless you.

Jewelisa Blanks: 6:03

Are you familiar with track?

Rachel: 6:04

I'm a 100 dasher like that's it. Yeah.

Jewelisa Blanks: 6:09

That takes a lot of skill.

Rachel: 6:13

That is so cool. Oh, my gosh, I love it. Last question. What is your sensory quirk?

Jewelisa Blanks: 6:21

Hmm, that's a good question. What is my sensory quirk? I love smooth surfaces. I know that's kind of random. So I was driving, I went to visit my brother at Arizona and like his steering wheel, you know, he's fancy. I think he has a Lexus or something. I don't know. But. And the steering wheel was so smooth. Like, I just wanted to drive all day. It was just like, Ah. I didn't realize how much I love smooth surfaces until then and that was like a year ago. Now, ever since then, I'm just like, I love like something smooth. It's like, yeah.

Rachel: 6:58

I love that. It's a steering wheel too. Of all the things.

Jewelisa Blanks: 7:05

I'm like, well, when my next new car has to have a smooth steering wheel, like absolutely.

Rachel: 7:12

Perfect. All right, let's jump in. And now that everyone knows all of your deepest, darkest secrets, we'll jump in and tell us who you are, what you do, why you do it? All the beautiful things.

Jewelisa Blanks: 7:24

Yes, of course. So my name is Jewelisa Blanks. So I currently am the founder and CEO of Gifts of Joy. We are what we call a sensory informed SEL company and so we really focus on putting the two together. A lot of times people are either really into sensory or really into social emotional learning, but we realize that there's really a connection between the two. So that is what our company focus on. It's how to combine the two and why there's such a strong connection.

Jessica: 7:55

So SEL is social emotional learning for anyone who didn't know that.

Rachel: 8:02

An acronym. Yeah.

Jewelisa Blanks: 8:04

Yeah, I should have said that. I realized that a lot of people are not familiar with SEL and so social emotional learning is the the entire name, yes.

Rachel: 8:16

So what's your background? How did you get into this very niche, but so important area?

Jewelisa Blanks: 8:22

Yeah, of course. So I wasn't educated for six years. After I left the classroom, I developed Gifts of Joy. Essentially, I just wanted to produce a product or some type of service or something that evolved around joy. That's just the word that came to me and so actually Gifts of Joy, actually started off as a party supply company back in 2019, which is kind of funny. But one of our clients actually during the pandemic needed a sensory kit developed for their special education students. Because it was COVID, because they were quarantined at home, a lot of their students were not receiving accommodations or the things that they needed and so they wanted us to help them create this customized sensory kit. And of course, again, with being a special education teacher, in my past life, I was really intrigued. Because I'm like, I was a special ed teacher. Why did I not know about these things? Like we didn't use fidgets in my classroom. I was not aware of sensory processing. I wasn't aware of so many things that after really working with this client, I realized like it just opened up this whole avenue of like, everything sensory. And so that is where our first sensory product developed from was actually that client and so we ended up actually supplying their entire special ed department. All the students in their entire district that have special ed services with the sensory kits, so it was amazing. I was also nine months pregnant at the time.

Rachel: 9:50

Wow.

Jewelisa Blanks: 9:51

It was a quite a journey, but it was fun. And it just really opened up my eyes to a whole new world that was right underneath my nose and education. I didn't even know it. So.

Rachel: 10:01

Wow.

Jessica: 10:02

Can you tell us what sensory tools are in the kits?

Jewelisa Blanks: 10:08

Oh, in our kit right now? Yes, of course. So as

Rachel: 10:10

Yeah. far as the tangible sensory tools, we have our thick,

Jewelisa Blanks: 10:11

And then inside of our we actually just, I was stretchy strings, and those actually can expand up to like nine feet. But we do that too, because it's really good for just being able to get like that stretch out or being able to kind of like being able to stretch your arms back. Just like the simple things that we don't realize that could really help release some of that tension. If you know anything about like anxiety or depression or anything like that, alot of times, people deal with like muscle tension and things like that. So doing something as simple as a stretching of the band can help them. We also have everybody's favorite, the poppers. So those are in our kits as well. We also have the liquid motion timer, if you're familiar. So that is the one that kind of looks like a little lava lamp and it kind of just slowly falls. We also have an infinity cube, which is just this little cube that kind of rotates on top of itself over just telling Rachel, this, we actually just are launching this and over again. A lot of times people use it to kind of just have something to do with their hands and manipulate with their hands. And then based on grade level, it depends on what is either added or taken away. So for our high school kiddos or secondary kiddos, we also have something called a mesh marble. So it is literally made up like a thicker mesh material and then inside it has a marble. You can move it up and down with just one hand and you can just kind of play with it. People manipulate it all types of ways. But the beautiful part of it is that it's quiet, and it's small. So teachers love it, because students can take it back to their desk and not make anynoise. It's not a distraction to other students. And then also inside of our secondary kits, we have something called a magic pad. And that kind of has like about eight to ten different fidget functions on it. Very similar to like the Fidget Cube, but it's actually shaped like a controller. So it's kind of fun, because it helps it kind of makes students kind of remind them of like video games and things like that, which they already love. So yeah. upcoming school year, we're launching our our pre-k kit, which will be with Daniel Tiger's Neighborhood. And for that one, we took out the Infinity Cube, just because of the small parts in it. But everything else would be in there.

Rachel: 12:29

Yeah. I love that.

Jessica: 12:31

I'm curious, how did you decide which items to put in the kit?

Jewelisa Blanks: 12:38

Oh, yes. That's an amazing question. So as I told you earlier, I really just hit I dove head deep into sensory and all the things around it like what is it used for? You know, can general education students use this? And if they can, why are they not using it? What's going on? And so I started just looking on Pinterest, like calming corners and sensory items and a lot of things that came up were centered all around special ed. That's all I saw and those are great strategies for students that have accommodation. But then I started thinking, what about students that either 1) are not diagnosed or 2) just have some sensory preferences that can actually calm them and that doesn't necessarily mean that they have a sensory processing disorder, it is just a self regulation tool. And so for me, I started looking into the different reasons that people use fidgets. So we actually came up with three different categories of what people typically use any type of sensory tool for and so our first category was a calming category. And so the common category is typically something some type of tool or strategy that people use in order to self regulate themselves when they're in a heightened state of emotion. So that could be, for some people, it could be like holding a stuffed animal. For some people, it could be going on a walk. For some people, it could be having bright lights. For some people, calming could be a dark room, especially if it's a parent with, you know, three kids, a dark room is calming for them. So just thinking about what is it that people were, what are people trying to accomplish by using these different tools and so that gave us our first category of calming. A lot of people are using it to calm down. The other way that people use sensory tools, our second category, will be our focus areas. So our focus fidgets those are the things or the tools that people use in order to try to pay attention. So for some people that could be having a stress ball in their hand while they're in a meeting. For some people, if you think outside of tangible tools, think of like maybe you have somebody that taps their their foot while they're in a meeting. You have somebody that has to chew gum during the meeting. You have somebody that has to drink coffee during a meeting. You have somebody that needs to you have the student that needs to go use the bathroom 10 times. You know, these are all different ways that our body is really trying to stay focused, but It is trying to find different ways to do that. And so really the focus category, what we're trying to achieve when we are trying to use these different things is to focus on what we're doing. So for some people, if you're listening to music, that can be a focus as well. If you're doing independent work or if you're working at your desk, sometimes people like to listen to soft music. Some people like it dead silent. You know, those are all different ways that people are really tried to focus in. So that is our second category. And our third category is a reset. So reset fidgets or reset tools, we believe are things that people are doing intentionally, and they usually require more than one sense. So that could be like taking some type of intentional break, maybe doing a sudoku puzzle, maybe doing a crossword puzzle, or maybe doing Color by Number. These are all just different ways that people are intentionally resetting. And when we say about the reset category is, when you are actually doing a reset, you're not expected to be able to do whatever task it was that you originally were going to do. So that's why we say it's a reset, especially when we're teaching teachers, because we need they need to understand if a kid needs a reset, that is time where they are not going to be able to pay attention. They are not going to be able to engage with the lesson, like this student is going to need intentional time to regulate themselves through whatever capacity that looks like. Whether it's drawing a picture, whether it's writing a letter, whatever, whether it's going to the calming corner, and just taking a few minutes, like sometimes they need something more than just a small fidget, if that makes sense. So those are the three categories we've identified as what people typically use sensory tools for. The funny, the great thing about sensory tools is that something that may be calming for me, may be a focus fidget for you and so the biggest thing is really to understand what your preference is and it can also change. You can use a stress ball for multiple categories for multiple different situations. But understanding what each situation is and understanding the root of those categories is very important. Did I answer that question?

Rachel: 17:14

I love that.

Jessica: 17:15

Yeah. So important.

Rachel: 17:17

I love the break down. Because so often, people just think fidgets, they think special ed. They think that there's a reason why we need them. But there's so much more that goes into it and I love that you break it down into categories and what works to help you focus, what works to help you feel calm, what works to help you feel regulated, and the reset. And I mean, I know personally, I'm like a walking, sensory being, you know. I just am like constantly needing something, you know, at all times. Wiggling my foot while we're doing YouTube videos. I've got chewing gum. I've got 47 different drinks, some hot, some cold, some fizzy, like, it's and it's, it's all to stay regulated and to stay focused. And I just feel like it's, it's so important, and it needs to be.

Jewelisa Blanks: 18:09

We have about eight people that work with us now. Whether they're our operations team or a curriculum writer or whether they're an educational trainer, and every single one of them, after working with us, they're like, oh my goodness, I'm so sensory inclined now. Like, they're realizing just how sensitive we are and we don't even realize it, like certain lights were triggering, or the noise of someone playing something behind us when we were on the airplane. They're like, Oh, that's why I'm irritated. Like, we don't even realize the small things that kind of trigger us or calm us, because we don't realize that we are sensory beings. Like everything that we do has to do with how our brains are perceiving the world around us, which is odd through our senses.

Rachel: 18:56

Exactly.

Jessica: 18:57

So then the goal is for teachers to have these kids in the classroom. So you guys teach the teachers how to use the kits so that the teachers can use them with their students?

Jewelisa Blanks: 19:12

Yes, that is correct. So the kits, they actually can be used in any setting. We tried our best, when we were creating these kits, to make it useful for a parent, as well as a teacher as well as a counselor as well as a principal as well as a mental health therapist, any. It can really go anywhere because, you know, everybody needs regulation in different situations. So when it comes to the teachers, however, that was and still is our main focus. Just because we know that sometimes in the classroom it can be very overstimulating for some students or even under stimulating for some students and so being able to teach educators the importance of making a sensory friendly classroom. And how that connects to like their student's ability to learn or their readiness to learn inside of their classroom. And so, we do teach educators on how to use it, how to implement it, and then you know, we sometimes do role playing situations where like, you know, there's going to be issues when it comes up in the classroom, like, how can we address it? What happens if the kid spends too much time over there? What happens if they don't use it? What happens if someone's been over there three times today? What do we do? You know, so really working through those scenarios working through the importance. But with our trainees, we actually spend a majority of our time teaching educators their own sensory preferences, so that they become more aware and they're like, Oh, I didn't know that eally triggers me. I didn't know that smells calm me. I didn't know that sounds, you know. So we kind of built up that understanding of sensory and allowing them to see themselves in it. And it allows them to be able to teach and appreciate it a lot more. It gets implemented in their classroom a lot more effectively.

Rachel: 21:07

I feel like it is. It makes them easier to empathize with students with sensory differences when you recognize your own sensory needs.

Jewelisa Blanks: 21:18

Exactly.

Rachel: 21:20

So one of the big things that sets you apart from just like a regular fidget company, is the attention to the SEL in your kit. So you include visual tools into your kits. Can you share more about that?

Jewelisa Blanks: 21:38

Yeah, of course. So, as you stated, a lot of common kits, or a lot of times teachers, if you ask any teacher, you know, hey, what would you put into a calming corner, they're gonna say figits, and they're gonna say beanbag chair, right? But we're missing that connection to the social emotional learning piece. And so if you know a lot about Casel? So Casel, is the leading a one of the leaders in the SEL space and they talked about the five competencies of social emotional learning. One of them is self regulation, and self management. And so with that being said, we can't just give students a fidget and think that that's the only option, right? That is just one strategy. If we're trying to focus on improving social emotional learning, we also have to address their ability to calm and regulate themselves in other ways as well and that includes breathing strategies. A lot of people refer to this as like mindfulness strategies and so within our kits, we have the tangible fidgets, but we also have the visuals as well. We have two breathing strategies, and then we have something called the five steps to calm. So it actually has five chronogical things that you should do when you get to the space and so that also helps, especially educator that already has so much on their plate, that allows them to have a very, it allows them to have additional structure for the space. So that when students go over, they know exactly what they should be doing when they're in the space. If you tell the student to go to the calming corner, and there's no type of expectations, no visuals, no rules, they're gonna go over there, and they're gonna play, right? That's what they're gonna do. They're gonna see fidgets, they're gonna see toys, and they're gonna play. If you go over there, and there's breathing strategies, there's a five steps to calm, there are intentional fidgets over there, again, everything that I named earlier, is going to go into one of those three categories that we talked about. And so if they go over there, and they have a lot more intentionality around the structure of the space is going to be a lot more effective than if you just go on Pinterest and find a pretty space. And I'm not knocking those at all. But there still needs to be structured, there are foundational pieces that actually make a calming corner effective and that is going to be your visuals, that are going to be your expectations so that five steps to calm, that's going to be your fidgits that are very intentional in selection, and then that's also going to be your flexible seating. Making sure that you have the space and it's calming, and it's regulating, and it's welcoming. You don't want students to look at it as a punitive space, right? So all of these things were very intentional in the development of all of our calming corners, regardless of what grade they're in. Because it's important that students know what is expected when they're in the space, and what strategies can I use while I'm in the space. And then a lot of times we'd have to teach educators, if you see a student that's over there too long with those five steps to calm, you can redirect them by going over there and saying, Hey, Sarah, I realized that you were, you know, what number are you working on? And she could say almost number three. Okay, so number three is our breathing strategies. What breathing strategy did you decide to choose? You know, so again, you're kind of redirecting them without having to like, I guess, make it, you need to be doing this, this, and this. You're redirecting them back to what is expected of them while they're in the space. So, again, had all those things were built in to this actual kit. So that again, we're trying to take as much off the educators plate as possible. We don't want this to be another thing to sittingin their room that, you know, ends up being a distraction or ends up adding some more chaos. You know, we're trying to make it the opposite.

Jessica: 25:20

One thing that stuck out to me when you just mentioned how the teacher can go to the corner and redirect the student by asking questions, I think that's such a helpful tip, too, for all of us adults, with children, working with children. When we see that a child is off task or distracted, instead of going over and telling them I see that you're distracted, you need to be doing thi instead, we change our approach, and we ask them questions, so that the child has to problem solve, and identify what they are doing. And then we can ask them, okay, what's the next thing that we should do now? And then they can it almost more independently and have feel like they have more control over what they're doing or being told what to do.

Jewelisa Blanks: 26:10

Yes, that's really good.

Jessica: 26:14

Yeah, what I'm finding is that these kids and students in the classroom feel like they have no control over their life. So when an adult comes up to them, and tells them to either do something or not do something, that child is going to push back.

Jewelisa Blanks: 26:31

Yeah.

Jessica: 26:32

So the way that we talk to them and redirect them is so important.

Rachel: 26:38

Tell us a little more about the research behind these. And when we were emailing earlier, I told you I came up, I came across a research study that you had written, and maybe it was a case study. It was just so fascinating. So tell us a little bit more about that.

Jewelisa Blanks: 26:53

So we actually are in the process of implementing or completing our very first pilot program, which has been phenomenal so far. So we are up in Shaker Heights School District, actually my alma mater, and so we are working with them on implementing these calming corners, implementing the trainings, and then also following up doing pre-assessments, post-assessments, checking in with the teachers, getting testimonials, really seeing, you know, what is working, what is not working, and so that has been a very big asset to our company. And just making sure that we are addressing the issues that teachers come across when they are implementing these calming corners, and then also making sure that we're actually addressing the need that the calming corners is trying to accomplish, which is that self regulation piece, right? And so, when it comes to like, the research and things of that sort, like I said, we did a lot of research on why people fidget in the first place. Like where's that need coming from? What are the things that we are seeking out when we are trying to self regulate, or we're trying to use the sensory tools? And so that is where those three categories stem from was the research on. Okay, the things that people are trying to accomplish, which are calming state, a focus state, or just intentional reset. Typically, a reset can be a continuation of a calming strategy. Because, typically, a lot of times, if you need a reset, it could be because you're in a very heightened state of emotion and really need that calming space. So a lot of research out about the use of fidgets and being able to help use that to focus and things of that sort. And so I really just, I just really just been listening to podcasts, reading books. I actually came across, I realized I was looking at my podcast history, and I was like, I'm pretty sure I've listened to you all before. And so it's funny because I looked at my history, and I listened to one of your podcasts. It was episode 220 so understanding emotional intelligence.

Rachel: 29:00

Oh, yeah.

Jessica: 29:02

What did you think of it?

Jewelisa Blanks: 29:03

Oh, it was amazing. Yes, I like I love it. I love all things sensory, all things emotional intelligence. Obviously, I'm reading about it. So I just think there's such I think we're missing it. Like I think we're we're missing how much our how sensory connects to our emotions, like we're missing, that is the missing piece. I think we're trying to address social emotional learning without addressing the elephant in the room, which is like we have sensory preferences. We have sensory tools. We have different sensory meet, that needs to be addressed in the general education classroom and not just for our special ed kiddos. And so yeah.

Rachel: 29:45

I love that. You're so passionate about it. I love it. You can feel it. I do feel like a lot of the needs and a lot of kids aren't necessarily being support. Especially since the pandemic, I feel like every ones universal sensory needs have shifted. I feel like everyone's just in like a heightened state and they're just, I just feel like things have shifted a lot. Not only at schools. I'm not in the schools, but I just get that vibe from people that I talked to and then just just us as adults, too. There's just this constant, black cloud looming over us that just impacts our sensory needs and our emotional needs so much.

Jewelisa Blanks: 30:25

I think one of the biggest things that I've taken away from my research is self awareness. I do a lot of research, especially on Casel, using their research and the resources that they provide on self awareness. Like understanding not even just our sensory self awareness, but just our self awareness in general, as human beings, like what makes you tick, what makes you, you know, what triggers you, what calms you things like that, like, I think that. What I say a lot in a lot of my trainings is like, self awareness has to come before self regulation. You can't regulate something you don't know is dysregulated. You can't regulate something that you don't know is an issue and so I really am big on self awareness, understanding sensory preferences, sensory needs, as well as understanding like how that connects to triggers, how that connects to anxiety, how that connects, to how the smell of something can be triggering for you, may remind you of a grandparent, or it can, you know. People that are struggling with grief, a lot of times will also tell you a lot of that comes through senses,. It could be a smell that they, you know, reminds them of someone that passed or any of those things. Like a lot of times, like our senses are so big, and we have to be more aware. We have to understand, you know, we need to understand ourselves. So.

Rachel: 31:50

I love that.

Jessica: 31:51

For sure.

Rachel: 31:51

I love that. Okay, tell us what the biggest challenge is, with what you're doing currently? We always say to you that if you're not going to

Jewelisa Blanks: 31:58

I would definitely say, getting people to understand the need. That will be one of the biggest challenges, especially when you're dealing with teachers who, again, are viewing anything with the word sensory in it as special ed. So it's very, very difficult to really inform the need or teach on that need without, like the first thing people say is, Oh, that'd be great for my autism unit or all that'd be great for you know. So really understanding that like no, like, everybody has a sensory preference, like even you, me, like do you tap your foot, do you chew your gum, do you have to like twirl your hair in a meeting? Like we all have these different sensory quirks and different sensory needs, like, we can't just act like it's not, it's not we're sensory beings. And so I would say my biggest challenge is really getting people to understand the importance and the connection between sensory tools, sensory practices, being sensory informed, and how that also relates to social emotional learning. The other challenge I would say is like, just educating parents as well, because it doesn't stop at school. We created it to go kit, which is a little small handheld kit for, we use it as a tier two or tier three support in the schools. But we also encourage the schools to possibly send those home with their parents and or encourage our parents to purchase those when they're on their own. Because that is something that their kiddo can use in the car. They can use it at home. My daughter has the calming corner in her in her own bedroom, like a big one and we do calming strategies with her almost daily. Because she's six years old and she struggles with self regulation very often. So just really understanding how helpful it is. And I will say one more challenge would also be the patience that you do need to have when implementing the strategies. One person said at one of my trainings like this isn't a solution. It's a strategy and that's what people need to understand and that is also super important. Because if we think of this as a one off solution, then that's where the frustration comes in, and if it's not working within a week. So it is a strategy out of a plethora of other strategies and it is going to take patience. I even find myself having to practice patience with my six year old like I'm like, what don't you been around fidgets your whole life like come on, you should be able to self regulate. But I am understanding like, sometimes we have to co-regulate with them. Sometimes we have to manipulate those fidgets with them. Sometimes we have to talk about our sensory needs with each other before they can really do it on their own. So I would say definitely that part as well as the patience and the journey that it takes. implement any sort of sensory stuff consistently, there's no point in even trying. You try it for a week and it doesn't work well, of course it's not gonna work. We have to be consistent. So, I think that's all just, that's all just so valid.

Jessica: 35:15

And I think keeping in mind that our children's prefrontal cortexes aren't fully developed. So they don't even fully develop good executive functioning skills for emotional regulation until early 20s, is what the research is saying. The adults have to be there with them to regulate, even through adolescence.

Rachel: 35:42

Yeah. So how can parents, how can professionals, how can they either work with you, do a training with you, find your kits, what's the easiest way to connect with you?

Jewelisa Blanks: 35:51

Yeah, of course. So you can find us at shopgiftsofjoy.com. So that will have all of our resources on there, whether it's our calming corner kits or whether you want to look into some of the training options. I also have a personal website called JewelisaBlanks.com and that is for more of speaking engagements, keynotes, and breakout sessions and of that sort. However, like I said, shopgiftsofjoy.com will be the easiest.

Rachel: 36:20

We will make sure that all of those are linked in the show notes for people listening, and they can find you. This has been so fun and I just feel like we're all on the same wavelength. Like we're speaking each other's language, and it's so nice to connect with someone who like really gets it. And it's like working on the same mission, just spreading the awareness, and just helping people everywhere.

Jewelisa Blanks: 36:43

Yeah, of course. It's been a pleasure speaking with you. I love everything, you guys are doing. Everything sensory is so important.

Jessica: 36:51

Before we let you go, Can you leave us with one piece of advice for our listeners? And our listeners are a mixture of therapists, parents, and educators.

Jewelisa Blanks: 37:05

I would definitely say to trust the journey. Sometimes there's gonna be bumps in the road. Sometimes it's gonna look like what you're doing is not working. But you know, I think patience and trust in the journey and knowing that at the end of the day, like your kiddos are going to walk away with an intangible like, a skill that they can never be replaced. Being able to self regulate, being able to understand themselves, being able to have a greater self awareness are all things that like, you can never take away from them. And even though you may not see the results of your efforts, right away, just understanding that you are making a difference. And then, you know, just keep going along this journey. And you know, you will be able to see the results soon.

Jessica: 37:55

That's great advice.

Rachel: 37:56

Amazing. Thank you. Thank you so much. It was so lovely chatting with you. We appreciate it.

Jewelisa Blanks: 38:01

Thank you. I hope you guys have a good day.

Rachel: 38:04

You too. That was a fantastic episode as we knew it would be. It was just so exciting to chat with someone who is literally on the same wavelength. Speaking our language. She's amazing.

Jessica: 38:18

Yes, we will link all of her information in the show notes below so that you can look at all of her resources. Whether you're a therapist, an educator,or a parent, you will benefit from her courses, her education, her kits that she sells. Just everything that she has to offer, I feel like it's beneficial for anyone with a child and anyone working with children.

Rachel: 38:42

If you loved learning from Jewelisa and hearing her story, please leave us a review on iTunes or Spotify. Your reviews help us reach more people, who need this information, and who can benefit from this. So just take a second and let us know your thoughts. And make sure you take a screenshot of you listening as well and share this on social media and tag us at "All Things Sensory Podcast", and you can also tag "Shop Gifts of Joy" or just "Gifts of Joy", and you will spread the word.

Jessica: 39:12

Okay. Well, that's it. That's all we got. So we'll talk to you next time. Bye.

Rachel: 39:17

Thank you so much for listening to All Things Sensory by Harkla.

Jessica: 39:20

If you want more information on anything mentioned in the show, head over to Harkla.co/podcast to get the show notes.

Rachel: 39:28

If you have any follow up questions. The best place to ask those is in the comments on the show notes or message us on our Instagram account, which is at Harkla_family or at all things sensory podcast. If you just search Harkla, you'll find us there.

Jessica: 39:45

Like we mentioned before our podcast listeners get 10% of their first order at Harkla. Whether it's for one of our digital courses or one of our sensory swings, the discount code sensory will get you 10% off. That's That's sensory.

Rachel: 40:03

Head to Harkla.co/sensory to use that discount code right now.

Jessica: 40:08

We are so excited to work together to help create confident kids all over the world. While we make every effort to share correct information, we're still learning.

Rachel: 40:18

We will double check all of our facts, but realize that medicine is a constantly changing science and art.

Jessica: 40:23

One doctor or therapist may have a different way of doing things from another.

Rachel: 40:27

We are simply presenting our views and opinions on how to address common sensory challenges, health related difficulties, and what we have found to be beneficial that will be as evidence based as possible.

Jessica: 40:39

By listening to this podcast, you agree not to use this podcast as medical advice to treat any medical condition in either yourself or your child.

Rachel: 40:47

Consult your child's pediatrician or therapist for any medical issues that he or she may be having.

Jessica: 40:53

This entire disclaimer also applies to any guests or contributors to the podcast.

Rachel: 40:58

Thanks so much for listening