The Social World Unmasked: Teaching the Hidden Curriculum to Neurodivergent Minds
- Speaker:
- Brenda Smith Myles, PhD
- Duration:
- 2 Hours 02 Minutes
- Format:
- Audio and Video
- Copyright:
-
Nov 14, 2025
- Product Code:
- POS150420
- Media Type:
- Digital Seminar
Description
Watch Brenda Smith Myles, PhD, to gain a compassionate understanding of the “hidden curriculum”—the often-unspoken social rules and expectations that can create barriers to inclusion and well-being. You’ll learn:
- Respectful, strengths-based strategies for supporting neurodivergent individuals in recognizing, interpreting, and choosing how to respond to social expectations in ways that honor their authenticity
- Tools to help individuals build agency and confidence by understanding context, prediction, slang, metaphors, and nonverbal communication—without pressure to mask or conform
- Approaches to embed direct instruction and self-advocacy into everyday life, fostering independence and informed choice across environments
Through clinical stories, practical tools, and affirming guidance, you’ll leave prepared to help your clients navigate the social world on their terms—supporting connection, autonomy, and emotional safety at every step.
Credit
Speaker
Brenda Smith Myles, PhD Related seminars and products
Brenda Smith Myles, PhD, formerly a professor in the Department of Special Education at the University of Kansas, is the recipient of the Autism Society of America’s Outstanding Professional Award, the Princeton Fellowship Award, The Global and Regional Asperger Syndrome (GRASP) Divine Neurotypical Award, American Academy of Pediatrics Autism Champion, and two-time recipient of the Council for Exceptional Children Burton Blatt Humanitarian Award.
She served as the editor of Intervention in School and Clinic, the third largest journal in special education, and has been a member of the editorial board of several journals, including Focus on Autism and Other Developmental Disabilities, Remedial and Special Education, and Autism: The International Journal of Research. Brenda has made over 3000 presentations all over the world and written more than 300 articles and books on autism.
In addition, she collaborated with the National Professional Center on Autism Spectrum Disorders, National Autism Center, and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services who identified evidenced based practices for autistic. Further, in the latest survey conducted by the University of Texas, she was acknowledged as the second most productive applied researcher in ASD in the world.
Speaker Disclosures:
Financial: Brenda Smith Myles has an employment relationship with Brenda Smith Myles Group. She receives royalties as a published author. She receives a speaking honorarium from PESI, Inc. She has no relevant financial relationships with ineligible organizations.
Non-financial: Brenda Smith Myles serves on several advisory boards, for a complete list contact PESI, Inc.
Additional Info
Access for Self-Study (Non-Interactive)Access never expires for this product.
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Objectives
- Use the hidden curriculum to improve clients understanding of social norms and expectations that will improve engagement in the occupation of social participation.
- Identify the importance of the hidden curriculum across different settings such as school, community, and home.
- Choose methods to teach the hidden curriculum across different ages and environments.
Outline
- A Brief and Practical Overview of the Autistic Neurology Related to the Hidden Curriculum
- Two types of evidence that are important in understanding autism will be presented: the perceptions of autistic people and brain scans
- Risks and limitations of research, including instructional research, will be described
- Evidence in the following areas will be discussed learning, social/communication, generalization, reinforcement, sensory, and implicit learning
- Why Teach the Hidden Curriculum
- The hidden curriculum, the set of unwritten rules that no one has been directly taught, but almost everyone knows, will be described
- Examples of its importance in multiple environments from preschool through adulthood will be discussed
- How to Teach the Hidden Curriculum
- The instructional methods will be described and examples provided: one-a-day method, social narratives, cartooning, the Power Card Strategy, word scales, social autopsies, and video modeling
- The role of the mentor in supporting the use of the hidden curriculum will be discussed
Target Audience
- Teachers/School-Based Personnel
- School Administrators
- Speech-Language Pathologists
- Occupational Therapists
- Occupational Therapy Assistants
- Social Workers
- Licensed Clinical/Mental Health Counselors
- Psychologists
- Case Managers
- Marriage & Family Therapists
- Physicians
- Nursing Home/Assisted Living Administrators
- Addiction Professionals
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