Seminars for Parents & Professionals

Neurodiversity Support Seminars

Have you been wanting real life information about how to help your neurodiverse child overcome challenges, learn & practice social skills, develop self-regulation, improve behavior and cooperation…and THRIVE?

Help is right here! Mike Fogel* has been teaching neurodiversity support strategies to parents, professionals, and educators for over two decades. His life-changing workshops are now available nationally and internationally right here!

*Mike Fogel, MA, ATR-BC, PAATA HLM is an Art Therapist, Licensed Professional Counselor, the founder of the Art of Friendship Social-Coping Program & Camp Pegasus, and author of “The Social-Emotional Guidebook: Motivate Children With Social Challenges to Master Social & Emotional Coping Skills”

“My staff told me that your workshop was one of the best professional development workshops they have seen. One teacher has been at it for 30 years! They were all so excited and thought you were amazing.”
— Diane Force, head of Bala House Montessori School, Bala Cynwyd, PA

Neurodiversity Seminar Schedule

  • Seminar meeting times vary to make the live seminars accessible to different family schedules. I want everyone to be able to attend the seminars live and ask questions!

  • All of the seminars are recorded and are available on Mike Fogel’s Art of Friendship You Tube Channel

SEMINAR SCHEDULE*

*Dates & times may be subject to change

Thursday, April 10, 2025 | 12:00pm-1:00pm EDT
The First Step On Any Support Plan: Understanding How Neurodivergent Children Think, Feel, And Behave
This presentation reveals the hidden thought processes that make it so hard for your child to navigate the mainstream neurotypical social world. By understanding neurodivergent thought habits and patterns, you'll be able to confidently implement difference-making support strategies and structure. You'll discover the answers to questions such as "how can I teach my child to 'read the room' and learn the unwritten rules of socialization?" "Why does my child seem to not learn from their social miscues, and how can I help them improve socially?" "How can I help my child decrease their anxiety, increase comfort and calmness, and better succeed in their world?" You will take away seven easy support strategies you can implement immediately to make your child's - and your family's - life better.
REGISTER HERE to attend the 4/10 seminar in-person or virtually

Friday, May 9, 2025 | 12:00pm-1:00pm EST
The Ideal Support Environment: Appreciate What Your Neurodivergent Child Does Well and Motivate Them to Practice & Master Social Skills with T.P.R.
Is your child stuck in discouraging negative feedback loops with adults & peers? Is it hard to motivate them to practice and master learned coping skills? Discover how a simple shift in your focus can create a deeply accepting and appreciative environment, spark positive learning cycles, and motivate your child to practice of social skills. You will learn why Targeted Positive Reflection is the magic formula to A) ignite growth, B) avoid power struggles, C) develop real-time self-awareness, D) motivate practice, E) empower self-advocacy/self-determination, & F) enhance relationships. After this workshop, you will be able to confidently use this repeatable language script to create positive cycles - and even layer on an easy reward system to get reluctant kids motivated to grow.
REGISTER HERE to attend the 5/9 seminar in-person or virtually


Thursday, June 5, 2025 | 12:00pm-1:00pm EST
Compassionate Social Coaching for Social Miscues and Big Feelings
Children with autism, ADHD, and learning differences are often misunderstood and receive controlling or punitive corrections for behaviors that are not motivated by bad intentions. Frequent correction is one part of a larger negative feedback cycle that makes neurodivergent kids feel incompetent, unconfident, and anxious. Neurodivergent social miscues are usually caused by misunderstanding social cues or unwritten social rules/expectations or overwhelming emotions, and are incidental learning opportunities, if done well. Discover how to coach compassionately and effectively by using questions, not corrections. You’ll learn problem-solving scripts that simultaneously honors the child’s uniqueness, gets them thinking about ways to engage with the world more successfully, and cope with feelings. You will emerge from this seminar equipped to confidently provide gentle social coaching for your child’s difficult moments.
REGISTER HERE to attend the 6/5 seminar in-person or virtually


** Special Summer Schedule: Thursday, July 10, 2025 | 8:00pm-9:00pm EST
Understanding Meltdowns: Why Does My Neurodiverse Child Get So Angry?


** Special Summer Schedule: Thursday, August 7, 2025 | 8:00pm-9:00pm EST
Emotional G.P.S.: Support Children at Four Levels of Frustration, Anger, and Meltdowns

Tuesday, September 9, 2025 | 12:00pm-1:00pm EST
The Top Five Cognitive Coping Skills For Anger

Thursday, October 9, 2025 | 12:00pm-1:00pm EST
Personal Power Project: Coping With Anxiety

Monday, November 3, 2025 | 12:00pm-1:00pm EDT
Replacing Negative-Depressive Thinking With Realistic Resilience

Friday, December 5, 2025 | 12:00pm-1:00pm EDT
How to Successfully Navigate Unstructured Situations

ADDITIONAL TOPICS FOR THE FUTURE…AND MUCH MUCH MORE!

  • Introduction to Neurodiversity: What Is It and What Type of Ableism Does Your Child Face?

  • The Top 7 Social Awareness and Skills Everyone Needs to Succeed in Life

  • Improve Your Comfort and Confidence With Conversation Skills

  • Play Skills for Preschool and Elementary Age Children

  • Coping With Bullies

  • Capitalizing on Neurodiverse Teens’ Maturing Brains For Motivation to Grow Versus Younger Children’s Resistance

  • Leveraging the Habits of Confident and Content Parents of Neurodiverse Children

  • Love With Limits: Shaping Positive Behaviors Using Rewards And Effective Boundaries & Consequences

  • Supporting Siblings Of Neurodiverse Children

  • Healthy Sexuality in the Neurodiverse Population

  • All About Neurodiverse Teens

  • All About Neurodiverse Preschoolers

  • All About Neurodiverse Elementary Schoolers

  • All About Neurodiverse Middle Schoolers

  • Promoting Healthy Texting and Social Media Use

  • Supporting Sensory Integration

  • How To Choose The Right Summer Camp For Your Neurodivergent Child
    Join Mike to learn critical tips to ensure that you find a summer camp that is a great fit for your child with autism or ADHD. Rather than endorsing specific camp programs, you will learn a research process to yield confidence that your chosen camp(s) will provide your child a summer of fun, friendship, and SUCCESS. You'll learn when and how to include your child in the selection process. You'll discover insightful interview questions to ask camp directors to get inside the program's philosophy about neurodivergent acceptance and support. The goal? To ensure your confidence the camp will properly support your child's unique wiring and behavior, in both happy times and challenging moments.

 All presentations are recorded for viewing/re-watching at Mike Fogel’s Art of Friendship You Tube Channel.

Continuing Education Credits (CEC’s) are not available for these events.

All live programs are scheduled in USA Eastern Time

‘Want Mike to Train Your Staff or Organization?

Mike’s presentations help you understand neurodivergent thinking, create an environment of acceptance and belonging, and implement powerful techniques to foster the practice of positive social and emotional coping skills. Presentations can stand-alone or be combined with others. Mike will customize a seminar to meet your training needs!

Professional Development Trainings for Educators, Summer Camp Professionals, & Therapists

Provided by Mike Fogel, MA, ATR-BC, LPC

  1. Understanding How Neurodivergent Students/Campers Think & Feel, & How to Provide Ideal Support

  2. Stop Neurodiversity Ableism: Replacing Negative with Positive Feedback Cycles To Increase Motivation & Practice Of Learned Social Skills

  3. Teachable Moments for Neurodiverse Children: Compassionate Social Coaching For Social Miscues & Big Feelings

  4. Love With Limits: Using Structure, Rewards, and Consequences to Increase Positive Coping & Decrease Challenging Behaviors in Neurodiverse Children

  5. Emotional GPS: Adult Support and Children’s Coping Strategies for Four Phases of Frustration & Anger

  6. The Top 7 Social Awareness & Skills for Social Success: Lessons to Live By

  7. The Road to Happiness: Developing Assertiveness and Problem-Solving Skills in Children

  8. Meltdowns and Shut Downs: Helping Children Develop Frustration Tolerance & Anger Management Skills

  9. Your Personal Power Project: Helping Children Cope with Anxiety, Worry & Stress

  10. Three Essential Strategies to Morph Negative-Depressive Thinking into Resilient Coping

  11. Bridging the GAP: Conversation Skills to Help Neurodiverse Teens Succeed in Unstructured Situations

  12. Developing “Play Words”, Play Awareness & Play Skills for Neurodiverse Preschool & Kindergarten Students

  13. Bunnies Versus Dragons: Helping Your Child Cope with Bullies, Meanies, and Impossible Kids

 
Finally, Mike offers a “meta” presentation for professionals and educators.

  •  “Reverse Art Therapy: How to Write and Present Visual and Active Social-Emotional Learning Lessons for Neurodiverse Children (ASD, ADHD, and Learning Differences)” (2-3 hours)

Mike shares how neurodivergent children often become cognitively/emotionally overloaded when caregivers, educators, and professionals rely on verbal communication to teach, discipline, give directions, & coach. Out of Mike’s clinical experience as an art therapist working with children with neuro-diverse processing styles, he developed a visual language with youth to concretize, clarify, and make memorable abstract social-emotional coping concepts. Mike shares a step-by step and repeatable system of visual communication for anyone to use with their students and clients.