Dinosaurs apparently smelled flowers, nature sounds become a multi-million dollar industry, and a perspective shift in what students value in writers

“McKamey argues that the most important skill for a teacher is his or her ability to build trust with a student, which develops when students can sense that the educator is willing to hear their ideas, thoughts, and musings despite their challenges with grammar, low grades, or test scores in previous classes. This doesn’t mean that teachers need to cushion their feedback with fake praise, but it does mean, she thinks, that schools should help teachers develop skills to recognize […]

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Presumptions of deficit can be damaging, embracing rather than masking autism can open the door for happiness, and piercing ASMR supercuts found in Harry Potter #takethemaskoff

“I have seen some autistic people argue that blaming society for our difficulties is shirking personal responsibility and that we should be aiming to ‘improve’ ourselves. This stance says a lot about their conceptualisation of autism: If one sees autistic people as deficient or lacking in some way compared to non-autistic people then it is understandable that one would believe that acting more like a non-autistic person is “self-improvement.” I do not see autism that way at all. All humans […]

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A bitter account of living with misophonia, sensory scientists develop a taste test that can measure sensitivity in preschoolers, and different brain areas have been identified as critical in temporal processing

“Misophonia is a troublesome disorder. My sensory issues go far beyond the grasp of sights and sounds. I feel it every time I touch water that is too hot or cold. I feel it when velvet touches my skin and makes me cringe. If I step out into the hot summer heat after my blissfully air-conditioned atmosphere I can feel the hold on my body. All of my senses are subject to sensory overload and under-load. If I do too much I feel my body pull out from under me. My back crumbles under the pressure.”

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