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Helping adults understand children’s regulation so they can respond in ways that support participation, learning, and development.
Upcoming Live Masterclass
Regulation in the Moment: A 3-State Capacity Check for Paediatric OTs
A practical 2-hour training designed to help therapists decide what to do when a child is dysregulated in the moment.
In this session you will learn how to quickly determine:
• when the nervous system needs stabilising
• when the child is ready for scaffolding
• when skill development is possible
Live via Zoom. Replay included.
View Masterclass Details
Hi there, I’m Beryl Smith
And I believe that when adults understand a child’s nervous system, everything about support begins to change.
For more than 35 years, I’ve worked as a paediatric Occupational Therapist alongside children, families, teachers, and therapists. Across hospitals, schools, community services, and private practice, I’ve seen the same pattern again and again:
Children are often expected to cope, behave, and learn before their nervous systems are ready.
When this happens, frustration grows: for the child, for the adults supporting them, and for the systems around them.
But when we understand how regulation actually develops, and how to respond to children in ways that match their nervous system capacity, something powerful happens.
- Support becomes clearer.
- Relationships strengthen.
- Children are given the conditions they need to participate, learn, and grow.
Through my work at Sensory SMART OT, I’ve spent decades translating complex clinical knowledge into practical strategies that families, educators, and therapists can use in everyday life.
Over time, this work led me to develop The Regulation Hourglass™, a framework that helps adults recognise where a child is in their regulation capacity and how to support them in ways that are developmentally and neurologically aligned.
Today, the courses and resources shared here extend that work, making decades of clinical insight accessible to the people who support children every day.
Because when adults understand regulation, children no longer have to struggle alone.
Why This Work Matters to Me
Early in my career, I worked in a hospital caring for children with complex medical conditions. One young baby had been admitted with tuberculous meningitis, leaving him with severe motor challenges that resembled quadriplegic cerebral palsy.
Each day, I worked gently with him: positioning, movement, small responses that most people might not notice. It was slow, careful work.
What that experience taught me very early in my career was that progress does not always look dramatic. Sometimes the most important changes happen quietly, in the nervous system, long before they become visible skills.
That lesson has stayed with me throughout my career.
Another moment that shaped my thinking came years later when working with a nine-year-old boy who struggled with motor planning. He once became lost in a room he had visited many times before. He simply couldn’t work out how to find the door.
When we sat down to talk about his goals for the year, he looked at me and said his biggest goal was to earn a Cub Scout badge that required him to tie knots.
At the time, he was still struggling to tie his shoelaces. I remember wondering how on earth we would get there.
But what that experience reinforced for me is something I’ve seen again and again throughout my career: When children are supported with patience, creativity, and the right scaffolding, there is almost always a pathway forward.
Sometimes our job as therapists is simply to help build the bridge.
These experiences, and many others over the years, shaped the
way I think about supporting children.
They are part of what eventually led me to develop The Regulation Hourglass™, a framework that helps adults recognise where a child’s nervous system is and how support can be matched to that moment.
Because when we meet children where they truly are, progress becomes possible.
How You Can Continue Learning
If you would like to explore these ideas further, you may wish to begin with one of the resources below.
Professional Learning
Training for therapists and professionals interested in applying the Regulation Hourglass™ framework within their practice.
Educator Learning
Strategies for supporting regulation within classrooms and learning environments.
Resources
Downloadable guides and tools to support everyday understanding of children’s regulation and emotions.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is this just another sensory strategies training?
Will this replace my existing OT knowledge or frameworks?
What if I can’t attend live?
Who is this masterclass for?
Ready to strengthen your clinical decision-making in the moment?
Join the Regulation in the Moment Masterclass and learn a simple framework for understanding a child’s regulation capacity when it matters most.
Register Now