Ep 68 – Executive Functioning & MI

Talking To Change - A Motivational Interviewing Podcast

04/25/23 • 60 min

Executive Functioning & MI

In this episode Glenn and Sebastian discuss executive functioning and MI with Tamara Hamilton, LCSW, CMBT. Tamara is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker with more than thirty years of experience in behavioral health. For the past ten years, she has been at Cliff Valley School, a pre-K through 8 progressive independent school in Atlanta, Georgia, USA, where she serves on the administration team as school counselor and director of the Cliff Valley Institute. She has focused on issues impacting the well-being of children with a particular emphasis on integrating social/emotional learning into academic curricula. Tamara earned her Master’s Degree from the Indiana University School of Social Work, and she holds a graduate certificate in Mind, Brain, and Teaching from the School of Education at Johns Hopkins University. Tamara is a frequent consultant and invited speaker regarding various topics related to child development. Her presentation style is informative, warm, and relatable as she combines her training in neuro-learning, clinical professional experience, and personal stories as a mother of three.

Episode index:

00:00 – Opening and episode preview

04:10 – Tamara’s early MI story

08:25 – What are Executive Functions (EF)?

14:20 – “Learning is changing”

20:40 – Tamara’s journey as a mother of a child with autism

28:00 – “Setting the emotional climate” when working with children and families

30:30 – Applying MI to EF coaching

41:30 – Parallels when working with parents

46:00 – EF skills in context

50:00 – From labels to “What do you need?”

57:15 – Preparing for this summer’s Cliff Valley Institute