A Different Lens on Learning Challenges
August 4th 2026
1.30pm - 5.00pm(ish)
Learning difficulties challenge more than just the student — they also challenge the teachers who work to accommodate their learning needs.
Most teacher professional learning focuses on curriculum, pedagogy, and differentiation.
Body to Brain Learning @ School goes deeper — introducing the neurodevelopmental foundations that underpin how the body and brain work together before any teaching can land, and applying that understanding directly back to the curriculum, pedagogy and differentiation decisions teachers are already making.
When teachers understand what's happening at this level, they don't just see their students differently. They understand why some students struggle despite good teaching, and what to do about it.
This approach helps teachers apply AITSL Standard #1 — "Know your students and how they learn" — using a neurodevelopmental perspective.
Join us in a conversation...
Neurodevelopmental educators: Dr Christine Payard (Founder), Terry Davidson & Nadine Vielle (Body to Brain Learning @ School Facilitators) are hosting a conversation about a different way of understanding children who are struggling to learn — and what the approach can look like in schools like yours.
We present the Body to Brain Learning @ School (B2BL@S) approach and provide three perspectives to consider:
- Christine offers key, evidence-based, background information about why the B2BL@S approach works and how it works as a contextualised professional learning activity that supports better learning opportunities
- Nadine provides insight into what it looks like as a school facilitator,
- Terry provides the perspective of someone who has sat in the principal's chair — now a B2BL@S Regional Facilitator who sees this approach as key for supporting teachers and students in schools
AND, we chat with you about how we can contextualise this approach and professional learning opportunity for you in your schools.
EVENT DETAILS:
Where: Double Tree Hilton,
Esplanade, Cairns
When: 1.30 pm to 5.00 pm (ish)
Afternoon tea will be provided.
Fee: $30.00
Places are limited, so reserve your position early.
About Dr Christine Payard
Dr Christine Payard (PhD) is a neurodevelopmental educator and founder of Body to Brain Learning and Integrating Thinking. She brings neurodevelopmental research into the classroom — translating neurodevelopmental science into practical insights that educators can use straight away.
Her career spans early childhood through postgraduate education, and her research in teacher professional learning means she understands both the neurodevelopmental science and what makes professional development actually land for busy educators.
Grounded in research, her work is built for schools, and aligned with the AITSL Professional Standards.
About Terry Davidson
Terry Davidson brings 40 years of experience in education as a classroom teacher, curriculum leader and school principal. She has worked alongside educators and parents to understand the developmental and environmental factors that can influence a child's learning, behaviour and everyday functioning — knowing that many learning challenges are not simply cognitive or academic, but often linked to underlying developmental factors that go unseen even when good support is already in place.
As a Body to Brain Learning @ School Regional Facilitator, Terry brings deep school leadership experience together with specialised training in neurodevelopmental approaches, helping educators connect the dots between physical development and the learning behaviours they see every day in the classroom.
About Nadine Vielle
Nadine Vielle brings a background in education support, Vocational Education and Teaching, and neurodevelopmental practice to her work as a Body to Brain Learning @ School Regional Facilitator. Having worked in primary schools as a Teacher Aide supporting students with learning difficulties, she has delivered the B2BL@S programme directly in a small FNQ school — bringing firsthand insight into what the approach looks like in practice and the difference it makes for students and teachers.
Nadine is especially attuned to identifying the underlying causes behind learning and behavioural challenges, and finding practical, individualised ways forward for the students and teachers she works with.
