About this episode

Tara Phillips shares the story behind the Autism Little Learners membership and how it evolved from a personal loss into a supportive community for educators and parents of autistic preschoolers.

Teaching autistic preschoolers can feel lonely. This is the episode where I pull back the curtain on the membership that became the opposite of that island — where it came from, what's inside, and the community that surprised me most. Teaching young autistic children can feel like being on an island. The membership is the opposite of that. I'll tell you how it began in grief, after I lost my dad in 2019, and grew into a genuine passion for helping educators and parents feel less overwhelmed and celebrate the small wins that build on each other. I'll share the story of Laura — a member who started with four empty walls and turned them into a classroom where children are seen, presumed competent, and given every chance to communicate. And I'll tell you why, even with hundreds of resources inside, people don't stay for the resources. They stay for each other. We'll talk about: how Autism Little Learners was born out of one of the hardest seasons of my life why teaching young autistic children so often feels like being on an island the member who started with four empty walls — and what her classroom looks like now the Four Foundations framework: Regulate, Connect, Routines, and…

People in this episode

Host: Tara Phillips

Topics covered

• autism education
• community support
• teaching strategies
• grief and loss
• preschool education
• classroom transformation

Keywords

• autistic preschoolers
• membership community
• teaching resources
• Four Foundations framework
• classroom support
• educators
• parenting
• overwhelm
• small wins

More episodes of The Autism Little Learners Podcast

• #183 Presuming Competence in the Preschool Classroom · July 14, 2026 · 14 min
• #182 Emotional Intelligence in the Classroom with NYT Best Seller Alyssa Blask Campbell · July 7, 2026 · 47 min
• #181: Every Non-Speaking Child Should Have Access To Robust AAC with AAC User, Jordyn Zimmerman · June 30, 2026 · 1h 5m
• #180 Preschool Autism Summit: How it came to be & the movement we're building together · June 23, 2026 · 32 min
• #179: The 4-Letter Shift That Changes How You See Behavior! · June 16, 2026 · 17 min
• #178: What If Too Many Questions Are Quieting Your AAC Learners? · June 9, 2026 · 15 min

Explore listener stats, chart rankings, contacts and more on the The Autism Little Learners Podcast podcast page.