Early Risers

AUG 20, 2025

In this second episode of a two-part series, we continue our conversation with Dr. Anne Gearity about her seminal work in developmental repair. In our previous episode we learned about the basics of developmental repair and how caregivers help dysregulated children become regulated. But what happens when a caregiver doesn’t look like the child, or is not part of their community? Dr. Gearity explains how building a “bridge” with the child can help the child feel safe and help the caregiver earn the child’s trust. We also learn what developmental repair looks like on the ground. Chantell Johnson, a practitioner of Dr. Gearity’s model, says when kids “don't have the language to tell you, they'll show you.” And that can be confusing for adults who are working with pre-verbal children. But it can be equally confusing for the child, who also may not understand their own behavior. “Kids are really doing the best they can with what they have, even when it's inappropriate.” <h2 id="h2_guests">Guests</h2> Dr. Anne Gearity earned her Ph.D. in clinical social work from the Institute for Clinical Social Work in Chicago, IL. Research from her dissertation was foundational for Developmental Repair, an intervention manual for behaviorally challenged and challenging children, written in collaboration with the Washburn Center for Children in Minneapolis. This manual is now used extensively throughout the state. She taught for 25 years at the University of Minnesota School of Social Work and was faculty of the U of M’s Infant and Early Child Mental Health Certificate program in the Institute for Child Development. Chantell Johnson is an MSW Candidate at the University of Minnesota. She’s also the Community Wellness Program Manager & Family Academy Facilitator at the Northside Achievement Zone in Minneapolis, MN. <h2 id="h2_discussion_guide">Discussion Guide</h2> <h2 id="h2_episode_resources">Episode Resources</h2> <a href="https://www.northsideachievement.org/">Northside Achievement Zone</a> Dr. Rita Pierson - <a href="https://blog.ted.com/remembering-educator-rita-f-pierson/">Every Child Needs a Champion</a> <a href="https://www.dhs.state.mn.us/main/groups/county_access/documents/pub/dhs16_183364.pdf">Developmental Repair Manual</a> (2012, Gearity) <a href="https://med.umn.edu/bio/anne-gearity">Dr. Anne Gearity </a>University of Minnesota Dept of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences

35 MIN

AUG 6, 2025

Rupture and Repair, Part 1

When Dr. Anne Gearity earned her master’s in social work in 1974, the field of Early Childhood was just beginning. As she puts it, “We started to pay attention and really think about what children need not just to survive, but to thrive—and that they can be resilient.” That focus on the child has guided her work ever since. Over five decades, her research led to a new approach for treating childhood trauma: Developmental Repair. In part one of this two-part series, host Andre Dukes talks with Dr. Gearity about what she’s learned from working with children and how caregivers can better understand behavior as a form of communication. <h2 id="h2_guest">Guest</h2> Dr. Anne Gearity earned her Ph.D. in clinical social work from the Institute for Clinical Social Work in Chicago, IL. Research from her dissertation was foundational for Developmental Repair, an intervention manual for behaviorally challenged and challenging children, written in collaboration with the Washburn Center for Children in Minneapolis. This manual is now used extensively throughout the state. She taught for 25 years in the University of Minnesota School of Social Work and was faculty of the U of M’s Infant and Early Child Mental Health Certificate program in the Institute for Child Development. She completed a master’s in social work from the Fordham University Graduate School of Social Work of New York, NY, and has had an independent mental health practice that serves children, adolescents and adults since 1987. Her initial role in psychiatry was teaching normal child development to child and adolescent psychiatry fellows. In 2017, she started the family consult clinic to help families navigate potentially confusing diagnoses, treatment plans and related family needs, and provide fellowship with family engagement experiences. <h2 id="h2_discussion_guide">Discussion Guide</h2> <h2 id="h2_episode_resources">Episode Resources</h2> Seminal 1991 <a href="https://www.ifemdr.fr/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/Lenone-1991-Childhood-traumas-an-outline-and-overview.pdf">report</a> on Childhood Trauma <a href="https://www.apa.org/monitor/2014/06/neglect">Romanian Orphans</a> <a href="https://www.dhs.state.mn.us/main/groups/county_access/documents/pub/dhs16_183364.pdf">Developmental Repair Manual</a> (2012, Gearity) <a href="https://med.umn.edu/bio/anne-gearity">Dr. Anne Gearity </a>University of Minnesota Dept of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences

32 MIN

JUL 23, 2025

Developing Identity through Immersion: Dakota Language Nest

The Dakota Language Nest is a preschool where children are developing their identity through immersion in Dakota culture, traditions and language. In this episode we spend a day with the children as they practice the traditions of smudging, tobacco harvesting, singing songs and showing respect and gratitude for the natural world’s gifts. We speak with lead teacher, Katie Bendickson, about the importance of keeping the language alive, and how the language and traditions are intertwined. We also speak with Nicole Cavender, a Dakota woman whose son attends the language nest: “I wanted to give them what I didn't have and wanted, which wasn't just language, it wasn't just answers to questions, but it's really about belonging, and belonging doesn't happen without community.” <h2 id="h2_guest">Guest</h2> Wóokiye wiŋ | Katie Bendickson Lead Teacher, Dakhódiapi Wahóȟpi | Dakota Language Nest University of Minnesota Child Development Laboratory School Wóokiye wiŋ | Katie Bendickson spent much of her young life on her mother’s reservation, Fond du Lac Reservation in northern Minnesota, before her family moved to her father’s reservation at Upper Sioux Community in southwest Minnesota. Bendickson is Sisseton Wahpeton Dakhóta. She began learning the Dakota language in high school at Yellow Medicine Senior High, but it wasn’t until college that the language truly captivated her. It transformed her sense of identity, reshaped her worldview and helped her along her personal healing journey. Her main teaching enthusiasm is nature-based and play-based learning for young children in the Dakota language medium. <h2 id="h2_episode_resources">Episode Resources</h2> <a href="https://lab-school.umn.edu/language-nest-program/">Dakota Language Nest</a> Truth telling: <a href="https://www.mpr.org/episodes/2021/11/17/rethinking-thanksgiving-how-to-speak-to-young-children-about-historical-and-racialized-trauma">Rethinking Thanksgiving: How to speak to young children about historical and racialized trauma</a> MN Humanities Center - <a href="https://www.mnhum.org/program/learning-from-place-bdote/">Learning from Place: Bdote</a>

33 MIN

JUL 9, 2025

Identity through Words and Images, Part 2: Ourselves on the Shelves

What’s the difference between a mirror book and a window book? For part two of our Identity through Words and Images series, we go on location to climb aboard Babycake’s Book Stack bookmobile! We learn the importance of children seeing characters that look like they do, how that impacts their sense of self, and how seeing books about others broadens their sense of community. Owner Zsamé Morgan underscores the importance of family literacy and offers guidance on how to get started. We also hear from children’s book illustrators on how they approach their work. We explore how a book’s images can shape a child’s identity just as much as the text, especially among infants and toddlers, and how illustrators think about their role when choosing shapes and hues. <h2 id="h2_guest">Guest</h2> Zsamé Morgan Owner, Babycake’s Book Stack Zsamé Morgan is the owner of Babycake’s Book Stack, a children's bookstore on wheels that focuses on family literacy, culture, language and community throughout the Twin Cities — a hub of many diverse people. In 2017, Morgan bought a 33-foot bookmobile from a library in Indiana and opened it up to the public in 2019. Her mobile bookstore carries a highly curated inventory of baby board books, children's, middle school and young adult (YA) books designed to include the culture and/or languages of Indigenous, immigrant, refugee, African American children and children of many other multicultural backgrounds. Discussion Guide <h2 id="h2_episode_resources">Episode Resources</h2> Babycake’s Book Stack <a href="https://babycakesbookstack.com/family-literacy-resources">Resources for Family Literacy</a> Babycake’s Book Stack <a href="https://babycakesbookstack.com/events">Bookmobile Schedule</a> <a href="https://shop.mnhs.org/products/the-big-leaf-leap-1?srsltid=AfmBOoqb6WC-8mykf4UX66A-zFhDjBNmIZ3WexbRb_6O32nIyYZGdx4A">Meleck Davis</a> <a href="http://yuyimorales.com/">Yuyi Morales</a> <a href="https://work.robdontstop.com/">Rob Liu-Trujillo</a>

30 MIN

JUN 25, 2025

Identity through Words and Images, Part 1: Planting Seeds with Resmaa Menakem and T. Mychael Rambo

Resmaa Menakem’s bestselling text “My Grandmother’s Hands” deals with the visceral impact of racialized trauma. But is it important for children to understand the legacy of these wounds? And how do we begin to take up such a weighty topic with young children? We sit down with authors Resmaa Menakem and T. Mychael Rambo to understand how a children’s book can provide an invitation for parents and caregivers to begin to acknowledge the trauma. As Menakem says, “Something happened and continues to happen to you and your people, and you have to tend to that.” <h2 id="h2_guests">Guests</h2> Resmaa Menakem and T. Mychael Rambo Co-Authors, “The Stories from My Grandmother’s Hands” Resmaa Menakem and T. Mychael Rambo teamed up with illustrator Leroy Campbell to co-author a companion children’s book to Menakem’s New York Times bestseller “My Grandmother’s Hands: Racialized Trauma and the Pathway to Mending Our Hearts and Bodies.” Menakem is a therapist and licensed clinical worker specializing in racialized trauma, communal healing, and cultural first aid based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. His groundbreaking work has reshaped conversations on race and trauma, guiding others toward deep, embodied change. T. Mychael is a Minneapolis-based actor, author, community organizer and public speaker. <h2 id="h2_discussion_guide">Discussion Guide</h2> <h2 id="h2_episode_resources">Episode Resources</h2> “<a href="http://thestoriesfrommygrandmothershands.com">Stories from my Grandmother’s Hands</a>” “<a href="https://resmaa.com/merch/">My Grandmother’s Hands</a>” - Resmaa Menakem “<a href="https://1619education.org/">1619 Project</a>” - Nikole Hannah-Jones <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alvin_Toffler">Alvin Toffler</a>

32 MIN

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