Speaking & Workshops
Sam Straub is a parent coach, longtime educator, and speaker who helps adults better understand the complicated, fascinating, and sometimes maddening business of raising teens. Drawing on more than 25 years of experience and her training as a licensed clinical counselor, Sam provides engaging, practical presentations on parenting teens, adolescent mental health, communication, executive functioning, anxiety, emotional well-being, and more.
Navigating Adolescent Behavior
Parenting adolescents can feel confusing, emotional, and high stakes.
One minute a teen is funny, insightful, and affectionate.
The next they are shutting down, pushing away, melting down, procrastinating, arguing, or acting in ways that leave the adults around them wondering “What happened?”
In her parenting workshops and teen mental health workshops, Sam helps parents, educators, and professionals better understand adolescent behavior so they can respond with more calm, confidence, and effectiveness.
Her presentations blend to create experiences that are both deeply validating and immediately useful. Participants walk away not only understanding teens more deeply, but also feeling more hopeful, more grounded, and more equipped to navigate the complicated realities of adolescence.
Interested In Bringing Sam To Your Organization?
Whether you are looking for a parenting workshop speaker, parent education speaker, adolescent mental health speaker, or teacher trainer for your school, conference, or organization, Sam would love to collaborate with you.
Signature Parent Presentations
Whether she's speaking to parents, educators, healthcare professionals, youth-serving organizations, our teens themselves, Sam's goal is the same: to help participants better understand the brains, emotions, and developmental needs of young people so they can build stronger relationships, reduce unnecessary conflict, and create environments where kids and teens can truly thrive.
Understanding Your Teen's Operating System: Why do Good Kids Do Confusing Things?
Parenting for Connection, Confidence, and Cooperation
The parenting strategies that worked beautifully when your child was eight often stop working at fourteen, leaving many parents feeling confused, frustrated, or disconnected.
In this engaging, brain-based presentation, parents will learn how to better understand the changes taking place beneath their teen's behavior, respond in ways that strengthen connection, and maintain clear expectations without constant conflict. Participants leave with practical tools they can begin using immediately and a renewed sense of confidence in their parenting.
Raising Anxiety-Prone Kids
Helping Children Build Confidence and Resilience
Many parents want to help an anxious child but aren't sure where support ends and accommodation begins.
This presentation helps parents recognize how anxiety influences behavior and decision-making while providing practical strategies that build resilience rather than reinforce fear. Participants leave with a clearer understanding of anxiety, greater confidence in responding to difficult moments, and a roadmap for helping their child become more capable, independent, and emotionally resilient.
Parenting Kids with ADHD
Understanding the Brain Behind the Behavior
When a child struggles to get started, stay organized, regulate emotions, or follow through, it's easy to assume they aren't trying hard enough. Often, the story is much more complicated.
Grounded in neuroscience and executive functioning research, this presentation helps parents better understand the ADHD brain and distinguish between "can't" and "won't." Families leave with greater empathy, more effective parenting strategies, and practical tools that improve accountability while preserving connection and confidence.
Raising Thriving Kids in a Tech-Saturated World
Navigating Today's Digital World Peacefully
Technology isn't going away, but family conflict around screens doesn't have to become the norm.
This workshop helps parents move beyond endless power struggles by creating healthy boundaries, encouraging digital responsibility, and fostering open conversations about technology. Participants leave with practical strategies they can adapt to their family's values and a greater sense of confidence navigating today's digital world.
Letting Go
Helping Parents Launch Their Teens with Confidence
Launching a teenager into adulthood is one of parenting's greatest joys and one of its greatest challenges.
Whether your teen is heading to college, work, military service, or another path, this interactive workshop helps parents navigate the emotional transition with confidence. Participants leave with practical strategies for supporting independence, maintaining connection, and embracing their evolving role as the parent of a young adult.
Professional Development for Educators
Supporting Anxious Students in Today's Classroom
Anxiety doesn't always look like worry. Sometimes it looks like avoidance, perfectionism, irritability, or disengagement.
This practical workshop helps educators recognize how anxiety shows up in school settings and respond in ways that promote both learning and emotional safety. Teachers leave with a deeper understanding of student behavior, classroom-ready strategies, and greater confidence supporting anxious learners.
Brain-Based Classroom Management
Student behavior makes far more sense when we understand the developing brain.
This presentation equips educators with practical classroom management strategies grounded in neuroscience, executive functioning, and emotional regulation. Participants leave with new ways to reduce power struggles, increase student engagement, and create calmer, more productive classrooms.
Creating Classrooms Where Students Belong
Students learn best when they feel emotionally safe, connected, and valued.
This workshop explores the powerful relationship between belonging, learning, and student well-being while providing practical strategies for creating inclusive classroom communities where all students can thrive. Participants leave with actionable ideas that strengthen relationships and cultivate positive school culture.
Camp & Youth Staff Training
Building Safe, Inclusive, and Connected Communities
Every young person deserves to feel physically safe, emotionally supported, and genuinely welcomed.
Designed for camp staff and youth-serving professionals, this training combines child safety, belonging, bullying prevention, and positive youth development into one engaging, interactive workshop. Participants leave prepared to foster environments where young people feel connected, respected, and empowered to thrive.
Additional Topics Available
Have something else in mind? I'd love to hear about it. Many of my favorite presentations began as conversations with schools and community organizations looking for support around a specific challenge. Let's work together to create a workshop that meets the needs of your audience.
Executive Functioning Skills
Motivation and the "Can't vs. Won't" Framework
Positive Psychology & Character Strengths
Bullying Prevention
Suicide Prevention
Social Media & Technology
Faculty Wellness
Transition to Middle School
Transition to High School
Transition to College
Parent-Teen Communication
Emotional Regulation
Leadership Development
Neurodiversity
Building Resilient School Communities
What Organizations and Audience Members Say
I was incredibly impressed by the tools, techniques, and activities that Sam uses to help the youth in her programs open up to themselves and their peers. The activities were designed to build confidence and to think critically about who each person is as an individual and who they are in relation to those around them. There was no shame even when tough topics were discussed, the program is pure empowerment from start to finish.
Working with Samantha has been an absolute pleasure. She brings a rare combination of deep expertise, warmth, and relatability to her presentations that truly resonates with our audiences. Her sessions on the teen brain have been some of the most well-received we've hosted as they are engaging, informative, and easy to follow. Samantha breaks down complex topics in a way that feels accessible and empowering. We can't recommend her enough!
Sam seamlessly blends humor, research, and practical strategies. Each has their own place and power, but the ability to blend all three is rare. We needed a speaker who could reach teachers in language they could actually hear, and Sam delivers. Her presentations are laid back, accessible, yet full of rich, relevant content.
Sam is a gem! Our organization wanted to connect parents with someone who could guide them through the overwhelming, messy, and beautiful reality of raising teens and tweens—and Sam nailed it. Her presentation was packed with tools: from discussion prompts and breathing exercises to blog posts, podcasts, and real-life scenarios. She gave parents practical, actionable strategies and a renewed sense of confidence.
Sam’s style is relatable, kind, humorous, and deeply trustworthy. She makes people feel seen and understood. She doesn’t make light of the struggles teens face—she validates them and teaches parents how to respond in ways that are compassionate and effective. Parents left the room with smiles, laughter, and a sense of hope. These are exactly the kinds of workshops parents need.
Sam’s presentation on anxiety was engaging and informative! Our entire Jemicy faculty, including lower, middle, and upper school teachers, benefitted from her expertise, humor, visuals, and concrete ideas for helping students better face and overcome anxiety. Sam explained the evolutionary science behind our stress response in an easy-to-understand-way, and outlined how anxiety manifests in the classroom. Furthermore, she offered several ideas for how a teacher can create an environment that helps students feel safe enough to take academic and social risks. Sam wove in humorous and relevant anecdotes, pausing for questions, and engaging the audience throughout her presentation. Our faculty walked away with affirmations of what they’re doing right and small, easily applicable ideas for how they can enhance their pedagogy and classrooms.