Neurodiversity Celebration Week!!

During Neurodiversity Week at school, we worked closely with the Therapy team who helped us with different focuses within Neurodiversity.

For Neurodiversity Celebration Week 2026  we thought about what makes us unique and promoted the importance of celebrating difference. The learners were introduced to a focus each day, where they could share their own experiences of help develop knowledge of other neurodiverse traits.

Monday’s focus was exploring Neurodiversity as a concept and introduced the importance of acceptance, understanding and pride. The learners embraced the message that people’s brains work in different ways, and these differences should be respected and valued.

Learners took part in lessons, assemblies, activities and class discussions to help the them to understand different types of neurodiversity, such as autism, ADHD, and dyslexia. They also explored how they can support people who are neurodivergent. This included being kind, patient, and understanding, as well as making sure everyone feels included and supported in the classroom.

Activity

1. Walk and talk

Based on the beautiful picture book All About Brains, our Therapy team created a walk with an accompanying question pack. This helped to spark some interesting discussions in class.

All About Brains is a fun exploration of all the wonderful ways people and their brains are different.

Tuesday’s focus was ADHD. Let’s think about impulsiveness.

Activity

Holly Trees and Quad learners had a go at participating in ADHD Rapped Up! ( Mr G. – Sweet Cherry Publishing). They practised learning the Think Questions.

Orchard learners listened to their teachers and Teaching Assistants complete the rap and made their own music with bells, shakers and drums

More information about ADHD: ADHD UK – Homepage – ADHD UK

Wednesday’s focus was Dyslexia. This was about how our brains process words differently.

Activity

Holly Trees and Quad tried reading a short “tricky text”  attached where some letters are swapped or missing. They though about ‘How does it feel?’ and talked about strategies that helped them work it out.

Orchard: Explored letter shapes using playdough, sand trays, or foam letters. They felt and traced the shapes with their fingers.

More information about Dyslexia: https://www.bdadyslexia.org.uk/
Famous dyslexic people: Albert Einstein, Steven Spielberg, Tom Holland

Thursday’s focus was Dyspraxia (DCD).

Dyspraxia affects co-ordination and motor planning. Many individuals with dyspraxia demonstrate exceptional creativity, problem-solving skills, determination, and out-of-the-box thinking.

Activity: Problem Solvers & Creators Challenge

Holly Trees and Quad invited pupils to work in groups or individually to design a ‘tool’ or system to make a daily task easier.

Orchard completed some animal walks around their classroom – exploring how they got around/over different objects?

More information about Dyspraxia: Dyspraxia – Support for neurological conditions | The Brain Charity

Friday’s focus was Anxiety. Let’s think about how our bodies feel when we are worried.

Sometimes when we feel anxious our bodies send us signals. Our heart might beat faster, our tummy might feel funny, or we might want to move away from something that feels difficult. These feelings are our body’s way of trying to keep us safe.

Activity

Holly Trees and Quad talked about things that can help when we feel worried. They tried to think of three things that help your body calm down? For example, taking slow breaths, asking someone for help, or taking a short break.

Orchard tried a calm breathing activity with teaching staff. The aim was to slowly breathe in through their nose and out through their mouth. They used bubbles, a pinwheel, or watched their teaching staff model the breathing.

More information about Anxiety: https://www.youngminds.org.uk/young-person/mental-health-conditions/anxiety/

Overall, Neurodiversity Week helped us become more aware, respectful, and supportive of each other’s differences.