January 27, 2022
As you know, we are observing “Neurodiversity Celebration Week” at TDS. Each classroom has spent time this week recognizing the different ways our brains work. With the leadership of our Learning Specialist, Ms. Stewart, classes have been looking at models of the brain, discussing the amazing things our brain does for us, sharing ways that brains are wired differently in different people, and “showing off” our own unique brains.
I visited one homeroom class to hear presentations from students who researched different neurological diagnoses and the strengths that come with them. I visited another classroom to dive into a book about a boy who struggled in reading. As we read the story aloud, students were eager to share how they related to the author, and bonded with one another over finding similarities between their own neurodivergent journeys. Many classes have had discussions and writing activities centered on the Disney shorts “Float” and “Loop.”
Throughout these activities, students have been openly and bravely sharing about their own experiences with their peers, and many of our faculty have shared their own lifelong journeys with different diagnoses. A key component of this week’s discussions has centered on the idea that everyone is “neurodivergent,” even if they don’t have a specific diagnosis. In all of this work, I have been delighted by the incredibly celebratory tone. It’s important to acknowledge that neurodiversity can cause challenges along the way, but perhaps it’s even more important to highlight the strengths that we wouldn’t have otherwise discovered within ourselves.
