Thoughts on Teaching Perspective & Neurodiversity
It took me all of a few days of parenting twins to recognize that their brains were truly unique to them. It was fascinating (and a bit overwhelming) to see how differently they responded to the same exact circumstances. The debate over nature and nurture won’t be going away anytime soon. It is truly a both/and scenario. It has been fascinating to watch two children with nearly identical circumstances develop side-by-side. Both of them unique and yet similar. Each of them coming to the table with their own unique way of seeing the world around them.
The term neurodiversity has been popping up with increased frequency and I love the way that it honors and brings light to the reality that each of us truly sees the world differently. I was debriefing a situation with one of my children the other day and she told me, “Mama, that’s how you see it but my brain just doesn’t work like yours does.” I was so proud of her in that moment. Even though we weren’t seeing eye-to-eye and I’d been feeling frustrated about that, she was so right and she was able to verbalize it.
Recognizing and affirming the truth that each of our brains and therefore our perspectives are unique and layered allows us to live more aware, connected lives. If we expect the people around us to view each situation like we do, we miss out on opportunities for understanding and connection. The more language and tools we equip our children with to understand perspective and diversity, the better.
I’ve been working on a new social emotional unit geared for 8-10 year old children. My main goal for this unit is to set the stage for understanding perspective and neurodiversity. In order to do that, I backed up all the way to brain and nervous system basics. It made the most sense in my mind to start there. Each of us is capable of learning, growth and forming new patterns. Understanding perspective takes time and effort and awareness.
The unit is divided into three sections:
The Brain & Nervous System
Mindset Matters - Understanding open versus closed mindsets
Perspective and Flexible Thinking
The first section of this unit is called “All About My Brain” and it teaches children about the role that their neurons play in forming new pathways and making new connections in their brains. My own twins are in third grade so they had fun trying out the hands-on parts of this unit. We had a fun afternoon together “making neurons” and talking about how they work. The instructions for this activity are included in the unit.
Each of the three sections of the unit includes a week of comprehension activities to reinforce the lessons presented in the unit.
Each of the three sections also includes a graphic organizer (KWL) to help children think through what they already know and what they want to learn. Reading passages with response questions are also provided.
The second section, Mindset Matters, provides an overview of growth mindset. Once children have learned about the brain basics, it is a great next right step to discuss how their neurons are always creating new pathways in their brains. Therefore, their brains are always growing, learning and capable of change. Below you can see a few examples of the printables provided in this section of the unit.
The third and final section of this unit is called Perspective and Flexible Thinking. It provides a lesson outline, reading passages, group discussion prompts, social stories, activities and a week of review questions to reinforce the key concepts. Below you can see a few examples of discussion prompts that are provided.
My deep hope for this unit is that it will help build awareness and understanding about brain basics, neurodiversity and perspective. We will all benefit from a generation of children who listen more fully to the people around them and pursue understanding.
If this unit looks like a helpful tool for the children in your life, you can find it HERE. You can grab the week of activities that corresponds with the “All About My Brain” section FOR FREE by clicking here.
You can grab the week of activities that corresponds with the “All About My Brain” section FOR FREE by clicking here.
May we be willing to learn with and from our children. May we to listen well to the people around us. May we be willing to honor the ways in which we are different. It is always worth pursuing understanding and connection.