Neurodiversity How Teachers Can Develop Positive Learning Environments for

By Karen Kaplan, MS

RECENTLY, I HAD AN OPPORTUNITY TO SIT IN A CLASSROOM OF THIRD GRADERS. I OBSERVED THE ENVIRONMENT AND TEACHER-STUDENT ENGAGEMENT. WHILE THE CLASSROOM WAS BRIGHT, OPEN, AND SOMEWHAT INVITING, I WAS CONCERNED BY THE INSISTENCE OF DEMANDS AND THE OVER-CRITICALNESS OF THE TEACHER. I NOW UNDERSTOOD WHY THE STUDENT I WAS OBSERVING REMAINED QUIET TO AVOID OFFERING HER INPUT.

Iwondered how teachers are being prepared to create positive learning environments, not only for neurotypical students but for the neurodiverse as well. I wondered why the administrators of this school were not supporting and helping this young, passionate teacher create an environment in which all students felt safe to raise their hand and offer an answer which, while maybe not correct, was their best guess.

Fred Rogers is quoted to have said, “There’s a world of difference between insisting on someone’s doing something and establishing an atmosphere in which that person can grow into wanting to do it.”

Here are some suggestions I would give a teacher to optimize student engagement and thus, learning.

• Make sure the environment feels safe and welcoming.

• Understand your students’ sensory sensitivities (light, sound volume, noise, visual distractions, smell, physical proximity to others, etc.) and try to preemptively accommodate them.

• Provide structure, not just auditory but visually. Is there a visual schedule that has words and pictures, so students know what is going to happen during their day? Are you referring to the schedule as you move through and transition from one activity to another?

• Provide processing time when asking questions. Not all students process quickly. Some may need time to hear, process, and develop a response.

• When an answer is not correct, be careful not to embarrass the student in front of their peers. Perhaps acknowledge them by commenting, “Good try.”

• Praise and celebrate questions students ask. Be careful not to suggest the question is stupid, out of context, or interruptive. Carefully redirect when needed. Perhaps say, “Thanks for your question. I will get back to you on that in a few minutes.”

• When presenting a lesson, use a variety of examples. Try to not to only verbalize it—you should show it as well. Then check for understanding before having your students move on. Some students may be strong auditory, while others understand best visually.

• Make sure the students’ work areas are supportive. Is the desk the right height? Is the chair the right height? Students who have their heads down might be in desks or chairs too short for their bodies. Perhaps a ball chair is needed to keep them alert, or maybe a seat cushion. Some students may benefit from a Thera-band tied around a chair or desk legs for nervous foot tapping.

• Use priming. Go over new words and their meaning before a reading assignment. Prime for any unexpected change in the day’s schedule. Provide not only an auditory reminder that time is almost up, but a visual warning (Countdown Visual Timer) of a change about to take place. Some students need time to prepare for a transition. Some students do not feel 10- or 15-minutes passing. They may not be great estimators of time.

• Some students take longer than others to complete the number of written problems you are assigning. Assess the repetition of those questions. How many are the same type? Perhaps reduce them to odd or even only. This can prevent students not finishing, feeling badly, or being stuck and refusing to stop until all are completed.

• Instead of having students just place a finished paper somewhere on a table or desk, place a bin of some sorts labeled: Finished Work. This reduces confusion. Provide a labeled homework bin as well.

• If you require students to line up before going to an assembly, recess, or lunch, make the line visual in some manner (numbers, squares, shapes). Allow someone sensitive to touch or closeness to be in the front or last spot.

• If you require hanging up coats, backpacks, or lunch sacks, provide a visual sign for students so they know where to put those items. Routine helps many of those with neurodiversity.

• Find out which of your students are shy. Are they too shy to raise their hands, ask questions, or read out loud? Develop some strategies to support anxiety. Practice with shy students prior to calling on them. Let them know you might be calling on them. Encourage them to feel positive about asking questions. Find ways to build their self-esteem and courage to engage.

• Get to know the student’s family culture, situation, and expectations. Work with the family to ensure success.

• Are you aware of any fears a student might have? (Bathrooms, eating in front of others or in a noisy place, climbing, etc.) Think about how to accommodate this.

• Prepare students for school breaks. Change can be hard for some. Have a calendar showing when breaks occur and when they will return from a break. Refer to the calendar often before the break is about to happen.

• Do you know how your students respond to recess? Have you taught recess skills? Not rules, but actual skills (ball skills, play skills, social skills). Some students do not know what to do in unstructured environments. Some students do not know how to engage with peers at recess.

• If your student has challenges with reading, suggest an assessment, or find another way to approach teaching reading. Is reading a sight problem? A sound to letter problem? A comprehension problem?

• If your student is not successful with math word problems, think about word comprehension and provide more priming on what key words mean. Could the individual have memory challenges and be unable to hold all the facts in mind to solve the problem? Perhaps a referral to a speech therapist is needed. Or they require extra scratch paper to write their own notes on the problem.

Teachers who realize each student is unique and comes to the learning environment with different strengths will find a way to create a positive learning environment. Teachers who are flexible and calm will have better success. Teachers who remember they are there to coach, mentor, and inspire a sense of enjoyment in learning will be appreciated and remembered for a long time. These types of teachers create a positive learning environment for ALL.

Karen Kaplan, MS, is a native San Franciscan. She completed her bachelor’s and master’s degrees at Arizona State University, Tempe, Arizona, in speech pathology and audiology. She minored in special education and obtained her speech therapist and special education credentials in California. Karen worked as a speech therapist for schools for 20 years before opening her own residential and education program for students with autism. She worked in credential programs at Sacramento State University as well as UC Davis and spent 20 years directing private schools for those with autism and similar learning challenges.

Karen founded a non-profit, Offerings, which helps cultures globally to understand those with developmental challenges. For seven years, she founded and facilitated an autism lecture series and resource fair in Northern California. Karen still facilitates an annual Autism Awesomeness event. She is currently consulting, helping families, schools, and centers for children, teens, and adults. Karen has authored three books: Reach Me Teach Me: A Public School Program for the Autistic Child; A Handbook for Teachers and Administrators, On the Yellow Brick Road: My Search for Home and Hope for the Child with Autism, and Typewriting to Heaven… and Back: Conversations with My Dad on Death, Afterlife and Living (which is not about autism but about having important conversations with those we love).