Neurodiversity Celebration Week

This term, the Senior School celebrated Neurodiversity Week with a host of events for students and staff to help change the way learning differences are perceived. The week opened with a fantastic assembly by members of Neurodiversity Society, which focused equally on their talents and strengths while also explaining the challenges of their neurological diversity.

It took place under an installation of The Umbrella Project, a collection of brightly coloured umbrellas, reminding us that umbrellas, like minds, work better when they’re open! The umbrellas were an uplifting visual representation of all the different minds we have here at Habs. Each display is designed to represent the one in five people who have a neurodevelopmental condition, such as ADHD, Autism, dyslexia, dyspraxia, dyscalculia or Tourette’s syndrome. These conditions fall under the umbrella term of neurodiversity. The aim of the week was to change the perception of neurodiverse/neurodivergent people and celebrate the many strengths that come from thinking differently.

During the week students and staff heard from Eleanor Morrison, a barrister with ADHD and ASD, who told them how her neurodiversity actually became her superpower; enjoyed a sensory cinema experience complete with popcorn; submitted questions to an expert panel of students whom they could ask about any aspect of neurodiversity; wore brightly coloured accessories for a day; explored a sensory trail along the maths corridor and started each day with a calming session in the New Drama Studio, which was once again transformed into our wonderful sensory room.