10 Tips to Supporting your Neurodiverse Child in School

24/01/2025 | Jessica Burns

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Navigating the school environment with a neurodiverse child can be both rewarding and challenging. Parents may feel uncertain about how to help their child succeed in a setting that can feel overwhelming. 

Here are 10 tips to help your child succeed at school:

1. Get to know what your child needs and struggles with.

• Collaborate with therapists and health professionals to gain insights into your child’s sensory, social, and learning preferences.
• Identify triggers for anxiety or sensory overload.
• Recognise and utilise your child’s strengths to enhance their learning.

• If you haven’t already, consider seeking an autism assessment to develop tailored strategies for supporting your child’s success. 
• Further information can be found here Autism Assessment

2. Build a positive partnership with your child’s teacher.

• Collaboration is key
• Share a positive, neurodiverse-affirming profile of your child’s strengths and challenges early in the school year.
• Establish opportunities for two-way communication between parents and teachers throughout the school year to foster consistency between home and school.
• Be open and solution-focussed when challenges arise.

3. Advocate for individualised learning plans.

• Every child with autism has a unique learning style. 
• Work with educators to tailor learning to your child’s specific needs.
• Consider learning adjustments like:
  • visual aids and schedules.
  • breaks to reduce sensory overload.
  • one-to-one instruction where needed.
  • Extra time for tasks or reduced workloads.
  • Focus on projects and activities that are interest-driven and incorporate the child’s special interest.

4. Focus on strengths

• Children who are detail-oriented may excel in subjects like math and science due to their need for precision.
• Encouraging a child’s special interests and incorporating it into their learning can boost their confidence and engagement in learning.
• Autistic children can excel in leadership roles when they are put in charge of structured activities of their interest.
• Autistic children can be highly empathetic and work well with younger children.

5. Create Predictable Routines

• Consistent routines at school and home can reduce anxiety and increase security.
• Visual schedules and structured daily routines provide clarity and predictability.

6. Prepare for Transitions

• Transitions can be tough, whether it is moving between tasks, classrooms, or school years.
• Use visual aids or social stories to explain upcoming changes.
• Provide advanced notice when routines will shift.
• Practice the new situation beforehand if possible, such as visiting a new classroom.

7. Support emotional regulation 

• explicitly teach children to identify and manage their emotions, such as using emotion thermometers, charts to help them label how they feel or interoception strategies.

• Create a supportive environment where this can happen, such a calm-down corner in the classroom, access to sensory items.
• Find strategies to manage ‘meltdowns’ at home following school, as well as identifying ways to minimise overwhelm at school.

8. Promote social skills in a way that honours your child’s individual strengths and needs

• Encourage structured group activities or after school clubs inline with the child’s special interest
• Practice common social scenarios at home
• Partner with teachers to create supervised opportunities for positive peer interactions
• Teach scripts or strategies for initiating conversations or resolving conflicts.

9. Balance Support with Independence

• Help your child build autonomy by encouraging them to take on small responsibilities.
• Encourage your child to take on responsibilities at school with guidance and supervision from the teacher.

10. Build self-awareness and self-advocacy skills

• Help your child understand their needs using a neurodiverse affirming approach and how to communicate them effectively. 
• Skills like asking for a break, requesting clarification, or expressing feelings can build confidence and autonomy.

If you would like further support in relation to any of these concerns, please contact us at Prosper Health Collective for further information on 6381 0071.