Neurodiversity Celebration Week: Celebrating Different Minds

Neurodiversity Celebration Week: Celebrating Different Minds

What is Neurodiversity?

If you are looking to celebrate Neurodiversity Celebration Week, it’s important that you know exactly what neurodiversity is. 

Neurodiversity is the concept that refers to the natural differences that each of us has within our brain. No two brains function and think the same, because no two brains are structured/wired the same way. 

Given this, there is a range of ways that people can respond to and interact with the world around them. People may act in the more typical or average way, known as “neurotypical,” or they may function differently from this norm. This is where the term neurodivergent comes into play. 

What Does Neurodivergent Mean?

During the autistic rights movement in the 1990s, Kassiane Asasumasu noticed that there were non-autistic individuals who functioned differently from the neurocognitive functioning considered “normal” by society.

The term neurodivergent and neurodivergence were coined in 2000 by Kassiane Asasumasu to describe these individuals. 

Being “neurodivergent” means that your brain is structured and functions differently from the typical brain. 

This term is an umbrella term because new conditions can be added as our understanding of neurodivergence evolves. 

Some conditions under this umbrella term include:

What is Neurodiversity Celebration Week?

Neurodiversity Celebration Week is a global initiative that takes place during the third full week in March of each year. In 2025, it will take place from March 17th to March 23rd.

During Neurodiversity Celebration Week, we aim to recognize and celebrate the unique strengths that neurodivergent individuals have. We also challenge and debunk the misconceptions and stereotypes related to various neurological and neurodivergent conditions. 

History of Neurodiversity Celebration Week

At the age of 16, Siena Castellon, an autistic student with dyslexia, dyspraxia, and ADHD, experienced bullying, exclusion, and discrimination within school and community environments. 

These challenges motivated her to launch Neurodiversity Celebration Week in 2018 as a way to challenge the misconceptions that harm the neurodivergent community and prevent full and equal participation by those who face these challenges. 

Since 2018, this initiative has expanded from the US to a global event. Her initiative has been featured on several media outlets, including ITV News, the BBC, The New Scientist, and Forbes. 

Every year, people and organizations around the globe come together to promote a more inclusive, accepting, and equal society for all. 

Why is Neurodiversity Celebration Week Important?

Neurodiversity Celebration Week is important for creating a society that is inclusive and accepting and that allows everyone to thrive.

This week also serves several other important purposes. Here are some of the key reasons for Neurodiversity Celebration Week: 

Education

This week serves as a reminder that education saves lives. During this week, individuals will explore educational resources and materials on neurodivergence. These resources will encourage people to talk and understand the various ways in which people think and learn. Understanding is one of the crucial steps needed for action.

Advocacy

Neurodivergent conditions can be considered a disability if they disrupt a person’s daily functioning. This week aims to raise awareness for the challenges faced by neurodivergent individuals. 

Neurodivergent individuals may need accommodations to remove the barriers that prevent them from receiving equal access to opportunities. Neurodiversity Celebration Week supports this by getting people to advocate for the rights and needs of neurodivergent individuals. People can do this by pushing for more inclusive policies in schools and workplaces. 

Celebration of Strengths

Along with acknowledging the various challenges that neurodivergent individuals face, it is also important to highlight that each individual has strengths. During Neurodiversity Celebrating Week, individuals are encouraged to acknowledge the contributions made by neurodivergent individuals in the fields of art, science, technology, and more. This acknowledgment can help to foster acceptance of and celebration for neurodivergent identities. 

Creating an Equal Opportunity Society

Neurodiversity Celebration Week aims at promoting a society that accommodates and supports various neurodivergent identities. This helps to support the fact that every individual, regardless of their neurological differences, deserves to have an opportunity to succeed. This week also shifts people’s focus from viewing neurodivergence from a deficit lens to one where people are valued for who they are. Attitude shifts such as these can help to open up additional opportunities for neurodivergent individuals where they may not have been before due to stigma and biases. 

By emphasizing these aspects, Neurodiversity Celebration Week plays a critical role in building more understanding, equitable, and inclusive societies for all individuals, regardless of neurological differences.

Link Between Neurodivergence and School Absence

When it comes to neurodivergent conditions, there exists a significant link between neurodivergence and school absence. 

Here are some key statistics related to this link: 

Several reasons may explain these higher than usual absences, including the unique challenges that neurodivergent individuals face that may impact their attendance. These factors include sensory overload, anxiety, and social challenges. 

If the school environment is not accommodating of the unique needs of neurodivergent students, these challenges can cause neurodivergent students to feel frustrated and isolated. 

Lack of support causes students to miss school due to exclusion based on educational settings that are not equipped to accommodate their needs. 

Understanding the connection between neurodivergence and school absenteeism can support educators and schools in creating an environment that neurodivergent students want to attend. Moreover, addressing these challenges and meeting the needs of neurodivergent students also enhances the well-being and academic success of these students. 

Related: Supporting Students with School Phobia: A Guidebook for Families and Schools: Provides tips for individuals and families, as well as strategies for supporting students with neurodivergence that may be linked to school absenteeism. 

So, How Can We Promote Neurodiversity-Affirming Classrooms?

Despite neurodivergent students consistently comprising 15-20% of the global population, traditional classroom environments often don’t support diverse ways of learning and are typically structured around dominant social norms.

Now that you have a deeper understanding of the attendance challenges linked to neurodivergence challenges and the barriers that they face, you can work toward a solution that helps every student thrive. 

This involves building neurodiversity-affirming schools that help all students thrive academically and socially. 

Building these schools will take time and won’t happen overnight, but here are some effective ways that you can get the ball rolling on creating a neurodiversity-affirming classroom:

  • Share Resources: Students facing school absenteeism may benefit from the use of supportive resources within your classroom. You can purchase a photocopiable license of the Support Workbook for Students Facing School Absenteeism. You may also wish to share this workbook with the parents of a student you know to be facing challenges with attendance. 
  • Develop a Sensory-Friendly Environment: Classroom environments may be overwhelming for neurodivergent students due to distractions and an overload of sensory information. You can create a designated sensory corner within your classroom or within the school that students can go to when they feel overwhelmed. Consider fidget spinners, coloring books, music, noise-canceling headphones, and other materials that can help neurodivergent students calm their nervous system.
  • Access Support Services: We offer various support services for students who may be facing challenges in school, including daily messages of support to help individuals and families navigate neurodivergence. 
  • Support Executive Functioning: Executive functioning involves the mental processes needed to work toward a goal. These include organization, planning, impulsive control, and more. You can support your students by using a body doubling technique. This involves students working alongside their peers to support each other with motivation and accountability. YMHC’s student peer support program may also be of support with creating a buddy system. 
  • Implement Individualized Education Plans (IEPs) and Guide Students Through the Accommodation Process: Navigating the process to receive support for neurodivergence can be overwhelming. You can help students with this by creating a school-wide guide for how students can access and receive support for their challenges. IEPs may be a vital aspect of this process. This involves collaboratively developing a support system that supports each individual child’s needs. Additionally, schools can streamline the accommodation process to make it more accessible. This may involve providing necessary support and interim accommodations before an official diagnosis is received. 
  • Related: Creating Your Education Support Team 
  • Consult Neurodivergent Voices: Have you ever heard the saying, “Nothing about us, without us?” This applies here. As you develop policies to support neurodivergent students, you should engage neurodivergent students, parents, educators, and community members in the process. By consulting these voices, schools can tailor practices to better serve the neurodivergent community.
  • Professional Development: As an educator, you should always be open to learning new things. YMHC’s professional training courses on school absenteeism and our tailored school-wide workshops on a variety of mental health topics may be of support for your professional development. Through these courses, you may gain the knowledge needed to inform teaching strategies needed to accommodate diverse needs. 

When all of these efforts are combined, schools can foster a supportive environment where all students feel empowered to do their best. 

How to Observe Neurodiversity Celebration Week in the Community 

Along with school-wide strategies to celebrate Neurodiversity Celebration Week, community members can also take part in observing this week. 

This community involvement in Neurodiversity Celebration Week helps to create a society where everyone thrives. Here are some of the ways that you can participate in Neurodiversity Celebration Week as a community member: 

  • Host Informational Workshops and Panels: Organize events that involve speakers from the neurodivergent community. These individuals can share their experiences and insights to allow society to gain a deeper understanding of what living with neurodivergence is like. You may also wish to invite neurodivergent experts who may be interested in providing education on how to make your workplace, school, or community environment more inclusive. 
  • Create Awareness Campaigns: Awareness can occur through the use of social media or within the community using posters and other educational materials. You can develop social media campaigns using hashtags related to neurodiversity. You could also distribute flyers and posters to community centers so that they can pin these for community members to see and become informed. 
  • Advocate for Inclusive Programs and Initiatives: If you see something within your community that is not inclusive, say something. Bring this up to your local politician or person in power. Let them know how they can implement programs or remove barriers so that neurodivergent individuals can thrive. One initiative that you can promote is YMHC’s heart-to-heart campaign, where we are sending hearts with positive messages on them to students who cannot attend school.
  • Promote Local Events and Activities: If there is an event in your community that you would like to be involved with, you can promote their activities through social media or by sharing flyers in the community. If you have the means to do so, you could also sponsor or host events that focus on acceptance and understanding of neurodiversity. YMHC, in May 2025, will be holding a Canada conference on student absenteeism. We aim to raise awareness for the need for inclusive school environments for all students. You can share this event with your community to support young people. 
  • Support Neurodivergent-Owned Businesses: There are a ton of neurodivergent-owned businesses out there. You could help to support these businesses by highlighting them to the community or by shopping at them. 
  • Utilize Art and Creativity: Art is not only a way for people to express themselves, but it also can be a pathway to healing. You can encourage community members to express their understanding of neurodiversity through art projects or murals. 

By participating in Neurodiversity Celebration Week, you can help foster an inclusive environment that values and respects the diverse neurological make-up of its residents.

YMHC Resources for Neurodiversity-Celebration Week

Neurodiversity Celebration Week, observed in March, is a significant time.

Youth Mental Health Canada (YMHC) is a not-for-profit, charitable community-based organization, offering essential, accessible, and meaningful resources to support the most important role of all—encouraging the healthy growth of young people. 

We provide the tools needed to meet the challenges of education, health, and life, and we are committed to raising awareness and supporting neurodivergent individuals through a variety of resources, including:

  • Mental Wellness Workbooks: Our mental wellness workbooks are designed to support individuals with understanding various concepts, including disabilities and neurodivergence. Individuals also gain coping strategies to manage challenges, such as sensory overload, anxiety, and more. These workbooks incorporate evidence-based practices and are available in multiple formats. Explore our workbooks.
  • Multilingual Posters: Mental health slogans are a great way to promote hope within your community. You can order these mental wellness posters in multiple languages to support your own wellness or the well-being of your community.
  • Merch: We have a variety of products to send gifts to neurodivergent individuals you care about. You can also purchase for your entire school community or organization. We have t-shirts, sweaters, dog bandanas, cups, stickers, buttons, stuffed animals, coffee mugs, pillowcases, notebooks, and more. You can select from products with the YMHC logo, animal puns, Every Child Matters, or customize your own product.

Explore the blog for additional resource links. Note: The support links are in blue. Using these resources and participating in Neurodiversity Celebration Week can help us work together to create an inclusive, accessible, diverse, and supportive community.

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