What is it and how can it serve all learners? 

When I was nine years old, I remember being put on the spot in front of my Year 4 class, struggling to spell the word “key.” All eyes were on me for what seemed like an eternity. My teacher and classmates laughed, and I was left feeling humiliated and incapable. That moment shaped my sense of self for years.

Now, as an educator and advocate, I see that my experience was part of a much larger issue—one reflected in the latest Government exclusion data:

• Pupils with SEN support face the highest suspension rate at 11.27 per 100 pupils—more than four times the rate of their peers without identified SEN (2.69 per 100 pupils).
• Pupils with Education, Health and Care Plans (EHCPs) also face alarmingly high suspension rates (10.05 per 100 pupils).
• Permanent exclusions for pupils with SEN support are disproportionately high (0.16 per 100 pupils).
• Since the pandemic, the gap between SEN pupils and their peers without identified SEN has widened.

These figures are not just statistics; they are stories of unmet needs, misunderstood behaviours, and missed opportunities. Children with SEN are the canaries in the coal mine, highlighting systemic issues that affect neurodivergent students most acutely but ripple out to impact all learners. When we create schools where neurodivergent children can thrive, we build environments where every child can succeed.

Understanding Behaviour Through Executive Function Skills

At its core, neurodiversity inclusion requires us to shift our mindset about behaviour—not just for neurodivergent children, but for all learners. Behaviour is often the visible tip of the iceberg, a signal of what’s happening beneath the surface. Anxiety, sensory overload, difficulties with emotional regulation, and challenges with executive functions—like planning, organising, or managing impulses—can all manifest as behaviour.

Executive function skills are the brain’s control centre, helping us manage our thoughts, emotions, and actions to achieve goals. While differences in these areas are more pronounced for neurodivergent children, all students experience executive function challenges at times—whether it’s struggling to focus, feeling overwhelmed, or finding it hard to manage emotions.

When these underlying needs are misinterpreted, behaviour is too often met with punitive responses, such as detentions or suspensions. But punishment doesn’t teach skills or address the root cause; it only exacerbates the challenges further inhibiting executive functioning. What if, instead of asking, “How can I stop this behaviour?” we asked, “What is this behaviour trying to tell me?”

Reframing behaviour in this way shifts the focus from control to curiosity, from punishment to problem-solving. It creates space for understanding and compassion—critical ingredients for truly inclusive classrooms. And it equips teachers to support all children in developing the self-regulation and executive function skills they need to succeed, not just in school but in life.

Neuro-Inclusive Classrooms: The Building Blocks of Success

Building neuro-inclusive schools shouldn’t mean singling out neurodivergent children for “special treatment.” This equitable action often makes children feel othered, deepening their feelings of difference, making them feel isolated and further impacting their executive functioning. Neuroinclusion means embedding principles and strategies that recognise and embrace the diversity of all learners. These five elements form the foundation of effective neurodiversity inclusion (and I will be discussing them in our CPD accredited webinar):

1. The 8th Sense: Discovering the Power of Interoception

Interoception, the ability to understand and interpret internal body signals like hunger, thirst, dysregulation or stress, is vital for emotional regulation. Many neurodivergent students struggle with interoceptive awareness, making it harder for them to identify their emotions or regulate their responses.

Teaching interoception with tools like body mapping worksheets equips students to better understand themselves and develop a foundation on which to practice self-regulation. Teachers, too, can benefit from developing their interoceptive awareness, enabling them to be aware of their own state of regulation and how it is affecting teaching and learning in their classrooms. 

2. Nurturing Self-Regulation: The Transformative Power of Compassion

Self-regulation develops most effectively in environments where students feel safe and connected. Compassionate classroom cultures provide this foundation by fostering trust, empathy, and co-regulation opportunities.

Compassionate teaching means recognising that behaviour is a reflection of needs, not intent. By responding with understanding rather than punishment, teachers help students build the resilience and emotional stability they need to thrive. Teachers also benefit from modelling self-regulation strategies, helping them to stay centred and reflective in their practice, and can adopt methods found in our strategy bank. 

3. Humanising Neurodiversity: Explicitly Developing Executive Function Skills

Executive function challenges—such as difficulty with planning, organising, and managing emotions—are natural and normal for all learners and especially common among neurodivergent students. Executive function skills are not innate but learned, and many children need explicit instruction to develop them – using tools like EF Character Cards for younger children and EF Strategy Cards for older students. 

Simple strategies, like using visual aids, breaking tasks into smaller steps, and offering scaffolding, can transform a neurodivergent student’s ability to manage their learning. These approaches benefit all students, helping them build independence and confidence. Teachers also gain insights into their own productivity and barriers to success when they adopt executive function approaches. 

4. Self-Reflection for Independence: Harnessing Mental Contrasting

Mental contrasting helps students work towards their personal learning goals by encouraging them to visualise the outcome of their goals with tools like WOOP Templates and habit trackers, while identifying barriers to their learning. Armed with these insights into their barriers they can be encouraged to self advocate and modify their environment according to their needs helping them to gain autonomy over their learning.  This approach fosters independence and self-awareness, empowering neurodivergent students to take ownership of their learning journey.

When combined with compassionate support, this skill becomes a powerful tool for helping students navigate challenges with resilience. Educators too can deploy mental contrasting when planning to overcome their own challenges, helping them to plan for progression and find their work more fulfilling.

5. Building Habits That Last: The Science Behind Sustainable Success

Inclusion isn’t just about addressing immediate needs; it’s about equipping students with tools for lifelong success. Teaching students how to form positive habits—through routines, small achievable goals, and positive reinforcement—lays the groundwork for sustainable learning and growth.

We find that teachers also benefit from insights into why they get stuck in behaviour traps or find it hard to form new habits.  When habits are built on the foundation of neurodiversity inclusion, they support not only academic achievement but also emotional well-being and personal development – I discuss this in depth here.

The Bigger Picture: Why Neurodiversity Inclusion Matters

The figures on exclusion are just the surface. Beneath them lies a deeper issue: schools are often places where neurodivergent children don’t feel safe to be themselves. Embedded biases against neurodivergent thinking and behaviour force many students to mask their true selves to fit in—a burden that impacts their confidence, well-being, and ability to learn.

The truth is, these challenges aren’t confined to children with SEN. We all experience executive function struggles at times, and we all stand to benefit from environments that foster self-regulated learning. When schools embrace neurodiversity inclusion, they create a culture where every learner can thrive.

Exclusion has far-reaching consequences. It impacts academic outcomes, mental health, and even societal challenges like unemployment and criminal justice involvement. But the alternative—a commitment to inclusion—offers extraordinary potential:

• Improved academic outcomes: Inclusive practices benefit neurodivergent and neurotypical learners alike.
• Better mental health: Feeling seen, understood, and supported helps children manage stress and develop resilience.
• A more empathetic society: Embracing neurodiversity fosters understanding, collaboration, and innovation.

Children with SEN are not the problem; they are the signal. Their experiences show us where systems need to change. When we listen to them, and when we make space for all forms of thinking and behaviour, we create a world where every child can flourish—not just academically, but as confident, capable individuals.

Time for Change

Neurodiversity inclusion is not about “fixing” neurodivergent children. It’s about building environments that work for everyone. By shifting our focus from controlling behaviour to understanding it, we can transform our classrooms into spaces where students feel safe, valued, and empowered to be their authentic selves.

If you’re ready to take the next step, my training programmes offer practical, evidence-based strategies for creating truly neuro-inclusive classrooms. Together, we can move beyond exclusion and create a future where all children—neurodivergent and neurotypical—have the opportunity to thrive. Click here to learn more or book in a time here to chat with me here to determine which training will be best suited to your needs.

Join me live on 3 March 2025 at 4.30pm GMT at our CPD accredited webinar, The Neuroinclusive Educator. I’ll explore how to empower students by involving them in strategy creation using evidence-based approaches such as Universal Design for Learning (UDL) and mental contrasting. Discover how to build an inclusive classroom that supports learner autonomy, executive function growth, and sustained engagement. Sign up today!

Keen for some further reading? We’ve got you covered. Here are our top picks on the topic:

1. “Interoception and Regulation: Teaching Skills of Body Awareness and Supporting Connection With Others” by Emma Goodall and Charlotte Brownlow. This book offers a deep understanding of how developing interoception supports emotional regulation and social connection, making it essential for fostering neuro-inclusive environments.
2. “Executive Function Skills in the Classroom” by Laurie Faith. This book provides practical, research-based strategies for supporting students’ executive function development, equipping educators with tools to create more structured, accessible, and inclusive learning experiences.
3. “Atomic Habits” by James Clear. Invaluable insights into habit formation and behaviour change, helping implement small, effective adjustments that support students in building positive routines and self-regulation skills.