Neurodiversity-affirming practice in the Early Years

Meet your hosts

Kerry Murphy

Early Years Specialist

Kerry is an Early Years specialist, author, lecturer, and trainer, working in the field of neurodiversity-affirming and anti-ableist practice in early childhood education. She is the founder of Diverse Pathways for Early Childhood.‍

Kerry is currently undertaking a doctorate in how neurodiversity-affirming approaches can mobilise early educators to question, resist, and work ethically within and against the constraints of the current SEND system.

From deficit models to neurodiversity-affirming

In Early Years, it's common for settings to frame neurodivergent children as "problems to be fixed", rather than as learners with diverse developmental pathways. This is the deficit-based and medicalised model of "special needs" and disabilities.

We need to change children "from a problem back to a learner" by stopping pathology-based practices and replacing them with strength-focused, child-led approaches that celebrate divergent development.

Ableism and disableism in everyday Early Years practice

Ableism operates as a systemic force favouring neurotypical minds and able bodies, while disabilism describes the daily discriminatory actions and barriers that neurodivergent and disabled children experience as a result. Early years educators hold significant power to challenge these forces through small, intentional changes to:

Language
Observation and assessment
"Intervention" practices

Using the right words

Neurodiversity-affirming language is not simply a matter of swapping old terms for new ones; we have to change our practice too to have a positive impact. Respectful correction supports more accurate and affirming communication.

Parent partnership and family-centred communication

Parents of neurodivergent and disabled children frequently experience the SEND system as overwhelming and jargon-heavy, often describing it as "a battlefield." Educators can reframe conversations around divergent learning pathways and diagnosis to improve parental engagement and reduce anxiety.

Play, neurodivergence, and the pathology of play

A persistent and harmful myth in Early Years practice is that play does not come naturally to neurodivergent or disabled children. This misconception can lead educators to trivialise or overlook rich and meaningful play behaviours.

Early Years educators can use attuned, attentive, unhurried, and non-prescriptive observation to honour diverse ways of playing.

Practical steps toward neurodiversity affirming practice

Becoming neurodiversity-affirming is "a state of becoming" rather than a box-ticking exercise. It requires gradual, sustainable change underpinned by the voices of neurodivergent and disabled people.

Tools such as the celebratory framework offer practitioners tangible, step-by-step approaches to transforming practice without overwhelming already stretched teams.