{"id":401,"date":"2012-08-13T21:42:31","date_gmt":"2012-08-13T21:42:31","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.bcgwebdesign.co.uk\/tcm\/?p=401"},"modified":"2026-03-09T16:30:52","modified_gmt":"2026-03-09T16:30:52","slug":"mindful-autism-learning-and-research","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/teachchildrenmeditation.com\/es\/mindful-autism-learning-and-research\/","title":{"rendered":"What We Now Understand About Neurodivergent Children"},"content":{"rendered":"

Looking Back: Supporting Autistic Children<\/h3>\n

Mindful autism learning and research – Back in 2012, I watched a fascinating programme about how children’s brains develop and the possible links with autism. The programme discussed sensory overload and differences in perception.\u00a0 All of this resonated strongly with observations I had been making\u00a0 while working with, and learning from, neurodivergent children<\/a> who I was teaching mindful skills to.<\/p>\n

Back then, many of these ideas were only just beginning to enter mainstream discussion. Today, more than 2 decades later, research into neurodivergence has confirmed what many parents, teachers and practitioners had begun to notice happening in real life.<\/p>\n

Now our understanding about sensory processing differences, emotional regulation, and the unique ways neurodivergent children experience and interpret the world is deeper. What once seemed puzzling behaviour is increasingly recognised as a difference in neurological processing rather than something that needs to be fixed.<\/p>\n

Looking back, it\u2019s encouraging to see that some of the simple observations I made years ago are now supported by neuroscience and developmental research.<\/p>\n

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The Kite Metaphor<\/h3>\n

During the TV program I mentioned, there was a moment that offered me a powerful insight.<\/p>\n

A mother and her autistic son were flying a kite. For them, this somewhat simple activity had powerful significance for them both.\u00a0 For me, it was the symbolism of the kite that struck me most as I imagined life as a neurodivergent child, living in this world might feel like ‘being’ the kite.<\/p>\n

Let me explain.<\/p>\n

They are connected to the earth \u2014 to their parents, their families and the world \u2014 by a (genetic) string. But that connection can initially feel fragile. Their view of the world offers powerful, different perspectives, as if they are seeing it from a higher perspective. Meanwhile, those of us on the ground are trying to understand that perspective while standing firmly in our own.<\/p>\n

The child experiences the world through different sensory filters. Sounds, lights, touch, emotions and communication may all feel different, and overwhelming. From the ground we may struggle to understand why they respond in the ways they do as we aren’t affected in this way and psychologically and physiologically we feel grounded. We feel safe.<\/p>\n

And equally, because of this different perspective and the tenous, fragile connection, they may struggle to interpret the world ‘below’ \u2014 our social cues, emotional signals and expectations.<\/p>\n

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Who Holds the String?<\/h3>\n

Taking this metaphor further, the development of that kite depends greatly on who is holding the string.<\/p>\n

Sometimes adults try to control the kite too tightly. Yet force rarely succeeds. Pulling too hard (heavy discipline) can weaken the connection rather than strengthen it.<\/p>\n

Flying a kite requires something more subtle: sensitivity and an awareness of the surrounding environment and the impact on the kite. The person holding the string (the parent) has to feel the small shifts and movements travelling down the line. They respond gently, adjusting tension, guiding rather than forcing.<\/p>\n

Supporting neurodivergent children might feel very similar.<\/p>\n

It requires tuning in \u2014 noticing small signals, understanding sensory needs, and responding with patience and curiosity rather than control. Over time we learn to work with<\/em> the child’s movement rather than against it.<\/p>\n

The goal is not to pull the kite down abruptly into ‘this world’, but to help guide its journey safely within the shared space between sky and earth – mindful life skills to help them regulate who they are without living with high levels of anxiety and stress.<\/p>\n

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What We Know Now – mindful autism, learning and research<\/h3>\n

Since my original post in 2012, our understanding of neurodiversity has grown enormously.<\/p>\n

We now recognise that:<\/p>\n