Some see raccoons as nature's bandits.
These masked marauders are known for rifling through yourtrashcans under the cover of night, seeking to collect a big score. But there's one raccoon on PBS Kids who's not after your castoffs—he's capturing children's hearts instead.
Welcome to our special episode on “Carl the Collector,” agroundbreaking animated series that shines a light on neurodiversity through the adventures of Carl, an autistic raccoon with a gusto for collecting. On this episode, we'll explore the creative minds behind the show, hear from those whose lives it touches, and discuss the importance of representation in children's media.
Estimates suggest that 15 to 20 percent of the populationis neurodivergent — individuals whose brains process, learn, and experience the world differently. In the workforce, these employees can bring unique strengths to the workplace, including innovative problem-solving, diligence, andexceptional analytical skills.
Yet, employees who learn and think differently often facesignificant challenges, from stigma and communication barriers to sensory sensitivities. For neurodivergent jobseekers, the road to success ideally begins early, with K-12 schools introducing career development and companies creating programs to hire neurodivergent workers, build awareness, and cultivate an inclusive culture.
By providing thoughtful training and tailored accommodations, companies can empower neurodivergent employees to thrive.
On this episode, we visit a groundbreaking Denver schoolthat’s helping neurodivergent high school students prepare for successful careers.
Then, we travel to Pennsylvania, where an innovative firmis creating tailored pathways to help neurodivergent jobseekers gain a foothold in the workforce.
Our panel of national experts shares insights into thehurdles neurodivergent individuals face and strategies that can help them navigate successful careers.
Later, we’ll introduce you to our latest Difference Maker,a noted cognitive scientist and neurodiversity advocate who has shattered barriers and redefined possibilities for neurodivergent individuals.
Since the days of Cain and Abel, parents have navigated the complexities of sibling dynamics. While most family relationships aren’t as dramatic as those in Eden, raising both neurotypical and neurodivergent children comes with its own unique challenges. Balancing attention, support, and understanding is no easy task — but it’s essential to ensure that every child feels seen, heard, and valued.
So how can parents provide neurotypical siblings with the space and support they need while celebrating and championing their neurodivergent child’s differences?
In this episode, we’ll visit a New Jersey family navigating the joys and challenges of raising both neurotypical and neurodivergent children. Next, our expert national panel will share practical strategies for fostering connection, understanding, and resilience within the family.
And you’ll meet our latest Difference Maker, a mother whose son’s struggle with reading led her to create Clever Noodle — a game-changing approach to helping dyslexic children become confident readers.
In the golden age of television, fathers were portrayed as wise and dependable — ‘Father Knows Best’ defined the era. Today, many TV dads are reduced to comic relief, reflecting a societal shift that too often sidelines dads in parenting.
But here’s the truth: fathers play a vital role, especially when it comes to nurturing neurodivergent children academically, socially, and emotionally.
This episode explores the profound impact of fathers on their neurodivergent children. We'll meet a California dad whose son's autism diagnosis led him on a journey of self-discovery, transforming him into a devoted advocate. We'll also hear from national experts on the crucial role fathers play in supporting these children. And we'll introduce a remarkable Difference Maker: a Guinness World Record-holding triathlete who's redefining expectations for neurodivergent athletes.
Helping Neurodivergent Students Navigate the Transition to Middle School
As actress Zooey Deschanel famously observed, "Nothing could be as hard as middle school." This sentiment rings especially true for many children with learning and attention issues, who may find the transition from the familiar comforts of elementary school to the increased demands and hectic pace of middle school particularly challenging.
On this episode, we'll meet a North Carolina student whose family helped her make the successful leap from elementary to middle school. Next, our panel of national experts will share valuable advice and strategies to help parents and caregivers navigate this pivotal time. Finally, we'll introduce our latest Difference Maker, an accomplished film and television producer and autism advocate with a remarkable track record of award-winning hits.
Plato's timeless wisdom, "Be kind for everyone you meet is fighting a hard battle," rings especially true for neurodivergent children. These young minds, which think and learn differently, face a unique set of challenges. Not only do they often struggle to keep pace in traditional classrooms, but because of their learning differences they also tragically become targets of bullying.
A recent study published in the Journal of Attention Disorders revealed that nearly half of children with ADHD are victims of bullying. Other research confirmed children with autism are disproportionately targeted by bullies. It's a harsh reality that highlights the urgent need for greater understanding and compassion.
On this episode, we’ll hear from a family across the pond that’s battled this challenge for generations. Next, our panel of national experts explores the roots of bullying and offer practical advice for parents to protect their neurodivergent children. And you’ll meet our latest Difference Maker, a branding guru who’s leveraging his creative genius to help rebrand dyslexia.
Remember the old poem about the secret ingredients for boys and girls? Snips and snails for boys, sugar and spice for girls. It wasn't just a silly rhyme; it hinted at a truth: boys and girls experience the world differently. This applies to neurodivergence too. Autism and ADHD can manifest differently in males and females, leading to misdiagnosis or underdiagnosis in women.
For parents, this raises a crucial question: how can we ensure that neurodiverse children, regardless of gender, feel seen, understood, and supported?
On this episode, we'll visit a Connecticut school that intentionally considers gender in its approach to educating students. Our expert panel will discuss how boys and girls experience neurodivergence differently and offer strategies for parents and educators. And later, you'll meet our latest Difference Makers: a Hollywood couple using their influence to cast neurodiverse families in leading roles helping to support autistic children's journeys.
Language unlocks our world, but some children, struggle with turning the key. They grapple with reading, writing, and speaking, impacting their ability to learn and thrive. From kindergarten to college, challenges with language-based learning disabilities can impact these students’ academic performance, self-esteem, and even their future career prospects.
With the right tools, support, and understanding, however, they can overcome these obstacles and unlock their full potential.
On this episode we visit a New Jersey private school that attacks these hurdles with multisensory gusto. Next, our national panel of experts delves into the signs, the challenges, and most importantly, the solutions in managing language-based learning disabilities. And you’ll meet our latest Difference Maker.
For many children who learn differently, public and private school classrooms which largely are geared for neurotypical learners, can be a struggle. That’s why educating these students at home with a curriculum tailored to their unique needs often is seen as a potential lifeline for children with learning and attention issues.
But is it the right choice? We delve into the world of homeschooling neurodivergent students and the delicate balancing act of providing tailored education and essential socialization.
On this episode, we check in with a Florida family with two neurodivergent students that turned to homeschooling. Next, our panel of national experts explores whether homeschooling kids who learn differently is a path to unlocking their full potential, or a risky gamble. And later, you’ll meet our latest Difference Maker, whose journey to conquering the North Pole began not in the frozen tundra, but with her struggle to master the three Rs.
French Impressionist Edgar Degas once clarified that “Art is not what you see, but what you make others see.” While art is a form of expression, a means to connect to the world, for neurodivergent children the arts in its many forms can paint a landscape for self-discovery, chip away at anxiety, and lift self-esteem.
And it can also remind us that sometimes the most beautiful art comes from seeing the world in a different way. For many kids who learn and think differently, the classroom can prove challenging. However, by providing a creative outlet, sensory engagement, and a structured environment the arts offer a unique space where neurodivergent kids can thrive.
On this episode, we raise the curtain on a California college prep school where art is life and life is art for its twice-exceptional students. Next, our panel of national experts paints a clearer portrait of the benefits of engaging neurodivergent children in the arts. And later, you’ll meet our latest Difference Maker, a nonverbal teenage Florida artist whose vivid creations speak volumes about his talent.
You’ve probably heard these sayings: "Silence is golden." “All truth is good to know but not all truth is good to say.” “Think before you speak.” And, of course, “A closed mouth gathers no flies.” There’s a good reason these similar sayings abound: it’s to hammer home this important life lesson: “discretion is the better part of valor.” Perhaps the best example of this happens when well-meaning friends, family, or even strangers, stroll up to the parents of a neurodivergent child and deliver an offhand comment or piece of uninformed, unsolicited advice that leave mom and dad feeling judged, misunderstood, and often ticked off. Words have power. And when the words suggest that a child who learns differently is somehow less, or odd, or that mom and dad aren’t measuring up, words sting. That’s why it’s helpful for family, friends, coworkers and others to understand what not to say to parents of neurodivergent children and understand how to trade those awkward and unhelpful comments for genuine support. On this episode we meet an East Coast mom who weathered a raft of advice that has run the gamut from helpful to hurtful regarding her neurodivergent son. Next, our panel of national experts will debunk myths and share how to offer genuine support that celebrates neurodiversity. And you’ll meet our latest Difference Maker, an award-winning journalist who channels her experience as an adult with learning differences into articles championing inclusive workforces. #learningdifferences #autism #dyslexia #dysgraphia
For some kids, school is a place of excitement and discovery. All over the world, however, kids face obstacles in the classroom. They may struggle with reading, focusing, or keeping up with assignments because of learning and attention issues. And for some, these learning differences can trigger another hidden struggle – anxiety.
One study found that at least 21% of children with specific learning disabilities battle anxiety disorders. These anxieties can be a real burden for neurodivergent children.
It's important for families to talk about these challenges children who learn differently face, and the good news is, there's a lot families and educators can do to support them. There are effective strategies to help children with learning and attention issues manage their anxieties and thrive.
On this episode, we visit a dyslexic Massachusetts teenager whose fear of classroom failure taught her mother the importance of stepping up as an relentless advocate to help ward off her daughter’s brewing anxiety. Next, our panel of national experts opens up the toolbox and shares strategies for helping children navigate these challenges and build confidence. Later, you’ll meet our latest Difference Maker, who found that the dyslexia that darkened his horizon as a child is helping him build magical, beautiful digital vistas that thrill and entertain audiences around the world.
#learningdifferences #neurodiversity #anxiety
If at first you don’t succeed, try try again goes the old saying. That’s sound advice meant to build resilience.
However, for neurodivergent children those words can ring hollow for those who struggle to try, try, try, and try again — and their efforts fail to yield a winning result. For
many kids with learning and attention issues, that lack of success can lead to them to throw up their hands, and stop trying.
It’s a psychological phenomenon called learned helplessness. Because the child believes he has no control over negative outcomes he no longer is motivated to try. Given that youngsters with learning differences can face a daily gauntlet of challenges, helping defuse the reduced motivation, low self-esteem, passivity, and procrastination that can
feed this mindset is imperative.
The good news is neurodivergence doesn’t cause learned helplessness, and with early intervention, parents and educators can help kids beef up their resiliency muscles and overcome learned helplessness.
On this episode, we visit a Georgia private school for neurodivergent students where countering learned helplessness is enshrined in its mission statement. Next, our panel of national experts explores strategies for empowering students to dodge learned helplessness. Later, you’ll meet our latest Difference Maker, an inventor and adrenaline junkie who never allowed an undiagnosed learning difference scuttle his dream of blasting into space.
Usually when king of comedy Chris Rock opens his mouth you brace for something funny, if wrapped in an uncomfortable truth.
Four years ago, Rock opened his mouth and shared his truth: the comic, then in his early 50s, had been diagnosed with nonverbal learning disability.
In a way, the star of “Grown Up,” in revealing his diagnosis was letting the world in on a bad joke: the neurological condition known alternatively as nonverbal learning disorder or nonverbal learning disability isn’t widely known or understood. Worse, because it affects different individuals in different ways, the condition may be grossly underdiagnosed.
Yet, the visual-spatial issues and struggles with fine motor skills, decoding body language and facial expressions, and other issues that children with nonverbal learning disability navigate can be mitigated with early intervention and support, meaning individuals with NVLD can find success.
On this episode, we meet a Kentucky teen and promising artist who is learning as a homeschooler to navigate nonverbal learning disorder.
Next, our panel of national experts helps demystify the condition and provide a roadmap to help kids with the condition rock in the classroom and beyond.
Later, you’ll meet our latest Difference Maker, a Harvard scientist and entrepreneur for whom a string of learning differences hasn’t quelled his quest to unlock the DNA strand to revive the wooly mammoth.
“A World of Difference: Embracing Neurodiversity" | S4 E7 Helping LD Kids Deal with Loneliness Childhood. A time for scraped knees, giggles, and friendships forged in PlayStation battles and shared bags of Doritos. But for some children, that Norman Rockwell portrait of connection can feel like an out-of-focus selfie. That’s because neurodivergent youth, those with autism, ADHD, dyslexia or other learning differences, can experience loneliness at a higher rate than their peers. For them, social cues can be confounding, interaction can feel like navigating a maze, and fitting in can be a square peg- round hole conundrum. While loneliness isn’t an inherent part of neurodivergence, it can prove a formidable foe. And for kids who learn differently, it can present unique challenges. Yet, the good news is that parents and caregivers can become the architects of connection by employing practical strategies for building social bridges, fostering understanding, and creating a world where their child feels seen, valued, and deeply connected. In this episode, we meet a Massachusetts teenager whose parents are working to keep their autistic son ahead of the loneliness curve. Next, our panel of national experts shares strategies to help parents and caregivers help children who learn differently bridge the chasm of loneliness. Later, you’ll meet our latest Difference Maker, an award-winning social entrepreneur, scientist, and intersectional inclusion champion whose late diagnosis drives her passion to help others get the early help they need to thrive.
A World Of Difference: Embracing Neurodiversity, S4E6 | "The Science of Reading"
You’ve probably heard the slogan that reading is fundamental. To put a finer point on it, literacy is a cornerstone of success — both in the classroom and beyond. It’s that realization that undergirds a national movement to change the way we teach readers.
The “science of reading” approach leans on systematic instruction, engaging the senses, phonics, comprehension, and more to address specific challenges readers face. Though not without its critics, the approach has caught fire and blazed a path around the United States. At least 32 states and the District of Columbia have passed laws or implemented new policies that incorporate evidence-based reading instruction.
Supporters say the approach promises to unlock potential in every student — including those with learning and attention issues.
On this episode, we visit a New York day school that serves students with language-based learning disabilities which through science and innovation is helping students who learn differently not just read but thrive.
Next, our panel of national experts delves into the science of reading and its profound implications for neurodivergent students.
Later, you’ll meet our latest Difference Maker, Alix Generous, for whom the misdiagnosis of her learning differences is a plumb line for a multifaceted career.
“I HATE math!” It’s a common refrain uttered by many a young student taxed with solving for X or computing the hypotenuse of a triangle.
Or if they don’t hate math, many students fear it as though it was a scholastic Freddy Kreuger. One study found that for 11% of American collegians mathemaphobia was so intense that they turned to counseling.
But for some who get cold sweats, anxiety, or depression when tackling math, their struggles aren’t based on hate or fear, but neurology.
One of the more uncommon learning disorders, dyscalculia, affects one’s ability to comprehend numerical-based information and mathematics. The good news is that kids who have this learning difference can learn skills and workarounds to succeed in math.
On this episode, we visit a Pennsylvania school where students with dyscalculia get a feel for math … by touch …and the use of their other senses.
Next, our panel of national experts shares strategies that add up to math achievement for students with dyscalculia.
Later, you’ll meet our latest Difference Maker, a workforce futurist for whom a past discovery ignited her accomplished present.
On this episode, we visit a Virginia school for dyslexic learners and a Florida college for students with learning and attention issues whose students strive as vigorously on the soccer field or basketball court as they do in the classroom.
Next, our panel of national experts shares the playbook for helping kids who learn differently find success and belonging in organized sports.
Later, you’ll meet our latest Difference Maker, an NBA champion who is scoring points for spotlighting his dyslexia and showing dyslexic youth how to fastbreak to success.
Winning the Homework Battles
Homework. The word gives kids shudders and triggers PTSD flashbacks in parents who recall their own dealings with protractors and prepositions.
As the debate over the value of homework rages on, educators continue to embrace the adage that practice makes perfect.
Try telling that to a child with learning and attention issues whose patience and ability to stay focused have been ground down like a No. 2 pencil after an exhausting day at school. Homework can test any child’s limits. But for youngsters who learn differently, struggles with executive functioning — which impacts their ability to plan, organize, and prioritize — can mean homework leads to meltdowns and breakdowns that leave the child feeling down and out about education.
The good news is that, while there is no one-size-fits-all solution for helping neurodivergent children conquer homework, there are strategies parents can tailor to suit their child’s needs that can transform doing homework from horror to hurrah.
On this episode, we visit a Midwestern mother of three kids with ADHD who long endured stressful homework sessions but fortunately found a solution that has made homework less, well, work.
Next, our panel of national experts reveals what makes homework for neurodivergent kids a struggle and offers winning strategies for acing the assignment.
Later, you’ll meet our latest Difference Maker, a teenage car buff and photographer whose loving portraits of classic rides turn the saying seeing is believing on its head.
On this episode of "A World of Difference: Embracing Neurodiversity," we visit a Central Florida family that uses praise to nourish the souls of both their neurodivergent and neurotypical daughters. Next, our panel of experts shares how sincere and specific praise can bolster outcomes for children who learn differently. Later, you’ll meet our latest Difference Maker, a TV script writer, sci-fi novelist, and a futurist who because of struggles with dyslexia and other learning differences never could have forecast a career as an award-winning author.
