SCHOOL children in Launceston have been learning about neurodiversity in lessons.

Children in Years 5 and 6 participated in workshops with Joel and Natalie from the Youth Mental Health Foundation and learned about how different people’s brains worked differently.

The children also learned about famous examples of three types of genius, including Jeff Bezos, Walt Disney and Barack Obama.

Maura Furber, executive headteacher of St Stephen’s Community Academy, said: “This week we were delighted to welcome Joel and Natalie from the Youth Mental Health Foundation who lead in workshops with our Year 5 and Year 6 classes. Lisa from Cornwall Community Foundation, who funded the workshops, also joined us and Councillor Adam Paynter who has championed our school visits visited too.

“In the Mental Health Workshops the children learnt more about neurodiversity and how all of our brains work differently. We were able to share a lot of our knowledge about a famous mathematician and scientist : Albert Einstein and learnt that he had autism and that he was a genius. We then discussed the different types of geniuses.

Two of the students at St Stephens during the workshop (Picture: St Stephens Community Academy)
Two of the students at St Stephens during the workshop (Picture: St Stephens Community Academy) ( )

“Vision Genius : full of ideas, good imagination and creativity. Famous vision genius are Walt Disney and Ed Sheeran.

“Communication Genius : able to communicate clearly with others. A famous communication genius is Barack Obama.

“Action Genius: organised and like to get things done. Famous Action genius are Nelson Mandela and Mother Theresa.

“Logic Genius : good with numbers, maths, details of how systems work. A famous logic genius is Jeff Bezos, the creator of Amazon.

“We looked at the different qualities and gifts of each genius and identified which genius type we are- some of us identified more than one genius type. We were able to share a lot of our prior knowledge about these famous people.

“At St Stephens Community Academy we know the importance of not only our physical health but also our mental health .These amazing workshops greatly support our school drive to support our pupil’s overall well-being and to learn coping strategies to navigate the ups and downs of life. We are so grateful for these workshops and to the people who coordinated our involvement in them.”