Neuro-Affirming Conversation Starters

Gentle prompts to help connection, understanding and celebration of differences.

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Meaningful conversations can help children feel seen, heard and valued – especially when navigating a world that often misunderstands or overlooks neurodivergent experiences.

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This printable resource offers calm, open-ended questions designed to support self-awareness, empathy, and connection between children and trusted adults.

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What’s Included:

A 1-page, full-colour PDF featuring 16 thoughtfully designed prompts across four themes:

• Getting to Know Ourselves - Encouraging reflection on strengths, challenges and the unique ways each brain works.

• Understanding Differences - Promoting curiosity and acceptance around how others think, feel and process the world.

• Talking about Needs and Strengths - Creating space to name what helps, what hurts, and what might go unseen from the outside.

• Building Empathy - Fostering compassion for peers and offering gentle ways to respond when someone is struggling

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The questions are written with PDA and autistic children in mind, but can support a wide range of neurodivergent or neurotypical children, at home or in educational and therapeutic settings.

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Who It’s For:

• Parents or carers wanting to deepen understanding and emotional connection with their child

• Educators, learning support staff and pastoral teams looking to open dialogue in class or 1:1

• Therapists or mentors supporting self-reflection and identity exploration

• Any adult seeking respectful, low-pressure ways to talk about difference, needs, and strengths

 

Why It Matters:
So many children are asked to fit into a world that wasn’t built with them in mind. These conversation starters centre the child’s voice and invite genuine, respectful dialogue — building a foundation for co-regulation, advocacy and belonging.