On Monday 26th September I attended The Bookseller’s Children Conference. It was a really interesting and engaging experience. One of the interventions was called “Why We Worked Together on a GCSE Textbook for Neurodivergent Kids”; during this panel, Hannah Beeson from Hodder Education and Amy Lankester-Owen from Jessica Kingsley explained how the two publishing houses worked together to create GCSE Maths for Neurodivergent Learners. A book made for neurodivergent teenagers and created specifically to help in their learning and to assist them in the preparation for the GCSE.

This intervention made me think of when I was just a young teen struggling with math during school tests and interrogations. I would have loved to have been able to learn math with this book. I remember that I used to think “Am I smart enough?” or even worse “Am I stupid?”. Every one of my schoolmates, some more, some less, managed in some way to get by in math. I, on the other hand, couldn’t understand why letters were mixed with numbers. It took me years to comprehend that there was nothing wrong with me and that it was simply because I had ADHD.  

Seeing now that Jessica Kingsly Publishing (JKP) and Hodder Education published a math book made for neurodivergent children, filled me with happiness. I imagined how all these kids could learn with something thought exactly for them, that could help them express all their potential.

But still, this is just a little step, and although it is an exceptional one, it’s not enough. During the presentation, Amy Lankester-Owen said that they created this book because they found “a gap in the market for inclusive subjects and specific exam guides for teenagers”, making this the first book ever of its kind.

It’s not surprising to hear of this gap, neurodiversity representation is still low in children’s fiction. In 2019, Just 3,4% of main characters in children’s books had a disability; and just 0,05% were neurodiverse. So, when it comes to school books that are created specifically for this minority the numbers are even lower.

Finding learning books, specifically books made for school exams, that can improve the studying experience of neurodivergent learners and help them reach higher education is difficult. Furthermore, these kinds of resources are not accessible to everyone and are not yet largely used in every school.

I noticed that JKP is almost the only big publishing house that has a real focus on neurodiverse learners, that understand that their mind works differently, which is why is essential that they have books made by studying exactly how the neurodivergent mind learns.

Hannah Beeson went on with the presentation, talking about the marketing aspect of this book and how they received an enthusiastic response to it. Both teachers and parents are interested in this project that will help their students and children to enjoy studying.

It’s exciting to see the publishing market evolving following the need of teenagers and children. I’m positive that this book won’t be the only one of its genre, the road is now paved.