Why Inclusive, Holistic Tutoring Matters For Neurodivergent Learners

By LS Tuition

As we mark World Autism Acceptance Month in April, it’s the perfect time to reflect on the importance of inclusive, holistic education – and why individually tailored learning approaches, like those we use at LS Tuition, can make a big difference for neurodivergent children… and all children!

As a primary school tutor in Edinburgh, LS Tuition supports a number of neurodivergent students – including those who are autistic or have ADHD – by building confidence and developing skills and techniques that will help them towards a successful future. For children with neurodivergence, providing private tuition isn’t just about keeping up with the Scottish curriculum. It’s about nurturing their strengths, building their confidence, and creating an environment where primary-aged children feel safe, supported and understood.

Personalised Approach

Mainstream education does its best to provide for a wide range of learning needs. But the reality can sometimes be that large class sizes, limited resources, and one-size-fits-all teaching methods might leave neurodivergent learners struggling or feeling anxious and overlooked. This is where private tuition steps in, since it offers tailored, one-to-one support that meets each child exactly where they are. At LS Tuition, the provisions we put in place are designed specifically for each individual, regardless of who they are or what diagnosis they may or may not have – no learner will be pigeonholed for not achieving, or for being ‘difficult’ or ‘challenging’.

Neurodivergence is a word that describes brain differences which affect the way people learn, communicate, think and interact with the world around them. The umbrella term encompasses autism, which affects social communication, sensory processing, and behaviour and can impact how individuals express themselves, understand language, and engage with their surroundings; ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder) which impacts attention, impulse control, and hyperactivity, leading to challenges with focus, organisation, and energy/emotional regulation; and dyslexia and dyspraxia, which are learning differences around reading, writing, motor skills and bodily coordination.

Whether they’re neurotypical or neurodivergent, everything we do at LS Tuition is personalised to each individual learner. Tailored teaching methods help children learn in ways that suit them best – perhaps visual aids, hands-on activities, or movement-based learning.

School Distress

Many neurodivergent children struggle to attend school – they may be challenged by the loud, bright, distracting environment, feel that traditional methods of teaching don’t work for them, or find it hard to process information, transition from task to task, or deal with changes in routine. These struggles can lead to extreme emotional distress before, during, and/or after school and have an impact on school attendance. Research in 2023 found that 92.1% of children and young people experiencing school distress in the UK were described as neurodivergent, and 83.4% as autistic.

At LS Tuition, we understand that many neurodivergent children struggle in mainstream education because their individual needs aren’t being met. Some of our students have experienced school distress and are on flexitime schedules or are full-time school refusers. For these students, we can accommodate daytime tutoring in our purpose-built classroom. We work with you and your child’s schedule which means that, in some cases, we can offer an entire classroom to one child. This is really important for neurodivergent children who don’t function well in a school setting. With no distractions from a busy classroom, children receive focused, undivided attention in our calm, well-equipped learning space which helps our students feel secure and ready to learn.

One-To-One

The one-to-one approach at LS Tuition means we can support young learners by finding out fundamentally how their mind works. We consider where their strengths are, what areas can be developed, and how we can support that development. That means devising a personalised learning plan which plays to their strengths and helps them develop skills for life.

One of our autistic students, who loves maths but doesn’t enjoy literacy, struggles with inferring information from books and assessing emotion within characters. The approach we take is to help him join the dots, placing a real focus on words, problems and problem-solving, because that links to literacy, comprehension and inference. For example, when reading The BFG, we may ask him: “How do you think Sophie feels when she first sees The BFG?” The child will answer “I don’t know” because he doesn’t have a full understanding of emotion.

To support this child, we work through questions: where is Sophie right now, what has she just seen, is The BFG warm, welcoming or scary, if he’s scary, why is he scary…? Because the child has a logical approach and can put things together like a puzzle, we’ve supported him to evaluate the text while reinforcing key vocabulary, and empowered him to access a logical response to an emotional question. This strengths-based approach nurtures the learner’s natural abilities and interests, rather than focusing solely on challenges.

“Our son has difficulty with literacy due to being autistic, which affected his confidence. Lydia immediately understood his needs and tailored lessons specifically for him. She created effective strategies to help him cope with different learning challenges and actively incorporated feedback. Thanks to her support, our son has made immense progress in both literacy and numeracy, and his confidence has grown significantly. A huge thank you to Lydia and the fantastic team at LS Tuition!”

Parent testimonial

Understood and Supported

Our personalised, holistic approach also supports each child’s emotional wellbeing – when children feel understood and supported, and when you’ve made their learning experience special to them, their anxiety decreases and their confidence grows. This is certainly the case with one of our students who is incredibly intelligent and full of amazing ideas, but struggles with handwriting. At LS Tuition, the strategy we’ve taken with this child, who may have dysgraphia, is to gradually build up to writing. The student verbally gives his ideas so he can experience being told he’s highly successful; the tutor then types this up for him, because it’s his brain that matters, not his handwriting.

The strategy we’ve put in place means the child is now writing all ten answers himself, his spelling has improved, and he’s mastered how to structure a sentence properly. The next step will be for the child to use his best handwriting for one of his answers, then by the time we get to him writing all ten answers in his neatest writing, not only will the skills be in place, but the confidence will be in place too. At our Edinburgh-based private tutoring classroom, we find that this flexible pacing supports neurodivergent children to learn at their own speed.

“Lydia is a first rate tutor – we are so lucky to have found her. Lydia is enthusiastic, engaging and insightful. My son looks forward to his weekly sessions and the impact on his self-esteem is tangible. Lydia is skilled at meeting a child where they are at and in taking a holistic approach to working together, with each lesson tailored to the child’s learning style and designed to build confidence as well as competence.”

Parent testimonial

Children’s Needs Matter

This personalised approach also supports children with ADHD, many of whom struggle to stay still in a classroom environment. For these children – as with all our learners – we support the fact that children’s needs matter. This means we allow them to walk or move around the learning space if they need to, because we’ve built a relationship based on mutual respect – they may be touching things in the room or rolling on the floor, but they are actively involved in the teaching experience. Everything we do is a partnership, because children need to be actively involved. Learning is not a passive experience. It’s active, so when we work with them and accommodate their needs, we also give them the responsibility and autonomy to choose to be involved. And it really works.

At LS Tuition, we see firsthand how private tuition helps neurodivergent children thrive – building not just academic skills but confidence, independence, and a lifelong love of learning. Our goal is to support children to become successful members of society – to have the confidence and skills to be independent and happy throughout their lives.

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Why Choose Our Private Tuition Service?

Based in Edinburgh, LS Tuition offers a warm, well-resourced classroom setting tailored to the needs of primary-aged children. Whether your child is home-educated, attending mainstream school, or preparing for entrance exams, our approach is designed to foster curiosity, creativity, and resilience.

We believe every child deserves an education that recognises their potential. Our holistic, individualised teaching methods provide a supportive space where neurodivergent learners can flourish.

Ready to learn more? Get in touch today to discuss how we can support your child’s educational journey.