Dance as a Tool to Support Neurodiverse Students
Category: Community Engagement Poster
Author(s): Charlotte Lobben
Presenter(s): Charlotte Lobben
Mentors(s): Lisa Morgan
This poster’s central aim is to raise awareness about dance as a legitimate educational and therapeutic tool, equip educators and families with accessible resources, and support the integration of adaptive dance into PreK–5 classrooms, inclusive education plans, and extracurricular programs. The project outlines three strategic goals: raise awareness, encourage integration of adaptive dance, and provide practical implementation tools. Through presentations, workshops, and digital outreach, the poster highlights the value of dance in inclusive education and shares success stories from established programs like The Dream Project (National Dance Institute), DanceAbility International, and Rhythm Works Integrative Dance. These programs illustrate how adaptive dance promotes inclusion by bringing together students of all abilities in collaborative, expressive environments. To ensure accessibility, the poster will provide a suite of user-friendly resources: visual handouts with QR codes and plug-and-play lesson plans. An online hub is also in development, offering downloadable toolkits, expert interviews, and instructional material. The broader goal of the project is to shift perceptions of dance from an “extra” to an essential component of inclusive education. By showing that dance is not only therapeutic but also academically and socially enriching, this poster calls on schools, educators, and families to rethink how they support neurodiverse learners. Dance becomes a bridge between therapy, learning, and expression, accessible to all, regardless of ability. In doing so, this project envisions classrooms and communities where movement is embraced as a powerful, everyday tool for growth, inclusion, and connection.