Pea X Microsoft

Our Co-founder, Claire, has been included as one of Microsoft’s UK Accessibility Champions. In a recent collaboration, Claire discussed her son Zane's journey with Microsoft Learning Tools: how the platform empowers Zane, making learning and living with dyslexia a little easier for him.

At Pea, we make no bones about being staunch advocates for neurodiverse children, teens and adults. It’s something we’ve always supported – so to be part of Microsoft’s UK Accessibility Champions was a huge sign that we’re on the right path.

Like an estimated 10% of all the people in the world, Claire’s son Zane has dyslexia. But he also has ADHD – and both ADHD and dyslexia have an often misunderstood link:

Read more – What’s the Link Between ADHD and Dyslexia?

As a bright, creative young person brimming with ideas, Zane was absolutely thrilled to be part of Microsoft’s first Think Differently about Dyslexia workshop, back in 2019. The whole experience ignited his passions and exposed him to people with the same challenges as him who had found success and joy in learning.

Claire talks so fondly of Zane’s experiences at the workshop:

“I think it was the first time ever that he felt surrounded by people who shared some of the same differences that he did…”

And of his discovery for a new passion, enabled by technology:

“…the thing that inspired him the most was the little bits of animation that he learnt to do, because he's incredibly creative – unsurprisingly for someone who is dyslexic with ADHD!”

Three years on, and Zane continues to use Microsoft Learning Tools day-to-day, to make life and learning with dyslexia a little bit easier – tools like Immersive Reader and Dictation.

Claire talks about the benefits to Zane’s school and home life, thanks to Microsoft’s suite of tools for children with dyslexia, in the full feature here:

How Pea and Microsoft are on different sides of the same path

Microsoft’s latest Be You campaign, and the Think Differently about Dyslexia kids’ camps, were created by their very own UKi Channel Sales Director, Kelly Monday to help those with learning differences realise their strengths.

Kelly said: “if I can help another child not feel inadequate, know they have many strengths and that they can thrive when their needs are met, then my goal has been achieved. I want to stop other children and adults feeling like I did”.

Microsoft has firmly attached itself to inclusivity for all. From making adaptive Xbox controllers, to helping blind people recognise faces, Microsoft’s brand is deeply associated with inclusivity, and providing the technology to empower everyone.

And that’s kind of where we are as a brand, too – albeit with a low-tech approach.

Whether it’s helping neurodiverse children sleep at night, or creating spaces for “energy seekers”, our whole ethos at Pea is to give all children a space that calms them, but also inspires them – no matter who they are, or the labels they carry.

We’re all about unlocking creativity, imagination, and potential; through the spaces in your home that your child calls their own.

So, to have this association with Microsoft, and such an incredible experience with their tools and workshops, has been a real honour. And it’s a clear sign that we’re on the right side of the good fight.