Finding His Quiet Place

The Story of T Cumming, the World’s Youngest Master Diver

Have you ever found it tough to focus?

Maybe your mind wanders in class, or during a conversation? For kids with learning disorders, that lack of focus can be nonstop—and can make school and other activities seem impossible.

That’s what it was like for Tennessee ā€œTā€ Cumming, who was diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), dyslexia, and several other learning difficulties.

T struggled so much that, on school days, his parents often couldn’t get him out of bed. But everything changed when T discovered SCUBA diving.

In the quiet world beneath the waves, T found a place where his troubles drifted away and he could thrive—so he devoted himself to the sport, becoming the world’s youngest certified Junior Master Diver in 2016, a day after he turned 12.

After taking up SCUBA, T’s grades and social abilities improved—so much that he no longer dreaded going to school, and even gave a presentation to his classmates on how he’d become a master diver.

  • Genre: Nonfiction
  • Pages: 8

Heinemann / Fountas & Pinnell (2020)
ISBN 13: 978-0-325-10593-2