Helpful Back-to-School Tips for Smooth Transitions & Successful Routines

Come August and September, transitioning from the summer routine back to school can be challenging! Many parents struggle with similar difficulties, including:

• Early morning wake-ups
• Bedtime struggles
• New bus schedules
• More independence

Kids do best when they know what to expect. Having a simple routine in place at home can make them feel safe. It also helps make every day easier for parents and kids.

What is a routine?

• A routine is a habit or activity you do on certain days or everyday, like brushing teeth or reading every night before bed. It's following a schedule with steps that you do in the morning, afternoon, and night. 

For example:

Every morning, when we get ready for school, we complete our morning tasks in this order:

• Wake up
• Make our bed
• Go to the bathroom and brush teeth
• Get dressed
• Have breakfast as a family
• Pack backpack with school materials (folders, lunchbox, etc)
• Put shoes on and leave the house

You can introduce your child to routines through the use of books. A great beginner book for routines is Llama Llama, Wakey Wake by Anna Dewdney. Linked here is a Youtube read-aloud of this book that can be shown to young children to help them understand.

Keeping mornings and nighttime the same makes things easier for children. They need to know what's going to happen next. When they get older, you can give them more responsibility and have them make their own routines!

Neurodivergent children are children whose brains work differently than other kids, like children diagnosed with ADHD or Autism. They usually struggle with changes in routine and schedule.

Sometimes, they are more sensitive to other things than other kids like noise, bright lights, or being in crowded places. They need routines to help them focus and feel safe, especially when they get overwhelmed. When there are changes in their routines, neurodivergent children can feel worried or upset.

How can we help?

 There are steps we can take to help support children through transition periods and changes in routine. The following tools can be useful for all children.

1. Structured transition support
   • offer breaks, coping strategies, and visual schedule support if necessary. Discuss and practice using these tools ahead of time so they are familiar and easy to reach for both you and your child.
2. “Warnings” of changes as soon as you know of them.
   • Verbally warning a child before there is a big or small change in the schedule can make them feel less anxious and avoid big tantrum.
3. Offer sensory outlets
   • Fidgets and other sensory toys can be calming for children when they need to expend additional energy. Ask your child what kinds of toys/fidgets they prefer!
4. Integrate support systems
   • Keep open lines of communication with others including teachers, service providers, caregivers, etc. Make sure other adults are aware of the plan in place and are familiar with the tools you are implementing. 

What can you do to establish and support healthy routines?

1. Think about what works for your kids!
   • Are your children hungry the second they wake up? Maybe they need breakfast first!
   • Would it help to have a quiet moment with you when they wake up?
2. What has to be done? Make a list of what each child needs to do to prepare for the day
   • Keep the expectations realistic - an 8 year old will be much more independent than a 2 year old. Younger children may need more support to complete these tasks.
3. Have a family meeting to outline expectations of timeliness and task completion
   
   
4. Practice run! Take one morning on a weekend to “practice” the new routine before you put it into place.
   
   
5. Use visual aids or pictures to help children understand time management: Visual timers and schedules can help kids understand how much they need to get done in a certain time frame.
   
   
   
   
   
   
6. Make adjustments where necessary- if you notice that an aspect of the routine is not working for you, adjust accordingly. Maybe more preparations can be made at night if you have a child who has difficulty waking up early. That way, they can sleep for longer but still have tasks completed so the morning is not overwhelming. 

Whether you feel a New-School-Year revamp is right for you, or making small tweaks in your schedule feels more manageable, changing and practicing routines with your child can make a big difference! For more information, visit forwardleadingIPA.org or www.path2growthcounseling.com to get in touch with a qualified professional for parenting support.

Glossary: 

​​IEP - Individualized Education Plan. This is a legal document for a child with a disability where the school details which class placement, goals, accommodations, and supports will be offered.

504  accommodations- a legal document that outlines accommodations for students with disabilities in school, ensuring they have equal access to their education under Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act. These plans detail modifications to the learning environment, such as a quiet space for tests or use of assistive technology, but do not typically include the specialized instruction found in an Individualized Education Program (IEP).

CSE- Committee On Special Education - this is a team of people who meet to help decide which supports will help a student with a disability succeed academically.

Neurodivergent- People with Autism, ADHD, dyslexia, dysgraphia, intellectual disability, or other difference of neurodevelopment that impacts how the brain views the world.

Neurotypical- People who do not have brain differences or challenges that affect how they view the world

Self-regulation- your ability to calm yourself down and control your emotions, as well as how quickly you can return to an emotionally typical state after experiencing a strong emotion.

Co-regulation: the practice of regulating emotions alongside another person; this is very helpful for parents to practice in front of and with their children. Ex. taking deep breaths together

FERPA: FERPA (the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act) is a federal law that protects the privacy of student education records, granting parents the right to access their children's records and control some disclosure of information.

FAPE: “free and appropriate public education” as detailed by federal law. This is a student’s right within the United States. 

BIP: Behavior Intervention Plan - this is a plan created by the CSE team to help improve a child’s behavior through offering socially appropriate alternatives.

FBA: Functional Behavior Assessment: When the CSE team observes a student for a number of days to help determine the cause of behaviors and what function they serve for the student (the WHY)