Many local children will be headed back to school in the next few weeks. For those with ADHD, Asperger’s, anxiety, and other challenges, this transition may be a difficult one. There are a variety of strategies parents can employ to help ease the transition. Some of these include adjusting sleep schedules, setting routines, priming, and social stories.
Sleep affects mood, behavior, and cognitive ability. Many children have relaxed sleep schedules over the summer. In order to help prepare their brains and bodies for the demands placed upon them during the school year, parents may find it helpful to begin to transition to a sleep schedule with appropriate bed and wake times at least a week prior to the start of school. Doctors recommend approximately 10 hours of sleep per night for school-aged children. For children who have conditions such as ADHD and sensory integration issues, as well as children who take some medications, sleep can be problematic. Regular sleep schedules, calming activities before bed, and limits on caffeine and electronics can all help children to sleep better.
Setting routines often helps children who need structure. For example, a picture schedule of the morning routine helps children who tend to be disorganized stay focused and on task as they get ready for school. For children who are able to read, a check-list may help them to manage getting dressed, preparing breakfast, and packing needed materials for school. Predictable routines with visuals for reference can help children with executive function difficulties be more successful both at home and at school. Consider introducing these routines before school starts, and practice them daily so that they will become the norm several days before school starts.
One of the biggest transitions children face each new school year is moving to a new classroom and learning the routines in each new class. For children who experience these transitions with difficulty, some schools will facilitate the process of priming the child for school. That is, the teacher or other school employee will allow the child to come before school starts and show him or her where the classroom is, perhaps which desk he or she will use, where to put backpacks and line up, how to change classes, etc. Some schools may then allow parents to bring their children back several times before school starts so that the child will have familiarity with the environment and routines. This can lesson anxiety and help pre-teach those who may have more difficulty learning new classroom procedures.
he Social Story is a tool created by Carol Gray that provides information to a child about situations, skills, or social interactions. Social stories can be created and personalized such that the reader has a greater understanding of expectations and events. A personalized social story can be an effective way to show a child what he or she will experience in individual situations. In particular, they can be very effective for children with anxiety or social deficits, as they help the child imagine what he or she would experience, and learn appropriate responses or behaviors for those experiences.
There are many strategies available for helping children transition from summer back to school. Adjusting sleep schedules, setting routines, priming, and social stories are all tools that are fairly easy to implement. Using some of these approaches may help to make the transition easier for children and their families.
Avigael (Stephanie) Wodinsky, PhD, MEd is a social skills therapist who works with children individually and in groups at Teaneck Speech and Language Center.
By Avigael (Stephanie) Saucier Wodinsky, Ph.D., M.Ed., M.B.A., GAC-ABA, GAC-AI
