Back to School is Around the Corner!
This month's Community Connections looks at helping parents of kids with autism prepare for a smooth transition back to school. We know the best way to plan for a transition is to plan well in advance. These tips will help you get your child organized for school and teach him or her strategies for managing assignments and deadlines. We hope you and your child have a successful school year!
Note: Depending on your child's school setting and abilities, you can individualize our suggestions to make them a good fit for you and your child during the back to school process.
For Younger Children:
- Prepare your child. Create a social story or picture schedule for school routines. Start reviewing and practicing early.
- If your child is used to sleeping later in the summer, start to prepare for an earlier morning by waking your child a bit earlier each day as the first day of school approaches.
- If possible, arrange to visit his/her
teacher and the school a week or
two before the first day. Take your
digital camera on your visit, so your
child can have a photo reminder of the
setting. The teacher may be able to
show your child his desk or locker or
the lunch room. - If you can't visit with the teacher, you
can at least visit the school building,
and perhaps spend some time on the
playground. - School supplies - get them well in advance so that your child can get used to them. Keep any favorite items from last year. Some kids feel rewarded by all new supplies, and others may prefer the "old friend" items.
- Color code notebooks and materials (including making text book covers) for different classes. Blue equals math, red equals English, etc. Color coding will help your child identify and keep their materials together and the colors can be integrated with a picture schedule.
- Get school clothes, uniforms and shoes early. You may want to wash them a few times. If your child is bothered by clothing labels, remove them with a scissor. Ensure that your child feels as comfortable as possible in his/her new outfits for school.
For Preteens/Teens:
- Help your teen select a "cool" first day
outfit ahead of time. First impressions
are important to peers at this age. - Organize their bedroom. Separate
ongoing projects, finished work,
and school supplies into labeled
bins, folders, file cabinets, or an
under-bed box. Provide a shelf for
books and a bulletin board for
reminders. - Post reminders. Give your child a pad of sticky notes, and encourage him/her to post special reminders on mirrors, doors and elsewhere.
- Get a daily planner to keep track of deadlines, appointments, events and so on. Encourage your child to keep a daily to-do list, and teach him/her to preioritize by dividing tasks into two groups: IMPORTANT (do it now!) and LESS IMPORTANT (do it later). Go over the next day's schedule together every night.
- Prepare for the next day. As your child packs his/her backpack each evening, make sure, make sure that homework is in its folder and that everything he or she will need - sneakers, lunch money, permission slips - is all ready to go.
- Reserve a shelf or cabinet by the front door for items that your child takes to school every day. Label it with colored stickers, so that glasses, wallet and bus pass can easily be found. Hang a hook underneath for a backpack or sports bag.
- Buy a backpack that encourages organization, such as a backpack with multiple compartments. Click here for a backpack checklist.
- Keep an extra set of textbooks at home. That way, your child won't have to remember every book every day. Make the extra books part of the IEP, or request them from the teacher at the beginning of the term.
- Structure time on the weekends for review. Many students panic on Sunday evening because they didn't accomplish everything they should have. Creating a weekend routine with scheduled free time and study time can help prevent a meltdown. On weekends, help your child go through his/her backpack to remove old work and see if he/she needs any new supplies for the week.
Help your child organize his/her school materials - notebooks/binders, workbooks/texts, pens/pencils - and assign each category its own compartment. A 3-ring binder, with colored tabs for separate subjects and inserts with pockets for notes, works well for many students. Buy paper with reinforced holes to reduce the risk of losing pages.
Student Initiatives of Autism Speaks
Student Initiatives of Autism Speaks are open to students of any age who want to join together to make a difference in the global health crisis of autism, regardless of their personal connection. Our goal is to create a community that is educated about autism by empowering students to pave the way for acceptance and understanding. Click here to find out more information about starting a group or finding a group in your local area.
Student Initiatives of Autism Speaks are open to students of any age who want to join together to make a difference in the global health crisis of autism, regardless of their personal connection. Our goal is to create a community that is educated about autism by empowering students to pave the way for acceptance and understanding. Click here to find out more information about starting a group or finding a group in your local area.
Click here for a spotlight on the Santa Margarita Catholic High School Student Club for Autism Speaks in Rancho Santa Margarita, CA.
Click here for a spotlight on the Autism Awareness Club at Walt Whitman High School in Huntington Station, NY.
Click here for to read about a mother's experience moving her child with autism from public school to private school.
Click here for a spotlight on the Autism Awareness Club at Walt Whitman High School in Huntington Station, NY.
Click here for to read about a mother's experience moving her child with autism from public school to private school.
School Community Toolkit
The Autism Speaks School Community Tool Kit provides valuable information and resources that can be employed by special education and administrative staff in their efforts to plan for and support students in general education environments and involvement in the school community as a whole. Visit the updated version of our School Community Toolkit online here.
Visit Our Resource Guide!
There are a number of great after-school programs listed in our Resource Guide that vary from athletic to creative, one-on-one instruction to full inclusion, and recreational to competitive. Search here for programs available in your area. You can also find non-public schools in your area that are geared toward individuals with autism, as well as local organizations that may assist you in ensuring a smooth transition for your child to go back to school
Tell Us About Your Experience!
We would like to hear from you! Describe your back-to-school stories, and what you learned from these experiences. E-mail us at familyservices@autismspeaks.org
There are a number of great after-school programs listed in our Resource Guide that vary from athletic to creative, one-on-one instruction to full inclusion, and recreational to competitive. Search here for programs available in your area. You can also find non-public schools in your area that are geared toward individuals with autism, as well as local organizations that may assist you in ensuring a smooth transition for your child to go back to school
Tell Us About Your Experience!
We would like to hear from you! Describe your back-to-school stories, and what you learned from these experiences. E-mail us at familyservices@autismspeaks.org
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