September is the month for transitions. Transition from long lazy days in the summer to short busy days in the fall. Transition from staying up late and sleeping in, to going to bed by 8pm and waking up at 7am. Transitions from eating when you are hungry to eating because it is first nutrition break at school. Transition to the first day of school from staying at home(or having IBI therapy). These can be very stressful times for all children.
Children diagnosed with Autism don't often tolerate transitions easily. These suggestions are to meant to assist you with helping your child during these times.
Routine: it is so important to establish a healthy routine for all children. This also helps to encourage confidence and independence. Bed time should be at the same time each night. It is important that the child experiences being put to bed by mom and or dad or other family members, so that they can generalize these skills across all people. You don't want to fall into a trap that your child will only go to bed when "mommy does it"! Also try to encourage reading different stories and or songs...so that the child won't develop obsessions with these items.
Social Stories: these can be a wonderful tool to use to get a child involved in the process of upcomming transitions. Holidays, birth of a new sibling, going to school etc. Accumulate pictures for the upcoming event and design a simple story from the start to finish. Children diagnosed with ASD are frequently visual learners and so these pictures along with verbal stories will help them to "see" and "hear" what is going to happen.
On the odd occasion, social stories can increase stress and anxiety in these children. If your child develops severe anxiety or stress talking about the story...then stop. Try it again at another time. We don't want to encourage negative feelings or experiences around this event.
Going to school: starting JK or attending school after attending IBI therapy can be a stressful event. Developing a strong relationship with your childs principal, school teacher and Special Education Resource Teacher are critical for your child to be succesful at school. Try to arrange for your child to visit the school, his/her teacher and tour the school a couple of times before the first day. Ask to allow your child to play outside(with you)so that they can see and learn about the environment and boundaries present. If your child is a flight risk, make sure you understand how this will be prevented and what steps will take place if the child does bolt.If the child rides the bus to school, ask if there is an opportunity for the child to have a "practice ride". Practice using the washrooms and toilets, as these can be very scary for children with Autism.
Transitions are a wonderful opportunity to learn, for your child and for you. Do some homework and establish some good routines and social stories for your child. Expect to see some tantrums,meltdowns (for you and them) and perhaps a little regression in some taught skills. These will deminish with time though as your child learns the expectations and builds self confidence with all that is being learned.
