Sun, Fun, and Autism: Preparing Your Child for a Sensational Summer

(Yes… Autism is in the title, but these tips can really apply to all kids. Take what works for you and leave the rest!)

The school districts around me will be getting out in a little less than a month, so now is the time to start priming your child for the changes summer can bring. It will be full of fun and excitement, but also possibly uncertainty and anxiety. So prepping for the challenges now will allow everyone to enjoy their time off from school a little more. 

You might find that during the school day, your child follows a pretty consistent routine and deviating from that can be hard. Many classrooms build in visual schedules and use a lot of priming for changes that arise. When these interventions are built into the environment, we can help ease those unexpected transitions. These concepts can be applied at home too! Obviously, a classroom and a home are two extremely different settings and the extent to which you use these interventions is entirely up to you. It is summer, so running each day like a school day would be exhausting for you and your child. However, some of these things can be used in a way that makes days at home easier. 

So… let’s get into it!

Try to keep a regular schedule.

I have found that practically all kids (neurotypical and neurodivergent) benefit from knowing what’s coming in their day. Trying to keep wake-up time, bedtime, and meal times consistent can be helpful. Building in some time for some academic and social skills practice is another great idea. (Some kids might be going to ESY and that likely covers academic practice.) 

Check out this free printable! It has multiple versions in color and black and white. You can just laminate the one that works for your child and you are ready to go. Some are great for just writing in the schedule and others work well for adding picture icons. 

Prime for day trips and vacations. 

Since it’s summer and some days will vary with day trips and vacations, try to plan them ahead of time and talk about them with your child for a few days leading up to the event.

When I worked with kids with ASD in their homes, we would create social stories for these situations to help them understand what will happen and what is expected of them in the new situations. Pay special attention to ensuring your child understands the expectations for travel safety. 

Leave space for leisure time.

Try to make sure your summer days aren’t jam packed with activities. We all need time to decompress and just relax. This can be a little harder on vacation, so some ideas are TV time, tablet time, or just bring some toys. When my older two kids were younger and we were driving to our vacation destination, I would give them each a small laundry basket and they could fill it with activities they wanted to bring. The only rule was that it had to be contained in the basket, not so full things were falling out.

I hope these tips help to make your summer fun and enjoyable!

Which tips are you going to use? Comment below!