As I have walked down the "parent of a child with learning differences" lane, structure and predictability have been a first line of defense for my child's anxiety. Learning differences and anxiety seem to pair up in most instances. Much of the information that I will share in the next few Tuesday's is from a workshop I present entitled "Normalizing Family Life."
I will also, share some ways that I've applied this to my son's transition to college. I am learning a lot from an university autism support program. Structure and predictability looks different at various stages of your child's life. This series will look at the differences.
Today lets look at Structure and Predictability.
Structure An arrangement and organization of interrelated elements to a system that gives meaning to the environment.
Predictability Consistent repetion of action/behavior making it possible for a person to know what is expected to happen before it does.
A child functions better when his/her environment is as consistent as possible . Physical structure is the first and easiest place to begin. This will enable a child to predict what will happen and what is expected thus lowering his anxiety. Here is a common problem. Parents want homework done before dinner without much upheaval. Now if the car ride home has meltdowns or conflict then you need to back up and look at that first. There are a number things happening between 3:00 and 4:00 Monday -Friday. The structure of the school day ends and your child must transition from the place he has spent the last 7 hours into an enclosed space (car) often with other children. It is loud and the children are close to each other.. His senses might be overwhelmed. The transition from one environment to another was a big ask. Now after all of this. He is asked to transition to another environment: home, within a very short time. If this isn’t enough, you want him along with his siblings to get homework done quickly (he may not understand what quickly means). She should because the same routine happens every Tuesday when his sister has dance lessons. But he doesn't remember. Does this sound like a scenario that could happen at your house. If so, you are in good company. I had this kind of scenario for more days than I care to admit.
Over the next few weeks, I will share a few ways to create structure and predictability in the home. Most of these are ways to make the home and school environments more inviting and less stressful for your child.
- Physical Structure
- Visual Structure
- Motivational Structure
- Predictable Routines
- Preparation and Planning for Change/New/Non-Preferred/transitions
- Consistent Use of Language for Generalization
Join me as we continue to explore these strategies for structure and predictability in your child's life.
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