Planting the Seeds: Laying the Groundwork for Summer Success

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As we continue with our summer blog series “Behavior Blossoms: A Summer For Growth”, we want to explore how we can incorporate simple strategies to help prepare for upcoming changes, transitions, and more!

As we know, a summer schedule is often chaotic! Last minute changes, late nights, and lack of daily structure often make it difficult for those with ASD. Just as we know a garden enjoys consistent sunlight and watering, your child might thrive off of consistent routines. Without structure, children are often struggling to figure out what to do with their time and how to make the most of their day.

✅ Prepare a routine!

Create a very SIMPLE schedule to follow; We know schedules will likely change, and we want to keep things fun but a little structure can go a long way! No need to schedule out your entire day, but a few tasks to work on throughout the day can keep some consistency and help your child have a routine. Something like this can be helpful:

Keeping things simple yet structured helps to guide your day but not over complicate things! Allow your child to participate in creating this schedule and let them add activities they enjoy.

✅ Transition Buffers

Once we have a routine down, we can now use some tools for transitioning between activities. We often call these a “transition buffer” as they help facilitate schedule changes and moving from one activity to the other. Utilizing different tools can provide a strong foundation and prepare your child and you for those busy summer days! Some buffers that we recommend are

  • Timers
  • Verbal Cues
  • Count Downs
  • First-Then Statements

Before stating “We are all done” or “Time to stop” we can help make transitions easier by providing quick warnings or countdowns before hand. Try using the following phrases instead

  1. “Two more minutes and then we are going to read a book”
  2. “After we play outside, we will go inside to watch a movie!”
  3. “Okay we are going inside in 5,4,3,2,1…. Let’s go!”
  4. “First we are going to clean up, and then we can play outside for 10 minutes”

Remember: These tools aren’t just helpful—they’re empowering. They give your child the ability to navigate their day with greater confidence and independence.

✅ Reinforcement

Throughout the summer, we want to continuously reinforce those behaviors we want to see more of. We can provide reinforcement in many ways:

  • Verbal Praise
    • “great job”, “I am proud of you”, “That’s how you clean up!”
  • Reward Chart
    • Create a quick reward chart with tokens (stickers, coins, toys, etc.)
  • Fun Activity
    • Work towards a fun activity your child enjoys
  • Grab a treat
    • No better way to cool off from a hot summer day than an ice cream or snow cone! 🍧

Remember that providing reinforcement will lead to that behavior happening MORE!  Keep following us for more to come on reinforcement strategies.

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By planting these seeds early in the summer, you’re giving your child the structure and support they need to thrive. And like any good garden, the more love and care you give it, the more it will blossom.

Stay tuned for our next post as we dig deeper into meaningful summer engagement with Watering the Roots – Reinforcement in Everyday Life. 💦