10 Calming Tips and Transition Strategies for Kids
posted on The Inspired Treehouse
If you’ve worked with kids for awhile, you know all about transitions and transition strategies and calming techniques during transitions…those little magic tricks that creative teachers, therapists, caregivers, and others have invented to help prevent tantrums and promote self-regulation when kids need to move from one activity to another throughout the day.
Before I had my own kids, I used these strategies primarily with my students at school who had autism or other special needs that contributed to challenging behaviors during transition times. But, as time went on and I became an auntie and then, a few years later, a mom, I realized…”Wait a minute…these little tricks work with allkids!”
Like when we have to leave those beloved Legos behind in the morning to go to school or when it’s time to leave Grandma’s and they just don’t want to go home!
I won’t say that these strategies are 100% fail-proof, but I do know from experience that it feels really good to be prepared with a handful of ideas that can help ward off a potential tantrum when the going gets tough. Here are some of my favorite ideas and therapy tools for transitions…
10 Calming Techniques & Transition Strategies for Kids
1 || Make it clear to the child how much longer the activity will last.
Try using a visual timer. Bring the child’s attention to it when you set it and keep referring to it throughout the activity (e.g. “Look! We have 2 minutes left!”)
Offer a set number of turns with the activity before moving on and then count them out clearly (e.g. 10 more pushes on the swing, 3 more turns with the toy, etc.).
Give lots of warnings for how long the child has left to participate in the activity.
2 || Make sure the child knows and understands what is coming next and give her something to look forward to!
Picture schedules are perfect for this. Set up a visual schedule showing the child several steps of her day (e.g. get dressed, brush teeth, eat breakfast, go to school) either in pictures or, if your child can read, using words.
This Visual Schedule Planner app looks awesome too. Try to alternate between non-preferred and preferred activities so that the child sees that she has positive things to look forward to throughout the day.
As much as you possibly can, stick to your schedule like glue until it’s an easy routine for the child. If a child is struggling a great deal with transitions, try breaking it down into even simpler terms with a “First…Then” chart, showing that first the child must complete one activity before moving on to a more preferred activity.
You can find pictures of common everyday activities on sites like do2Learn, or if you have access to Boardmaker, you can find pretty much any picture under the sun. Learn how to make a visual schedule here.
