It is generally recognised that some children struggle with change and particularly with transitions within the school day. But often this is stated as a fact but with little consideration of what this actually means or how to improve matters.
What do we mean by a transition?
In schools, a transition means a movement or change in the environment, relationships, behaviours, routines, roles, or expectations. We expect our children to manage transitions multiple times a day.
Even in the early years and key stage 1 when children remain in their classrooms for much of the day, there are transitions coming into and leaving school, between activities within a lesson, moving from the carpet to a table, and going to assembly, play, lunch, PE and possibly intervention or other groups.
Even these youngest children are being expected to manage more than a dozen transitions a day. As they get older, and the number of room and subject changes increase and the demands on children who struggle with change multiply still further.
Why do children struggle with transitions?
It is commonplace that children on the autistic spectrum may struggle with change, although this is not true for all children with autism, and difficulties with change can also extend far beyond this group too.
Any children with attachment issues or experiencing anxiety, those with experience of bullying and those who struggle to understand the workings and expectations of the school system, including refugees and asylum-seekers, can all be vulnerable.
For these children and many others, the changes within the school day challenge their sense of security, confidence and belonging. They produce unknowns and uncertainty.
Even where a child has experienced the transition before, this does not necessarily provide them with the security to enable them to manage it again. Children are not consistent, and we should not assume that because children can manage some changes, they can manage all of them.
They may be able to manage change in a familiar setting, with familiar people, to familiar activities, but as soon as one of these variables change –there is a supply teacher, it rains, they have a cold, or the seating plan is different – the situation changes and transitions can become challenging once again.
Equally, children do not arrive in school a blank canvas. They will have been affected by whatever happened before they came to school. These events and experiences affect their ability to manage change on that day.
How to support transitions
It is important to recognise and accept children’s emotions and worries. We need to try and understand these anxieties and their causes. Dismissing them does not diminish them or their impact for the child.
We need to give children time and safe places to calm. This can be supported by specific calming activities. These will be different for different children, but need to be introduced when the child is calm, not just at the point of crisis.
The more we can remove uncertainty the more confident the child will feel to manage transitions. Visual timetables displaying what is planned for the day, including lunch and home time, are essential for all children. This should be supplemented by using an “oops” card. Often things do not go as planned in school and there are changes at short notice. The “oops” card is a way of marking this and explaining that the change is safe and manageable.
Support in entering the room
The biggest change for many children is coming into school or into the room. Supporting them in those first few moments, so they feel safe and secure at that point, can make a huge difference to the whole day or lesson.
Meeting and greeting children as they come into the room: It does not need to be a big performance, but a simple hello and a smile. It makes them feel welcome, valued, and wanted and this interaction allows you to assess where the child is and implement support if needed.
A job/role in class: Some children benefit from a particular role in class, so they know what they will be doing as soon as they enter the room and that they will be valued.
Staggered starts: Some children benefit from coming into the classroom first or last. There are some for whom coming into school with everyone else is just too overwhelming. They may need to come in through the office or some other route, then possibly have some calm time with an adult before they face the hustle and bustle of the class. Others might benefit from waiting until all is quiet before they face the cloakroom.
Social stories: These can be useful to lay out and explain the expectations for what will happen as the child enters school and possibly remind them that they will be collected at the end of the day.
Morning slides: Familiarity and security as children enter the class can be provided by a slide on the board which is basically the same every day/lesson. It gives the expectations for the lesson, reminders about the equipment needed, any settling in tasks, etc. This can be adapted so each lesson starts the same way.
Change within/after the lesson
Tracking through the lesson: The teacher knows what should be happening in a lesson because they planned it. However, this is not clear to the others in the room. Tracking on the slides on the board where we are in a lesson can help children to have a greater understanding of what is happening and what will happen.
Now and next cards: Some children need the visual timetable for the class broken down into smaller steps and personalised. This is particularly true for children who will be going to intervention groups or other activities. Often, we expect our most vulnerable children to remember how their timetable is different from that of their peers without support, causing them additional anxiety.
Some children need the visual timetable broken down further, so that it is divided into “now and next” cards – now you will do this, next you will do that. This may be at lesson level for some, others will need it at activity level. For some children who need regular rewards and motivating activities, this works better as “If and then”, as in “if you do this, then you can do this”.
A task management board: This breaks down the tasks expected within a lesson into smaller steps. Ideally this list will be written with the child. As they get older, they may be able to record the stages themselves with support. As each stage is completed, the child can tick it off, providing reassurance that they are doing the right thing and making progress.
Checklists for particular times of day: Checklists related to particular points of the day or tasks (e.g. changing for PE, getting their belongings at the end of the day, or going to a music lesson) provide children with security and reduces their anxiety about the transition.
Out to and in from play: Unstructured times in school provide a significant change in environment, relationships, behaviours, and expectations. For some children, these “fun” times are more stressful than the more controlled and predictable environment of the classroom. In addition to the strategies in place elsewhere in the day, support at this point of the day could include:
- Time to calm and readjust to the changed expectations of the classroom environment.
- A safe and quiet place available during the break.
I have written previously in Headteacher Update about how the last five minutes of any lesson is vital if we are to avoid disengaged pupils, sensory overload, and anxiety – especially for those with SEN. Find this article here.
Sensory issues
For many children their difficulties with transitions are based in their sensory issues. If we do not experience these ourselves, it is very easy to discount or disregard them. These may relate to changes in noise, movement, or verbal stimuli. There are also issues of children’s ability to sit comfortably. Neither our school chairs or sitting on the floor are comfortable or sustainable for many children. Children can be supported by
- Movement breaks: Often a chance to stretch or hand-out books will suffice, although some children will need time outside the classroom to re-set effectively.
- Use of fidget objects to support learning.
It is important that children are not penalised for what they cannot help as this quickly exacerbates issues with anxieties and difficulties with transitions.
Evaluating and celebrating success
To build children’s resilience and confidence to manage transition successfully we need to not only notice and respond when they struggle, but also identify when they manage successfully, highlighting and praising this. This is key to building their independence.
Equally, if we are to support children to manage transitions successfully, we need to provide specific activities and a consistent use of language. It is easy for something to be in place when some staff are present, but not others. This increases, rather than reduces, uncertainty and anxiety. Also, we need to allow for the individual’s needs and accept that children are not consistent. Support to manage transition is not a problem that can be solved once, it needs to be supported repeatedly.
- Sara Alston is an experienced SENCO and safeguarding lead who also works as a SEND, inclusion and safeguarding consultant and trainer. Sara’s book Working Effectively With Your Teaching Assistant will be published in February 2023. Visit www.seainclusion.co.uk, follow her on Twitter @seainclusion, or read her previous articles for Headteacher Update via https://bit.ly/htu-alston