Our lives are filled with transitions; they happen in every day, every week, and every season. We transition to school and to work each weekday morning. At WMS we transition to our morning Montessori class, to lunch, to rest, to enrichment classes, to outside and back to home at the end of our day. When at home, there’s play, maybe tv time, dinner, bath, and bed. As you can see, children move through multiple transitions during each day. Most children adapt very smoothly to these changes in their daily schedule. We are often amazed at their ability to function seamlessly through their day. Sometimes, however transitions aren’t as smooth and in times of illness, holiday stress, or changes at home or with family, children struggle. So what can we do to help a child who’s having difficulty with transitions?
The answer is in the 3 P’s. Preparation, Planning, and Patience.
Preparation is the first way you can help your child with upcoming transitions. Explaining to them and giving them a 10-minute warning before the transition helps your child prepare for the change. For example, “In 10 minutes you will need to clean up your toys and wash your hands for dinner.” The next step is planning. Plan for extra time that your child might need to clean up, as they may be reluctant to stop their activity. Have the next activity or meal ready before you give the warning, so that you can engage them with your plan. For example, “I made your favorite dinner tonight, and I think we have ice cream for dessert.” The last step is Patience. Most often children don’t do things as quickly as we want them to, so patience is a must during transition times. So, it can be as easy as preparation, planning, and patience, but remember nothing is perfect!
