'Back to school" survival tips for parents with a special needs child

Back to school can be a challenging time for parents and students alike.

 But for families living with a special needs child, it can be particularly trying. One of the often overlooked facts about this is that it doesn't go away after pre-school; primary, or even high school. Families dealing with special need often battle back to school challenges throughout their Childs school career, even through college.

 Here are some tips to help you survive the back to school season and even come out ahead of the pack!

• Plan for the first day of school, and start discussing it with your child early on. Special needs children function much better if they know what is coming and there are no surprises.
• Keep all back to school related conversations positive. Children with special needs are often able to imagine some amazingly bad first days of school. keep things light hearted and focused on how much fun they will be having.
• Encourage them and their ability to make friends. Special needs children can sometimes have trouble in social situations and making/keeping friends. Often they miss important social cues, making them appear over-bearing or insensitive to those who don't know them and don't understand.
• Have all the supplies ready a while before school starts. Let your child shop for the new supplies with you, and let them get comfortable and familiar with the organizational systems they will be using in the upcoming year.
• If possible meet with the teachers before the new school years start. You can take your child along and show them there new surrounding, so that they won't be going into an unfamiliar situation on their first day back to school.
• Remind your child that they are smart and clever. There are occasions at school where your child may be criticised by well-meaning teacher or stressed out faculty member and they may begin to doubt themselves. Don’t let this happen. Encourage your special child to excel and embrace their unique learning style.
• Have fun! Keep conversations and preparations for the first day back to school, light hearted and proactive. Talk about it often, plan the outfit, breakfast and lunch, even what they will do during break time. The less that is unknown to them, the more confident they will feel starting a new year, with new teachers and new friends.With these survival tips, embrace the new school year.

 Sometimes we anticipate the stress that we know is about to come and we actually end up creating it. As parents, there are so many things we must do and tolerate, and staying calm and positive, even when our children are getting on our nerves, is also on that list.

Try some of these tips to survive the first day back at school, it will make a big difference for the rest of the year as well.