266: A Summertime Plan that Can Work for Everyone, with Penny Williams
May 23, 2024
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Expert Penny Williams shares strategies for neurodiverse families to make summer rewarding: create visual plans, explore interests, embrace challenges, and foster connections. Tips include using tools like Post-it calendars, trying new activities, and prioritizing bonding time. Summer is about growth and relationships, not just managing tasks.
Creating visual schedules using tools like post-it calendars can aid in making plans tangible for kids and reduce meltdowns.
Encouraging kids to explore their interests and passions during the summer is crucial for building confidence and competence.
Deep dives
Planning Strategies for Summertime
Planning for the summer break is essential to reducing stress and ensuring smoother days. Creating visual schedules using tools like post-it calendars or Mighty and Bright schedule boards can aid in making plans tangible for kids. Weekly planning sessions involving kids in the process help build executive functioning skills and provide a sense of ownership and control. Planning also helps mitigate time blindness, reducing meltdowns and fostering flexibility.
Encouraging Exploration and Interest Development
Encouraging kids to explore their interests and passions during the summer is crucial for building confidence and competence. Providing opportunities for exploration can help kids feel like they have a purpose and a place in the world. Asking children what they want to do over the summer, getting them outside, and considering summer camp options like SOAR can facilitate exploration and skill development.
Emphasizing Growth Through Just-Right Challenges
Incorporating just-right challenges during the summer helps kids learn that they can do hard things and promotes growth. By offering challenges that are challenging but manageable, children can build resilience and grit. Activities like complex Lego sets, riding lessons, or building projects can provide opportunities for growth while ensuring tasks remain doable and beneficial for skill development.
In this episode of Beautifully Complex, we’re focusing on making summertime rewarding and manageable for neurodiverse families. I’ll guide you through a summer plan that encompasses structured activities, personal growth, and meaningful connections. This episode is packed with strategies starting with how to create an adaptable visual plan using tools like a Post-it calendar or a Mighty & Bright schedule board, perfect for kids who find comfort in visual aids and might struggle with schedule changes. Then, we move into exploration — encouraging our kids to follow their interests and passions, which is crucial for their confidence and sense of belonging in the world. Whether through specialized camps like SOAR or simple nature walks, exposure to new experiences is key. We also discuss growth through just-right challenges that push kids slightly out of their comfort zones to build resilience, but not so far that it isn’t doable for them. Whether it's working on a complex project or trying a new sport, it's about finding that sweet spot of challenge that is both challenging and attainable. Lastly, connection remains a cornerstone of our discussion, emphasizing the importance of cultivating strong bonds with our kids. This summer, let’s lean into activities that strengthen our relationships and foster communal growth. Remember, parenting is more about nurturing relationships than just managing tasks. Let’s dive into this summer with intention and joy.