Supporting SEND… activities to support confident transitions

Transitions can be really difficult for a lot of young children, especially for many young children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND). Starting school or moving to the next room at nursery can mean that the expectations on a child to be a bit more independent increase. Children starting school, for example, may be expected to be able to put their own coat on, or fasten their shoes. There are some lovely activities you can weave into your daily play to help children start to develop some of these skills and enable them to move on to the next stage in their early years education.

BUTTON SLEEVE

Suitable for: pre-schoolers

Buttons are notoriously tricky for young children to do up and undo, especially if their motor skills need some extra support. Lots of school uniforms have at least a couple of buttons. Therefore, being ableto work a button is a really useful skill. Try this lovely, novel activity to practise buttons together. (Please risk-assess – buttons are a choking hazard).

Equipment

Old shirts (with a button on the cuffs) and scissors.

How to:

Collect old shirts from donations from family members of shirts that aretoo damaged/worn to wear.

Cut off the cuffs so that you have ‘shirt bracelets’ with buttons on that children can put on their wrists.

Let the children choose one to wear and practise undoing and doing up the buttons. Often the novelty of this activity helps to encourage children to have a go. Try completing this activity alongside lots of other fine-motor skill activities to further support.

Alternatives

It doesn’t have to be a shirt – you could ask for donations of any items of clothing that has buttons. Or maybe even some with zips or Velcro.

Extension activity

If they are able to, children could then practise their skills on polo shirts/school uniform. Trying to do the buttons on their real uniform can be particularly useful.

Skills developed

Motor skills, working memory, concentration.

IS TEDDY READY?

Suitable for: babies, toddlers and pre-schoolers

An adorable activity that can be adapted to a wide range of ages. Simply find a teddy, some accessories he may need for the day (bag, lunch, hat, etc), then play at getting teddy ready for the day. A great way to help young children start to think about what they need for nursery/pre-school/school.

Equipment

A teddy and various accessories he may need for the day.

How to:

Provide children with a teddy and various accessories.

Depending on their age, decide where the teddy will be ‘going next year’. Is he starting school? Or moving rooms in nursery?

Chat about what he might need.

Let the children have fun getting him ready, putting his coat on, giving him a bag with lunch in, etc. Ask ‘Is teddy ready?’ Have fun with the children, try purposefully getting it wrong and giving him something he won’t need and see if the children correct you. Take photographs of the teddy when he is ready for children to then try and replicate.

Alternatives

With your youngest children, adapt this activity to simply dressing the teddy, putting the hat on and off, etc.

Extension activity

Make a list with the children of everything the teddy needs to do before school/nursery, ticking them off as he goes through his routine.

Skills developed

Concentration, language and communication, problem-solving, motor skills.

ABOUT THIS SERIES

This is the final article in a three-part mini series on practical ways to support children (including those with special educational needs and disabilities) with transitions; starting school, starting nursery or moving room.

Georgina Durrant is author of 100 Ways Your Child Can Learn Through Play, a book of play- based activities that help develop skills for children with special educational needs. She is a former teacher/SENDCo, private tutor for children with SEND and the founder of The SEN Resources Blog, www.senresourcesblog.com. Twitter: @senresourceblog; Facebook: @senresourcesblog; Instagram: @thesenresourcesblog