Preparing Your Child's Nervous System for a Successful School Year

As we move into the end of summer, many families are beginning to prepare for a new school year. For parents of twice exceptional kids this transition can bring a unique mix of anticipation, excitement, and uncertainty.

While many back to school checklists focus on buying supplies and new clothes, occupational therapists recognize that successful transitions involve much more than backpacks and lunch boxes. There is also an important detail which involves preparing your child's nervous system, helping their emotional regulation, setting up routines, and developing relationships. We need to ask ourselves, “how can we support our child's unique strengths so they can thrive in their new environment?”

Twice exceptional children often surprise adults with remarkable abilities alongside other

challenges. Many children who are twice exceptional can read several grade levels above peers

but they struggle to write a sentence. They can solve a complex math problem but become overwhelmed with transitions. They have great memory but find it difficult to organize their materials, they are highly creative but experience intense sensory sensitivities. and they develop deep empathy but struggle to navigate relationships. This uneven development can make school both intellectually stimulating and emotionally exhausting.

These differences are not deficits to be fixed, they are important clues that help us understand

how a child experiences the world.

Many parents wonder about academic readiness but regulation is the foundation for learning. A regulated nervous system allows a child to: manage frustrations, recover from mistakes, engage with peers, attend and focus on instructions, solve problems, and think about a variety of different options. Before asking your child to practice handwriting or complete a worksheet or review an academic concept, consider how their body is feeling.

Ask yourself:

• Is my child getting enough movement throughout the day?

• Do they know what helps them feel calm and alert and ready to learn?

• Are their daily routines predictable?

• Have they had opportunities for joyful play?

Supporting regulation before increasing a demand typically leads to greater

success.

We want to rebuild a daily routine gradually. Summer schedules often look very different from

school schedules. Consider making gradual shifts in your child's routine over the one or two weeks before school begins. It might be helpful to practice several weeks before school starts. For example:

• offer an earlier bedtime

• wake up a little earlier in the morning

• create a morning wake up routine (would it be helpful for your child to wake up with a nice glass of grapefruit juice next to their bed? Maybe some pillow squishes? Do they need you to raise the shades in the morning and have natural light wake them up?)

• Would it be helpful if your child's clothes were already picked out the night before?

• Do they have a checklist of what needs to go in their backpack?

• Do they need help packing their backpack?

• What about eating breakfast at school day times?

Creating predictability reduces cognitive load and helps children to feel more secure.

When we talk about preparing the sensory system we know that every child has a unique

sensory profile. There are some children who need a lot of movement, there are others who

avoid sensation, some are easily overstimulated in a busy classroom or with many children

around rather than trying to eliminate their sensory needs. We need to try to understand them.

We can ask ourselves:

• What helps my child's body to feel ready to learn?

• What helps when school feels too overstimulating?

• How do I help my child tune into their body to know when they need to take a break?

Practice sensory tools prior to school beginning.

For example:

• Would it be helpful if your child had a swing in the garage? or a tree swing?

• Would swinging for 10 minutes prior to school help their nervous system feel calm and regulated?

• Would it be helpful if your child had some heavy work activities to do before school?

• Does your child need to do some weight lifting before they get in the car or the bus to get to school?

• Does your child need calm quiet time before school?

• Would it be helpful to have a rocking chair at the table while eating breakfast?

• Would they like to read at the table before school?

The goal is not to make sensory needs disappear, it's to build awareness and develop effective strategies that work.

Many 2e children have lots of ideas but they have trouble planning, organizing, initiating, and

making changes to their plans. This is all part of executive functioning.

It may be helpful for children to have:

• A visual schedule of the morning routine

• A checklist or to-do list of specific activities such as brushing teeth

• Creative checklist for backpack stations

• A homework routine

• Calendar systems

• Color-coded folders

When children are able to develop systems and practice using them they are more likely to have success in learning.

New transitions can often bring mixed emotions and your child's emotional regulation system

may be heightened during this time. Your child might feel excited or nervous or curious or sad

that the summer is ending. They may be worried about making new friends or concerned about

who their new teacher will be. It is important to allow space for these feelings. It is normal to

feel curious about a new situation and offering or normalizing these feelings can help. Offering

them “drips” of information, just one little suggestion per day may be helpful; this might be best offered when they are mostly regulated.

It is also helpful for children to have been prepared ahead of time about what is to be expected.

This might mean:

• Visiting the campus of the school if possible

• Meeting the teacher prior to school

• Practicing classroom routines through pretend play using social stories

• Reading books about starting school

• Looking at photos of the classroom

• Talking about supportive adults that they might be able to find during the day

These can help your child to feel like they have more control and creates an emotional safety and supports learning.

The beginning of the new school year is not about perfection. It is about helping your child feel

safe, connected, understood and ready to engage. Some children will walk confidently into the classroom on the very first day and others may need extra time, additional support or

opportunities to co-regulate with trusted adults. Both experiences are valid.

About the Author

At Therapeeps Occupational Therapy services, we believe that every child develops along their

own unique pathway. By understanding their individual differences, supporting their regulation

and building strong relationships, we help children develop the confidence and skills they need

to participate meaningfully in everyday life. If you're wondering how to support your child's

sensory processing, executive functioning, emotional regulation or School participation we'd

love to help. Therapeeps Occupational Therapy Services provides individualized, play-based

occupational therapy, parent coaching, and school collaboration throughout the Bay Area.

Together we can create strategies that build on your child's strengths and help them thrive in the new school year.

Brooke Olson, BS, OTR/L, BCP, SIPT

With more than 25 years of experience in pediatric occupational therapy, Brooke Olson is passionate about helping children and families thrive through a neuroaffirming, relationship-based approach. Brooke founded Therapeeps Occupational Therapy Services to provide individualized, family-centered care grounded in sensory integration and the DIR®/Floortime® model. She specializes in supporting children with autism, ADHD, sensory processing differences, executive functioning challenges, feeding differences, emotional regulation, and twice-exceptional (2e) profiles.