Summer Planning
Summer has finally come, and many of us are thinking about how to make the summer days both fun and productive. Here are three principles that will guide our family’s summertime choices:
1. Build on Interests
When our kids are interested in something, they’re often really interested. This can either be a problem or an opportunity. Paula Kluth’s book Just Give Him the Whale talks about how effective it can be to start with a child’s interest, and find ways to expand it. If our child likes buses and we take a bus trip, we can also talk about waiting our turn, what we see out the window, parts of the bus, the money we pay with, and so on. Connecting to something familiar and interesting opens us up to absorbing new ideas and skills.
2. Build on the Edge
Learning is about new things – skills, ideas, experiences. And as parents know, new things tend to be very uncomfortable for autistic kids. So it’s important to consider how to introduce new things without moving too far outside our children’s comfort zone…or things tend to be the opposite of fun.
The best plan is to find ways to stretch our kids’ tolerance just a little bit. “Edge+1” refers to the idea of figuring out what a child knows and can already handle, and then figuring out how to add something to it that is just barely a stretch for them.
The duration of the activity and the number of people you have with you are also important considerations. Also think about how overwhelming the sensory input (noises, activity) might be, for your own well-being and for theirs.
3. Build on the Experience
Our family has had a lot of success taking pictures and making mini-books about our outings. I make stories by taking pictures on our iPad and adding text to describe what we’re doing in the pictures. For my emerging-verbal kids, it’s a great way to give them the words to talk about where they’ve been, and to ask to go there again. We’re using Pictello, which allows me to make the “story” as I take pictures, and makes it easy to change the words once in a while if the story is too popular and becomes repetitive. A presentation app like PowerPoint works well too.
Other ways to build on an activity are to do it again (my children ALWAYS do better the second time we do something), finding library books that share information about the experience, drawing or crafts, acting things out…the possibilities are endless.
More Ideas
So as you consider the opportunities below, think about what your kids would find interesting, and choose things that will be a mostly comfortable setting:
Just Travel.
Our kids like car rides, so sometimes we just drive to a new destination and see what’s there. Or try a different way of getting around! Try a new playground or park. Take the bus, if it’s a novelty for your kids. Go for a nature walk, or a bike ride.
Play.
We’ve been making the rounds visiting different playgrounds around our area of the city. If you’re concerned about safety because your child tend to wander (quickly!), you’ll want to scout around for fenced playgrounds.
For special play days, try child-friendly museums for hands on fun. Or check out an amusement park for children. Indoor playgrounds are a good rainy day choice – they are like a McDonald’s play space but with more room. I suggest going to any of these in the morning to avoid their busiest times.
Or try a new “sport” – fly a kite, skip some rocks, get out a frisbee or a soccer ball, or try minigolf. On a rainy day, go indoors for mini-golf or bowling.
If your child is OK with structured activities, there are lots of community programs to check out. Free summer programs in Winnipeg are listed here.
Get Wet.
Our kids love water, and there are lots of ways to enjoy splashing or swimming in the Winnipeg area.
- Indoor: My son likes pools where he can walk in and they are not too deep.
- Outdoor: Check out your city’s Parks and Recreation website. Wading pools are safer than regular swimming pools, and sometimes they are free! Outdoor beaches are fun too.
Celebrate.
Summer is full of festivals and special days in any city.
Just Do What You Do, Together.
Everyday activities can also be enjoyable social opportunities. Gardening, painting the fence, walking the dog…whatever is a part of your family life. Linda Hodgedon, SLP, has written a good article suggesting ideas for social activity that go along with your family’s routines and interests. You can read it here.
Also consider changing up the location of familiar activities: have a picnic, read together in a backyard tent, do a puzzle or paint at the picnic table. There are lots of possibilities.
Have a wonderful summer!
***
Looking for more activities to enjoy with your family? Here’s a list:
- fly a kite
- put up a tent – bring out the books and toys
- inflate the bouncer
- water balloons
- turn on the sprinkler
- stick a ball in one leg of a pair of nylons – stand against a wall and swing it back and forth to bounce it. Make it interactive by standing together and taking turns.
- use pool noodles to bat balloons or beach balls around
- make a scavenger hunt – using pictures or words as clues
- blow bubbles
- turn the kiddie pool into a sensory tub – add bubbles or turn it into a ball pit
- show them how a telescope or binoculars work
- collect and sort rocks
- have a water fight – with or without water guns
- sidewalk chalk
- beanbag toss – outside
- obstacle course
- catch bugs
- feed ducks (birdseed is best)
- find cheap outdoor toys at the Dollar store
- talk about shapes in clouds
- make letters and shapes out of licorice strings (then eat them)
- watch the clouds
- play with flashlights and shadow puppets
- have a picnic
- make and sail paper boats
- bring toys to the playground – favorite stuffies or dolls can go down the slide too!
- go for walks and name/describe everything we see (e.g. “I Spy”)
- pack up shovels and pails and find a really big sandbox
- paint daisies (and rocks, and whatever else needs painting)
- make a slip ‘n slide out of a plastic tablecloth and a can of shaving cream
- make paper fans
- stack paper cups to shoot down with a water pistol
- paint with water (on surfaces that change color)
- make mud pies
- try a sound safari: instructions here
- walk in the rain
- ride bikes (or tractors with pedals, depending on preference)
- practice Hide and Seek, Tag, Follow the Leader, Ring Around the Rosie, London Bridge, Duck Duck Goose, Simon Says and Red Light/Green Light
- go berry picking
- Pretend to be super heroes, airplanes, zoo animals, galloping horses, trains…together!
- visit a flea market or farmer’s market, talk about what’s for sale (maybe buy lots of fruits and veggies and see if they will eat them!)
- pick a bouquet
- go paddleboating
- throw rocks in a river or pond
- have a wiener and marshmallow roast
- climb a tree (even just a little ways up)
- Swim.
- play with yo-yos
- read books about summer
- take pictures and make books of our outings