In Wisconsin, we are just getting ready for back to school. I know some of you have already had several weeks of school, and personally, I’m a bit jealous. I’m not one of those moms that gets upset when her kids leave for school, I’m usually doing the happy dance. I know many special needs parents are.

For the past several days, we have been doing “getting ready practice.” Hannah is not one that gets ready “quick and snappy” in the morning, so we have gotten up at the time that she will need to get up each day, and then I set a timer. It goes off at the time that Hannah will need to be outside for the bus. If the timer goes off and she is not ready, that means that she will have missed the bus.

We also do several of the things that you hear about frequently. Clothes are picked out the night before, lunches and backpacks are ready the night before, all permission slips, and other things are signed and ready to go so all she has to do is grab her backpack and go.

We also have a routine for when the kids come home. Homework is done at the kitchen table, and all paperwork that needs my attention must be presented then. I try to avoid scheduling things that will disrupt this routine. My kids count on this structure.

We also have communication with the school on a regular basis. I’m not sure what form that will take with Hannah yet, but with Sammy it was an assignment notebook or behavior sheet. In his early years, he had a behavior sheet that had to be filled out by each teacher and for each subject. He had to present that sheet to me each night for my signature, and it had to be returned to his special education teacher each morning. The teacher and I used it to communicate any special “needs” for the day. As he grew older, it became incorporated into his assignment notebook, but it still required my signature every day.

Part of the routine of him checking in and out with the special education teacher was that they would check to make sure he knew what his assignments were for the day. They did not however, check to make sure he had all his books or that the homework had been returned. This is where his personal responsibility came in. They did teach him strategies to be sure he had everything, and most of the time he followed it.

If there is an area where your child is struggling, schedule some “practice” time on the weekend or days off. Going through some of these routines where there is not a time constraint or pressure, may make things easier for you.

If the organization problem is with the desk, you're on your own. I still haven't found a cure for that one.

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