The transition to school for a young child is a continuous journey that commences before the child starts school and continues well beyond the first day of school.
It is recognised that a gradual transition over a twelve month period affords all stakeholders the opportunity to plan, develop, resource, and reflect on transition strategies and supports. However, individual circumstances may mean that the transition timeline may be significantly shorter and therefore only key activities can be completed.
This does not mean that the child will not successfully transition to their next educational setting, it simply means that all stakeholders need to carefully consider the 'who', 'what', 'where' and 'when' of transition in order to ensure that all parties are prepared and resourced.
Developing a transition timeline through collaboration between the family, teachers and other relevant people may assist in ensuring the very best start to schooling for a child with ASD. This ensures that everyone is on the same page and aware of what supports are in place and who is responsible.
When developing a transition timeline, the transition team need to consider the unique characteristics of the child, the capacity of the sending and receiving educators to enact key tasks and activities, and the capacity of the family to support all activities.
Useful resources