Blog #516: Looking Ahead to the 2025-2026 School Year (Part 2)

...

Picking up from my previous blog about preparing for the 2025-2026 school year, I wanted to also mention another factor that a lot of neurodivergent or sensory friendly students have a lot of back to school anxiety about and that it is the whole variety of unexpected issues that may pop throughout the course of the year, whether it's anticipating a disliked student, a school safety drill, a school assembly, or even having lunch in the cafeteria with your peers where you get yelled at for being too loud.

...

A majority of the school population just doesn't understand that times during that day that seem normal and unimportant can be bothersome to neurodivergent and special education students. What is important is that the schools need to ensure that the student is given support that may seem not worth giving support to. This can range from getting advanced notice about school safety drills, having to sit in back of the auditorium or the gymnasium to provide an escape route, or give the students the ability to have sensory friendly breaks.

Some specialty or private schools have this option, but when it comes to public schools, I feel there needs to be more awareness. A school safety drill may seem important, but advanced notice is critical. A school assembly may be seen as a good way to bring the school community together, but what if the student doesn't want to be a part of that community? School assemblies disrupt routines and put the student at risk for sensory overload. The student doesn't want to be sitting in the cafeteria, then have them sit in the library, their home base or even in the teachers room.

Example of principal yelling at students in cafeteria during lunch

Some special education students thrive on these accommodations and it's always a good idea to review the student's IEP and put these accommodations in. As the ratio for an autism diagnosis rises to 1 in 31, now more than ever schools need to embrace this often critical flexibility that goes way beyond having extra time on tests, there are other areas that need to be focused on and this is one of them. If you haven't had that IEP meeting to discuss these accommodations before the school year begins, I suggest you do so.

...

Catch you all later and have a good first day of school if you haven't done so already!!