The Christmas holidays are nearly here and while it can be a fun time of year, it can also be a challenging time for children and young people with special needs when their routines are interrupted.
To help CENMAC Specialist Teaching Assistant Claire Hennings has put together some visual symbols to help your child know what is happening during the holiday period and reduce some anxieties.
We have also included some extra resources from BBC, Widgit, RSBC, RNIB, Guide Dogs and Kids Kindness Club with lots of activities to keep children busy and engaged over the holidays.
Please scroll down the page to access all the resources.
Use a weekly timetable to add what will be happening for the week in the morning and afternoons during the holidays.
A Christmas Holiday Social story helps to explain what families and friends will be doing during the Christmas holidays.
A now and next board needs to be changed throughout the day, showing your child what is happening now and next, for example, “Now it’s breakfast and next we’re going to brush your teeth.”
Going to visit Father Christmas? These symbols will help to explain what to do when your child meets Father Christmas.
Use this December 2024 and January 2025 visual calendar to show the Christmas holidays in symbols.
A visual daily routine during the school holidays can help children understand what they will be doing throughout the day and can help to reduce anxiety.
CBBC Live Lesson: Quentin Blake’s Box of Treasures
The 30 minute Live Lesson was recorded and is now available to watch on the CBBC channel.
Or on this webpage (UK only): https://www.bbc.co.uk/teach/live-lessons/articles/z7bp46f#z2wxrmn
Join the BBC as they dive into the exciting world of Quentin Blake’s Box of Treasures in this art and literacy lesson designed for 7-11 year olds.
They’ll challenge your students’ comprehension skills, explore the hidden meanings that illustrations can reveal about book characters, and learn some simple drawing techniques. Students could use iPads/stylus to draw their own book character.
The Live Lesson is presented by Rhys Stephenson and Laura Hopkinson with the help of top illustrators, Vivian Truong and Dapo Adeola.
By the end of the lesson, children will be will ready to create their very own Zagazoo character, inspired by the animated specials and the original Quentin Blake illustrations.
Prepare for the Quentin Blake’s Box of Treasures by downloading the Teacher’s Guide to accompany the lesson which includes Activity Sheets for your students.
The RNIB have created this fantastic Joy Makers’ Guide to Christmas to help make Christmas accessible for children with vision impairment. The guide includes lots of fun ideas and activities shared by parents, carers and young people.
Guide Dogs have created a great Christmas Sensory Activity pack. Try out these sensory activities to experience what Christmas is like for children with vision impairment.
Widgit have some fantastic Christmas themed activities and games for a variety of learners from EYFS – KS2 in mainstream and special educational settings.
The School of Kindness has created a special Christmas Kindness Advent Calendar with suggestions for acts of kindness every day during the holidays.
