Word has gone out: Summer has arrived! Parents receive the news with mixed reactions - relief at a break from the non-stop rush of the school year (sports, extra-curricular activities, homework), excitement for summer events (travel, family time), and dread (how to keep kids occupied without fully descending into constant screen-time).

 

Here are 5 tips to help navigate the season:

1. Try to keep a schedule, even loosely. Having a rhythm to the days can help families know what to expect and avoid meltdowns that come from being over-tired or hungry.

2. Brainstorm a list of activities. Having alternatives to screen time ready to go when the ‘I’m bored; I don’t know what to do’ feelings hit can avoid frustration. Try to include a combination of solo activities, as well as some to do with others.

3. Manage expectations. Knowing what to expect in new situations, whether it’s a day trip to visit family or a longer vacation, can help kids stay regulated.

4. Continue support systems. Often families hope that summer, without pressure from school, can erase all of their child’s struggles. While challenges do often ease, summer can be an opportunity to practice tools so they are closer to second nature by the fall.

5. Give yourself, and your family, grace. We all want the perfect summer memories, the Instagram-worthy vacations where everyone is smiling, and no one is sunburned or melting down. With everyone off routines, the stress of balancing work and childcare without school, and the usual stress of travel, things don’t always go as smoothly as we’d like, and that’s okay.