School Readiness

Every child is different, so school readiness goals should be individualized.

Important areas can include:

• Communication: Asking for help, expressing wants and needs, answering questions, following directions, and communicating discomfort or frustration.
• Following routines: Learning routines such as arriving at school, putting away a backpack, sitting for an activity, cleaning up, lining up, transitioning between activities, and getting ready to go home.
• Social skills: Playing near or with other children, taking turns, sharing materials, participating in group activities, and learning appropriate ways to get a peer or adult’s attention.
• Emotional and behavioral regulation: Learning strategies for handling frustration, waiting, changes in routine, and situations that feel overwhelming.
• Attention and participation: Increasing the ability to attend to an activity, follow classroom instructions, participate in small or large groups, and complete age-appropriate tasks.
• Independence: Developing skills such as toileting, handwashing, eating, dressing, opening containers, managing belongings, and cleaning up.
• Motor skills: Building the fine and gross motor abilities needed for activities such as holding crayons, using scissors, navigating playground equipment, sitting appropriately, and participating in physical activities.
• Sensory regulation: Learning ways to cope with noise, lights, crowds, different textures, movement, and other sensory experiences that are common during the school day.
• Transitions and flexibility: Practicing moving from a preferred activity to a less-preferred one and becoming more comfortable when schedules or expectations change.

How Therapy Smarts’ ABA Program Can Support School Readiness

Therapy Smarts’ Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) program can help children on the autism spectrum develop skills that support greater independence and participation in school.

ABA therapy uses individualized goals and evidence-based strategies to teach skills in manageable steps. Depending on the child’s needs, school-readiness goals may focus on areas such as following directions, communicating needs, waiting, transitioning between activities, participating in group routines, interacting with peers, increasing independence, and reducing behaviors that interfere with learning or safety.

For example, instead of simply expecting a child to “get ready for class,” the process can be broken into smaller skills: enter the room, put away belongings, transition to the appropriate area, follow the teacher’s direction, and begin the activity. Practicing routines in smaller, achievable steps can help children become more comfortable with expectations they may encounter at school.

Importantly, the goal is not to make an autistic child behave exactly like their peers. Effective school-readiness support should help the child communicate, participate, stay safe, build independence, and access learning while respecting their individual needs and differences.

More Than ABA: A Team Approach to School Readiness

One of the advantages of Therapy Smarts is the ability to support children across multiple developmental areas. In addition to ABA, Therapy Smarts offers Speech Therapy, Occupational Therapy, Physical Therapy, Mental Health services, and Psychological Evaluations.

Speech Therapy can help children strengthen receptive and expressive language, social communication, speech clarity, and functional communication skills. A speech-language pathologist may work on skills such as answering questions, understanding directions, communicating with teachers and peers, or appropriately asking for a break.

Occupational Therapy can address fine motor skills, sensory processing and regulation, self-care, attention, and independence. These skills can make everyday school activities—from using scissors and writing to managing clothing, lunch containers, and classroom sensory demands—more manageable.

Physical Therapy can help children develop strength, balance, coordination, endurance, and gross motor abilities needed to safely navigate the classroom, hallways, stairs, playground, and physical education activities.

Mental Health services can provide additional support when children experience challenges related to emotions, anxiety, behavior, coping, or adjusting to new environments and expectations.

Psychological Evaluations can help families better understand a child’s developmental, behavioral, emotional, and learning needs and provide information that may help guide recommendations and appropriate supports.

Preparing for School One Skill at a Time

For a child on the autism spectrum, a successful transition to school often begins well before the first day. Practicing routines, strengthening communication, building independence, and gradually introducing new expectations can help make the school environment feel more predictable and manageable.

At Therapy Smarts, our pediatric therapy team works with children and families to identify the skills that matter most for each individual child. Through ABA and our other pediatric therapy services, we can help children build the foundational skills they need to participate more confidently in school, at home, and in their community.

School readiness isn’t about making every child fit the same mold. It’s about giving each child the skills, strategies, and support they need to be ready to learn.