Tips provided by Speedy Speech, LLC - Kelli Slemp, M.Ed, CCC-SLP

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Having trouble getting a child to move from one activity or task to another?!

Here are my TOP 4 tips for helping a toddler with transitions!

Let's be honest... very few of us like CHANGE!
Toddlers are the same! Especially when they are having FUN! (i.e. playing, rough housing, running around, playing in the bath, etc!)

Sooooo HOW in the world do we get them to transition from one activity to the other without a complete meltdown?!

Tip #1) Make the TIMER the bad guy by providing PLENTY of verbal and visual reminders for the remaining amount of time! AND place blame on the TIMER and instead of mom/dad!
"Timer says we can play for 15 minutes! Timer says we have 10 minutes, Timer says we have 5 minutes, Timer says we have 3 minutes, Timer says 1 minute! UH OH! Timer says 30 seconds! UH OHHHH! Timer went off! (Have your child push the button to turn the timer off) UGHH!! MAN! I wish we could play more but timer says ALL DONE! Then FOLLOW THROUGH with the transition and stay with the timer - don't extend "okay, another 5 minutes, etc" NO! What the timer says, goes. (aka what YOU say!) This will decrease future backtalking/compromise attempts and manipulations from your little one in the future. *Use Children's Countdown Timer in the app store for a VISUAL and FUN timer!*

Tip #2) Use a FIRST / THEN approach - teach this simple, yet effective technique using (FIRST) a preferred or fun instruction such as "first HIGH FIVE!" THEN cookie. and reward with another positive reinforcer. This will motivate your child to follow a simple instruction, with the promise of a reward after. Do this over and over again to develop trust and rapport. Then eventually transition the task into a non-preferred instruction paired with the positive reinforcement.

Tip #3) Make if FUN! Try incorporating a fun game or play routine while transitioning from the bathtub! (i.e. "clean up game" by naming a toy and having the child throw the toy from the bathtub into the clean up basket, dry it off, and THEN eventually, have the child "throw" themselves out of the tub and dry them off and toss them on the bed!

*Make a positive correlation between a non-preferred stimuli such as a car seat, by taking the car seat inside, putting it in front of the TV and feeding the person who is sitting in the car seat, cookies or another positive reinforcer - this creates a positive correlation for the stimuli!

Tip #4) Incorporate sensory play into a transition (i.e. after roughhousing with dad, then crawl through a tunnel into the kitchen and play with play-dough at the table to transition to dinner)

I hope these tips and tricks help your little one transition between tasks more easily!

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