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Routine and predictability are key to helping children on the autism spectrum manage their feelings of anxiety.

Christmas can be an overwhelming time for everyone, but for children on the autism spectrum it can be particularly challenging. With crowded shopping centres, loud Christmas carols and family gatherings with distant relatives, it can all become too much to process.

One of the strategies used at our Aspect schools involves the use of social stories to help our students understand what to expect in the lead up to, during and after an event or activity.

For nine-year-old twins Jake and Kade, who were diagnosed on the autism spectrum at age five, a countdown calendar for the holiday season helps them to regulate their behaviours and manage their feelings of anxiety. Routines can be the difference between emotional health and happiness, or stress and worry.

We want to share with you a calendar just like the one that Jake and Kade use to count down the days until the return to school, their favourite time of the year.