How To Ease New Activity Transitions For Kids

Transitions from one activity to the next can be difficult for kids. And when it's difficult for kids, it can easily become a difficult moment for us grown ups, too.

Is there something that can help children move from one activity to the next with more ease?

In my experience- YES!

Storytelling is an excellent and FUN way to help kids transition to new activities.

WHY STORYTELLING?

Storytelling can help kids move from one activity to the next because our human brains are wired to make sense of the world through story. When something big and tricky like a change in what was currerntly happening occurs for a child, latching onto story helps the child makes sense of what's happening.

Kids are naturally steeping themselves in the world of imagination and play, and so when you add story to a transistion, you're speaking their language!

And lastly, adding story elements to a transiiton is playful. And to a child, play is connection. It's a way to say, "Hey, I'm here with you and I see you".

HOW TO USE STORYTELLING TO EASE TRANSITIONS

• If you need your child(ren) to move to the next acitivy but they are currently in a "character world", try using the world that they're already in to move to the next thing. For example, my kids are often playing doggies as we need to be starting bedtime. Instead of breaking the play-world, I'll often ask them to go brush their "doggie-teeth". Low-and-behold the resistance is almost always way lower than just busting up their play.

• If you recently told or read a story to your child(ren), you can suggest that you complete an activity in a way that connects to that story. For example, I was recently telling stories in July at a school with very few air conditioned rooms. We started the program in a room where we thought there was AC, but turns out it was broken. We had to move upstairs to another room. Having just told a story about 3 siblings out for a hike, one of the girls spoke up and said, "Let's pretend we're in the story and we're hiking up a mountain!"

A photo taken during the hiking story, which helped us transition to the new space through story

Unsure of where to start with storytelling with your kids? I've got a story and art-making podcast that is an excellent way to get to know a bunch of stories and characters that you can use as you walk with your kids through transitions.

It's called The Fairy Tale Art Cart: A Draw-Along Podcast For Story Fans Who Like To Make Art. You can listen and subscribe on Apple Podcasts and Spotify