By Amy Husband, Head of School Academic, Academy21 with contributions from America Valentine, Content Specialist, Inspired Online Schools

While many of us return from school breaks feeling refreshed and eager to start anew, the transition back to school or college can be challenging for some students. In particular, many pupils struggle with the stark shift from unstructured time at home to classroom routine — especially those with anxiety and special educational needs.

But why is this the case, and how can we best support these students back into the classroom after their time away?

Understanding the challenges
You’ll often see the biggest challenges after longer holidays like Christmas, Easter, and summer. Children and young people with autism, for example, may have trouble with the sensory overload that can come with family visits or new decorations. For other students, the break in routine and loss of daily contact with familiar faces (like teachers and friends they depend on) can be a source of anxiety.

Most students need a day or two to fully settle back into learning when school resumes, but young people who deal with struggles like these need to process weeks of accumulated stress too, creating an extra layer of difficulty.

Strategic approaches to post-break support
Given the complexity at play, supporting these students through the post-break transition requires us to think strategically. How can we help our young people rebuild a sense of stability and predictability, so they feel more settled as they return to school?

Having had the privilege of working with a diverse range of students, I’ve identified a number of simple yet effective solutions over the years to help schools tackle the challenge from different angles.

Work with parents to get routines back on track
Even when students thrive best with a clear routine, jumping right back into the structure of the school day can be challenging. In these cases, working with parents to gradually reintroduce routines can be a big help. Getting bedtimes, mealtimes, and schoolwork schedules back on track in the days leading up to a new term or half-term allows students to readjust to a more rigorous schedule without the usual overwhelm.

Communicate expectations clearly ahead of time
Communicating with families about any changing expectations can also be powerful. If students know what to expect when they get back to school (for example, any timetable changes or special activities) and have time to prepare, they’re likely to feel less uncertain and anxious about returning. If you have the resources available, consider going a step further by creating a visual schedule for the first week of term. Visual aids are often more accessible to children with SEN, making them easier to access independently.

Set aside quiet, safe spaces to rest
Busy classrooms and playground noise can be particularly overstimulating for neurodivergent students returning to school, leading to stress and frustration. Setting up a calm space with a safe adult ensures there’s somewhere safe that students can go if they need to decompress while they readjust to the school environment.

Channel positivity and encourage connection
On a case-by-case basis, you may also find success in channelling your pupils’ holiday positivity into the first week back. Equip teachers to sensitively and inclusively plan activities where students can voluntarily share stories and experiences from their time at home. Flexibility is crucial here (as some children may not look back fondly on their breaks), but activities like these are also a great way to rebuild classroom connections and make the return to learning less steep.

Alternative solutions for persistent struggles
While you can implement these ideas reactively, building them into an overall support strategy with sufficient staff resources for the busy return to school will help reduce the friction of post-break transitions.

That being said, pupils experiencing persistent anxiety or struggling to re-engage may need more tailored support than your school environment can provide. In these cases, online alternative provision can offer a uniquely effective solution: a way for students to restart lessons from home and gradually reintegrate to the classroom at a more suitable pace.

Since every young person is different, the success of any transition strategy comes down to recognising each student’s unique needs and adopting flexible solutions to suit them. 
Academy21 is an ASCL Premier Partner. Alessandro Capozzi, Executive Head, Academy21 is leading a workshop Building alternative provision capacity to ensure reintegration through remote learning at ASCL Annual Conference 2025 at 10.15am on Saturday 15 March.