Starting secondary school is a big change, for your child and for you. This article gives practical pointers to prepare for it: visiting the school, making the timetable visible, telling the staff, rehearsing new situations. For the general method for changes, start with Autistic Child: 5 Ways to Ease Transitions.
Why starting secondary school needs preparing
Because it brings several changes at once: the building, the adults, the timings, the journey. NICE says to support autistic children and their families "during times of increased need, including major life changes such as puberty, starting or changing schools, or the birth of a sibling". The French health authority (HAS) also points to school transitions: autistic people being, according to HAS, "particularly sensitive to change", it recommends that professionals pay particular attention to changes of school, including "the move to lower secondary school" (in French, "passage au collège"). HAS tells parents that preparing for these periods of change "is necessary at every stage of your child's development".
Prepare in small steps rather than with one big explanation the night before: a little each week, following your child's questions.
Visit the school before term starts
Ask the school what it has planned before term starts, and ask for a visit, ideally when the building is quiet: the entrance, the classroom, the canteen, the toilets, the school office. HAS recommends that professionals prepare the move from one setting to another "with particular attention (prior visits, sharing of information, gradual integration […])".
At home, the same idea turns into simple actions: walk the journey from home to school, at the time of day it will be done, once or twice; ask whether you can take photos of the entrance, a corridor and the canteen so your child can look at them at home.
Make the timetable and the places visible
As soon as you have the timetable, put it in a form your child can check on their own: a colour per subject, a map of the school, room numbers. HAS recommends that professionals "make information, instructions and schedules visible in an adapted way" (section 3.3.3), and NICE's guideline for children and young people lists "providing visual supports, for example, words, pictures or symbols that are meaningful for the child or young person".
| What can change | What can help |
|---|---|
| Several rooms through the day | A map of the school, with numbered rooms and the route from one to the next |
| Several different adults through the day | A list of subjects with the name of the adult, when you know it |
| A timetable that can change from one day to the next | A timetable in colours, at home and in the school bag |
| Lunch in the canteen | Knowing in advance where to eat, how to take a tray, where to sit |
Tell the school staff
Before term starts, tell the staff what helps your child and what makes things hard. HAS recommends that professionals anticipate school transitions "by passing on relevant information, with the parents' agreement, to the professionals concerned, by preparing the pupil and by raising awareness among peers". So the sharing happens with the parents' agreement. Talk to your child first, if they can talk about it.
Which support arrangements exist, and how to ask for them, depends on your country and your school: ask the school's support staff what they can put in place.
Rehearse new situations
Asking the way, speaking to a member of staff, taking a tray in the canteen, changing rooms: each of these can be rehearsed beforehand, at home or in a simulation. HAS recommends that professionals use "as early as possible, and at least from the age of 6, social skills training groups" and offer them "in everyday practice" (section 3.2.3). HAS recommends these groups to professionals; rehearsing at home, or with Sociami, is a practical idea, not a recommendation cited here.
At home, you can act out each scene with your child, then swap roles. Sociami also lets you rehearse situations out loud or in writing, with an AI, as many times as needed: see an example session. Sociami is not a training group, and none of the sources cited here has evaluated it.
The first weeks
Keep a calm moment when your child gets back, then ask what helped. The method for looking back is described in the article on transitions. If a lesson is moved or a teacher is away, name the change calmly: what changes, what does not, what comes next.
Every child is different. A professional who knows your child, or the school team, can help adapt these ideas. This article gives practical pointers, not medical advice.
FAQ
When should I start preparing for secondary school?
There is no single date. Start with a simple announcement, then visits and visual supports, and give more detail as the date gets closer, following your child's questions. Ask the school what it has planned before term starts, so you know when you can visit.
Should I tell the school my child is autistic?
HAS recommends that professionals pass on relevant information "with the parents' agreement", and links this sharing to preparing the pupil and raising awareness among classmates. Talk to your child first, if they can talk about it.
Who should I talk to at the school?
Start by asking the school who coordinates support for pupils who need adjustments, and ask what they can put in place. Share information with your agreement, as HAS describes, and talk to your child first.
What should I do when the timetable changes without warning?
Name the change calmly: what changes, what does not, what comes next. Then ask the school how your child will be told when a lesson is moved or a teacher is away, and whether there is a version of the timetable they can check on their own.
How can I help my child find their way around the school?
With a map, photos of the places if the school allows it, the route between rooms walked in advance, and visual markers: a colour per subject, the room numbers. HAS recommends that professionals make schedules and instructions visible.
Sources
These texts are about autism and school. None of them has evaluated Sociami. HAS recommendations are addressed to professionals. None of them describes school life or how any particular school organises the start of term: the changes listed in the table are pointers to check with the school. Passages from sources in French are translated by our editorial team. Links checked on 13 October 2026.
- NICE, Autism spectrum disorder in under 19s: support and management (CG170), recommendations 1.1.9 and 1.1.12, updated 14 June 2021.
- HAS (France), Trouble du spectre de l'autisme : interventions et parcours de vie du nourrisson, de l'enfant et de l'adolescent, good practice recommendation, January 2026 (in French; sections 3.2.3, 3.3.3, school transitions and situations of transition). Page of the recommendation.
- HAS (France), Trouble du spectre de l'autisme (TSA) : ce qu'il est utile de savoir pour accompagner votre enfant, page for parents, 1 October 2026 (in French).
Sociami is a tool for practising social situations, not a medical device.