Supporting Kids (and yourself) Through Summer Chaos

Supporting Kids (and grown ups!) Through Summer Chaos: Simple Routines, Fun Activities, and Regulation Tips

Discover simple, nervous-system friendly ways for adults and kids to find calm during unpredictable summer days. Tips include co-regulation, sensory play, and realistic rhythms for all.
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Summer can be magical—and overwhelming.

If your summers feel anything like ours - often routines disappear and days become unpredictable. This often leads to dysregulation, big feelings, and behavior shifts - in both adults and in children.

The good news?

But you don’t need to control every hour to feel grounded. With a few supportive practices, both bigs and littles can navigate summer with more ease.
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1.  Create Gentle Anchors, Not Strict Schedules

Rather than trying to replicate the school year or be overly structured, try setting a few daily “anchors”—predictable touch points that help everyone feel held.

Examples:

• Morning anchor: Stretch together, light a candle, make smoothies
• Midday anchor: Everyone takes a quiet rest (reading, drawing, lying in the dark)
• Evening anchor: Bath for kids, foot soak or tea for grownups, lights dimmed

These don’t have to be rigid—just consistent enough to cue safety to the nervous system.
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2. Move Your Bodies (Together or Apart)

Movement is regulating for people of all ages.

Try:

• Water play (sprinklers, pool, or even a cool shower)
• Nature walks (slow, barefoot, collecting leaves, or naming colors)
• Dance breaks (blast a playlist while making lunch or cleaning)
• Heavy work (kids push a toy mower, adults do yard work or rearrange furniture)

Movement grounds the body and helps release built-up tension.
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3. Support the Senses

When you or your child feel overstimulated, sensory-friendly options can offer relief.

Try:

• Cold washcloth on your face or neck
• A quiet “cool-down corner” with books, headphones, and fidget toys
• Frozen fruit, popsicles, or mint tea for internal cooling
• Weighted blanket for storytime or adult rest

Tending to the senses soothes the nervous system—without needing to “fix” anything.
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4. Make Space for Big Feelings

Summer shifts can bring out clinginess, meltdowns, irritability, or tears—for everyone. This is normal.

Instead of trying to avoid them, try:

• Naming what’s real: “This day feels messy. We’re figuring it out together.”
• Offering co-regulation: hold a hand, breathe together, or sit nearby in silence
• Modeling your own repair: “I got overwhelmed. I’m taking a break and I’ll come back softer.”

Kids learn how to manage their feelings by watching how we tend to our own.
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5. Build Connection in Micro-Moments

Connection doesn’t need to be grand or time-consuming. It just needs to feel present.

Try:

• 5 minutes of silly play before starting dinner
• A shared snack outside, watching clouds
• Drawing on each other’s backs with a finger—guess the shape
• Eye contact and a smile when passing through the room

Little gestures regulate both hearts and bodies.
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6. Use Visual Tools and Gentle Planning

Predictability helps everyone feel safer.

Try:

• A family visual schedule with magnets or sticky notes
• A simple “Plan of the Day” written on a chalkboard or paper
• A shared calendar where kids add stickers for activities and grownups block off rest

This gives kids and adults alike a sense of what to expect—without needing everything nailed down.
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Summer Doesn’t Have to Be Perfect to Be Regulating

Some days will be loud, messy, or screen-heavy. That’s okay.

The goal isn’t peace all the time—it’s knowing how to return to regulation when you’ve veered off course. When you model care, rest, and flexibility, your kids feel it.

So take a breath. Drink some water. Lower the bar.

Let summer be a season of co-regulation, not perfection.

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