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Ready, Steady, School! School Readiness for Autism, ADHD and Sensory Differences

Ready, Steady, School! School Readiness for Autism, ADHD and Sensory Differences

$24.99 AUD
$24.99 AUD
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Designed by paediatric occupational therapists

The complete OT guide to preparing your child for school before day one arrives

Ready, Steady, School! is a 33 page parent guide written by paediatric occupational therapists, covering the five core pillars of school readiness for children with autism, ADHD, and sensory differences. With a bonus printable School Transition Checklist included.

  • Five pillars of school readiness: Independence, Academic Readiness, Interpersonal Skills, Communication, and Organisation
  • Dedicated sensory processing chapter covering all eight senses
  • Day One preparation guide: uniform, lunchbox, routines, and visiting the school
  • Printable School Transition Checklist tick off every step before Term 1
  • OT tips, sensory notes, and clinical strategies throughout
  • Written for parents, not clinicians warm, practical, and immediately usable
AU$24.99 Instant PDF download · Works on any device
Get the guide AU$24.99 See what is inside
✓ Instant download ✓ OT designed ✓ Printable checklist included
Sound familiar?

School is coming and you are not sure your child is ready

Maybe you are watching your child struggle to button their shirt and wondering how they will manage in a classroom full of new demands. Maybe you have heard the word "readiness" thrown around at orientation and are not entirely sure what it actually means. Maybe you know your child needs more preparation than a typical four year old but you are not sure where to start.

The school environment is genuinely challenging for children with autism, ADHD, and sensory differences. It is noisy, unpredictable, socially complex, and full of new sensory demands all at once, every single day. The more skills and strategies your child has in their toolkit before day one, the better placed they will be to navigate that environment successfully.

School readiness is not about being perfect before day one. It is about giving your child the tools, routines, and confidence to show up and try.

Without a plan

  • Scrambling to prepare in the weeks before Term 1
  • Googling "school readiness autism" and getting overwhelmed
  • Not knowing what the teacher needs to know
  • Day one meltdown with no framework for why
  • Uniform battles every morning for weeks
  • Child cannot open lunchbox, skips eating all day

With this guide

  • A clear five pillar framework covering every area that matters
  • OT strategies you can implement at home right now
  • A one page summary to share with the teacher before school starts
  • Uniform introduced gradually, sensory issues addressed early
  • Lunchbox practised, routine built, child feels prepared
  • A printable checklist so nothing gets missed before day one
What is covered

The five pillars of school readiness and everything in between

In occupational therapy, we organise school readiness into five core areas. Each one is distinct, but they are deeply interconnected. This guide covers all five, plus a dedicated sensory processing chapter and a complete Day One preparation section.

1 Independence Dressing, toileting, managing belongings, morning routine
2 Academic Readiness Literacy, numeracy, fine motor, pencil grasp, scissors
3 Interpersonal Skills Friendships, emotional regulation, turn-taking
4 Communication Asking for help, following instructions, AAC
5 Organisation Executive function, working memory, routines, planning
+ Sensory Processing All eight senses, overwhelm signs, school and home strategies

Sensory processing runs through every pillar. A child who is overwhelmed by the classroom environment cannot focus on learning, build friendships, or communicate their needs. This guide addresses sensory differences as a thread through everything not a footnote.

What you get

Everything inside Ready, Steady, School!

Ready, Steady, School! Complete Parent Guide (33 pages) Nine chapters covering all five pillars of school readiness, a dedicated sensory processing chapter, and a full Day One preparation guide. Written by paediatric OTs at EquipKids in warm, parent-friendly language no clinical jargon, no generic advice.
AU$24.99
School Transition Checklist Printable Bonus A beautifully designed, print-ready checklist covering every step before day one: visiting the school, uniform preparation, lunchbox practice, morning routine, visual supports, and after day one recovery. Stick it on the fridge and tick it off together.
Included free

Also inside the guide: OT Tip boxes throughout, Sensory Notes woven into each pillar, a Victorian Curriculum reference so you know exactly what your child will be working toward in Prep, and a section on the single most important thing you can do before school starts connecting with your child's teacher.

A closer look

What parents tell us they needed before they found this guide

Pillar 1: Independence

Buttons, zippers, shoelaces, socks with seams that cause meltdowns, a lunchbox no one can open independence challenges are the most practical and the most overlooked. This chapter covers exactly what to practise, how to introduce the uniform before school starts, and how to build a morning routine that does not end in tears for everyone.

Pillar 2: Academic Readiness

Not just reading and writing the fine motor foundations underneath them. Pencil grasp development by age, pre-writing strokes, the ten activities that build hand strength through play, how to practise classroom tasks like scissors and glue sticks before they are required in a high pressure environment.

Pillar 3: Interpersonal Skills

Social skills are learned, not innate. This chapter explains how to teach turn-taking, help-seeking, emotional regulation, and managing disappointment at home before the playground becomes the practice ground. Includes the best activities for building social confidence in children who find social situations genuinely hard.

Pillar 4: Communication

Asking for help is the single most important communication skill for school and the one most commonly absent in autistic children. This chapter covers how to establish a help seeking system before day one, how to practise multi step instructions, and what to do if your child uses AAC or alternative communication.

Pillar 5: Organisation

Executive functioning explained in plain language with real-life parent scenarios for working memory, attention, task initiation, sequencing, planning, and self monitoring. No clinical labels without context. Just: here is what it looks like at home, here is why it happens, and here is what actually works.

Sensory Processing: The Thread That Runs Through Everything

All eight senses covered including the three most parents have never heard of (vestibular, proprioception, interoception) and why they matter more than the five we learned in school. Signs of sensory overwhelm, how to build a one-page sensory profile for the teacher, and strategies for the classroom and at home.

Preparing for Day One

The practical preparation section parents actually need: visiting the school, introducing the uniform, practising the lunchbox, building the morning routine, using visual supports, and what to do when your child comes home completely dysregulated after a big day. Because that is information, not failure.

Why trust this

Clinical expertise, written for parents

33 Pages of OT grounded guidance written for parents, not clinicians
5 Pillars of school readiness covered plus sensory processing and Day One prep
OT Created by paediatric occupational therapists at EquipKids, Melbourne

MyTheraPlayBox resources are created by the clinical team at EquipKids Occupational Therapy, a paediatric OT clinic supporting families of children with autism, ADHD, and sensory differences across Melbourne. Every strategy in this guide comes from real clinical practice not generic parenting advice.

This guide does not replace OT support. What it does is give you the same framework and strategies we share with families in clinic, in a format you can read at home, implement today, and return to across the months before school starts.

Get Ready, Steady, School! AU$24.99

Instant download · PDF · Printable checklist included · Works on any device

Common questions

What parents usually ask before purchasing

My child has not been diagnosed is this still relevant?
Yes. This guide is useful for any child who finds parts of the school environment challenging whether they have a formal diagnosis or not. Sensory differences, social anxiety, fine motor difficulties, and executive functioning challenges are common across a wide range of children. The strategies in this guide are practical and broadly applicable.
Is this a replacement for seeing an OT?
No, and it is not designed to be. This is an educational resource that gives you the same frameworks and strategies we use in clinic, in a format you can use at home. If your child has significant needs across any of the five pillars, an OT assessment before school starts is strongly recommended. This guide complements that support it does not replace it.
My child starts school in a few months. Is it too late?
Not at all in fact this is the ideal time. The guide is specifically designed for the months before school starts. Many of the strategies (uniform introduction, morning routine practice, visiting the school, connecting with the teacher) require lead time to be effective. Starting now gives you the best chance of meaningful progress before day one.
What age is this guide for?
The guide is written for children preparing to start school, typically aged four to six. The strategies are most relevant in the year before and the year of starting Prep or Kindergarten. Families of children with more complex needs sometimes find the content relevant for older children transitioning between school settings.
Is this specific to Victoria or relevant across Australia?
The content is applicable nationally. We include a reference to the Victorian Curriculum as a useful resource for Victorian families, but the OT framework, sensory strategies, and school readiness pillars are relevant for any Australian family preparing a child for school.
How do I receive the guide?
Instantly. After purchase you will receive a download link by email. Everything is PDF format works on your phone, tablet, or computer. The School Transition Checklist is designed to be printed and put on the fridge.
Your next step

School is coming. Give yourself the right framework before it arrives.

You do not need to have everything sorted before Term 1. You need a clear picture of what matters, a practical plan for each area, and the confidence that you are preparing your child in the right direction. That is what this guide gives you.

Get Ready, Steady, School! AU$24.99

Instant download · PDF · Printable checklist included · OT-designed

Disclaimer: Ready, Steady, School! is an educational resource designed to support families of children with autism, ADHD, and sensory processing differences preparing for the school transition. It is not a substitute for professional occupational therapy assessment or treatment. The information provided is general in nature and may not be appropriate for every child. Individual needs vary. If you have concerns about your child's development or school readiness, please consult a qualified paediatric occupational therapist. This resource is intended to complement, not replace, professional support.

Created by the clinical team at EquipKids Occupational Therapy, Melbourne · mytheraplaybox.com.au
© 2026 MyTheraPlayBox. All rights reserved.

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