Keeping Your Homeschool Peaceful This Holiday Season

For homeschooling our autistic and nonspeaking students, the holiday season often brings more than just extra festivities. Between lesson adaptations, sensory considerations, family gatherings, changing routines, and managing both your child’s needs and your own — a time meant for joy can feel overwhelming. When the usual structure of your homeschool day is disrupted by travel, relatives, lights, sounds, and different spaces, stress levels can rise for everyone: your learner, your family, and you. The good news is: with a few thoughtful strategies, you can reclaim the holidays as a time of connection, learning, and peace.

What the Experts Say

Autistic children and those with limited or nonspeaking communication may become overwhelmed by large-scale holiday events, changes in environment, sensory overload from lights and noise, and altered routines. Experts at Johns Hopkins All Children’s Hospital recommend knowing your child’s limits, planning ahead for transitions, and providing a calm, familiar retreat space.

According to The Autism Helper, during the holidays it’s especially helpful to adjust expectations, keep a flexible schedule, and prioritize downtime—all while weaving learning and fun into the season.

A resource from Eyas Landing Therapy suggests creating a quiet-zone, involving children in planning, and simplifying social interactions to reduce anxiety for neurodiverse learners.

Tips to Help You Stay Balanced This Season

1. Plan ahead with visuals and scripts. Create a simple calendar or social story of what the week will look like: what’s changing, who will be visiting, where you’ll go. Providing your learner with a visual lead-in reduces uncertainty and helps manage transitions. This is often referred to as “frontloading.”

2. Build in safe spaces and downtime. Amid loud holiday events or bright decorations, schedule sensory breaks. Bring familiar items from home, create a quiet corner, and give yourself permission to step back when needed.

3. Keep some routines steady. While holidays might shift your homeschool rhythm, try preserving core parts of your day (such as a morning read-aloud, movement break, or AAC check-in). That anchor helps your learner feel secure.

4. Simplify your holiday learning. Rather than attempting full lesson blocks, pick one or two meaningful learning moments: a holiday-themed math game, a story you read aloud together, or a social-skills activity. Quality over quantity matters.

5. Set realistic expectations for your family. You don’t need to create a perfect holiday scene. Accept that there will be changes in schedule, unexpected reactions, or slower progress — and give yourself grace.

6. Communicate and collaborate. If relatives or friends are hosting or visiting, share ahead of time what supports your learner needs (quiet time, low lights, shorter durations, familiar items). A little preparation helps everyone.

7. Self-care for you. Your well-being sets the tone. You’re homeschooling, parenting, and often managing extra sensory and social layers. Sleep when you can, accept help, take short breaks, and remember: you matter too.

Our Tips

We believe the holidays can be both calm and meaningful. One of our favorite approaches is to slow down the learning pace and lean into the natural opportunities around you. Baking together becomes a math and sequencing lesson. Reading holiday stories aloud becomes a chance to model new AAC words like share, decorate, or together. Even helping wrap gifts can be a fine-motor or sensory experience. Learning doesn’t disappear during the holidays—it simply changes shape.

We also remind our families that connection is the curriculum. When your child feels safe, seen, and included, growth happens naturally. This might mean skipping a few workbook pages in favor of a morning walk, or letting your learner stim freely while listening to music. These small choices protect your peace, honor your child’s needs, and keep the joy in homeschooling alive throughout the season. The holidays are an ideal time to practice flexibility, celebrate small victories, and remember why you chose to homeschool in the first place.

References

1. Minimizing Holiday Stress for Children with Autism — guidance on preparation and creating calming spaces. (hopkinsmedicine.org)

2. Homeschooling During the Holidays — tips on adjusting expectations and maintaining flexibility. (theautismhelper.com)

3. 14 Tips to Reduce Holiday Stress for Neurodiverse Children — advice on quiet zones and simplified social routines. (eyaslanding.com)

4. Parenting During the Holiday Season: 3 Tips for Caregivers — insight on managing family expectations and caregiver self-care. (adaa.org)

Jennifer Bullock, Contributing Author

Homeschooling-experienced mom to a tween, non-speaking daughter, Jennifer is also Marketing Outreach Coordinator for The Autism Oasis. With 20+ years experience in marketing, advertising, and social media communications, you will see her occasionally supporting the blog and social media channels with various content related to Autism Oasis.