Organizing Life with Special Needs: A Guide to Using Calendars for Daily, Weekly, and Monthly Success

Woman marking calendar entries in a planner.

Real-Life Scenarios

– My car battery died, our water heater started leaking and now we are late to my child’s speech therapy!

– My 10 year old with special needs just ate EXPIRED yogurt, ugh! And she was the only one NOT dressed for gym today. How can we start working together so she and I can be a bit ahead of the game?

– We are so proud! Our young adult with special needs wants to learn how to pay bills, keep some records, and manage his paycheck! And did I mention he wants to learn how to remember his prescriptions and his haircuts? We don’t know where to start, but we do know that we need to be part of it all with him.

Do any of these life scenarios sound familiar?

Because we are all different, I am sure you have your own full of things we wished we remembered to do, wished we had scheduled, or life stepped in and it slipped our minds.

So….just how DO you get organized and stay organized?

And how do we teach our children with special needs how to begin to do the same?

A calendar system is a great solution!

To begin this system, we need to think about calendars. They come in Daily, weekly, and monthly forms. And are they available on an app or on paper?

There are so many options, but remember that calendars are the answer! But they are just a blank tool until you learn how to use them for what YOU need for YOU and YOUR CHILD and HOW you need it.

So, First Things First: Pick The Calendar That Best Fits Your Needs

Daily, weekly, and monthly? In paper form or on an app?

Here are a few examples to get you started:

Daily Daily with times

Weekly Monthly

Digital options are available on your app store:

Now Decide What To Put On The Calendar:

We put together some list of things that you might consider putting on your schedule?
Or maybe this will just help spark a thought for you as you consider what to put on your schedule.

For the Daily Schedule:

Morning: Personal care, medication, healthy breakfast, review day’s schedule.

Afternoon: School/work tasks, short break or walk, snack.

Evening: Family time, prepare for the next day, wind-down activities.

For the Weekly Schedule:

Sunday evening: Plan outfits for the week and check the refrigerator/ pantry for expired items.

Monday: Review weekly appointments and prep for upcoming school events.

Midweek: Restock essentials and schedule weekend activities.

Friday: Plan the next week’s meals and update the calendar with any new events.

Other weekly items: Cleaning room, Library day, Appointments, Fitness schedules, Laundry, grocery shopping

For the Monthly Schedule:

Check tire pressure, oil, and fluid levels.
Test smoke alarms and carbon monoxide detectors
Check for clogs and leaks
Check HVAC filters, conduct landscaping
Schedule haircuts
List item
Review finances/Budget review,
Upcoming appointment
Change toothbrushes

For the Yearly/Annual Schedule:

Birth month: Schedule medical and dental check-ups.

Start of the school year: Update any necessary educational plans.

End of year: Review insurance policies and set goals for the new year.

And Begin:

You can start with the monthly calendar, filling in the events or items that need done for the family and your child including in it those yearly/annual items too!
Then go to the weekly calendar, start filling in what is important for the week. Make sure to reference the monthly calendar to make sure you aren’t forgetting to put down something in the correct week.
You can see how the information on one calendar is important as you do the next one.
Then go to the daily calendar and using the information you already have from the weekly one. You can now show the times for those events. Such as a fitness class at 2 pm on Thursday or a haircut that is at 10:30 on Saturday morning. Daily schedules help teach our kids to be more aware of the days activities in the order they appear, may help with transitions from one event to the next and as well as starting to understand how long actual events/plans can take. All good things to know.

Tips For Success:

Consistency is key so plan a time each week to do the calendar with your child if that is your plan.

Plan times to look at the calendar so it becomes a reference for you and your child.

You know your child best, so work within their ability and comprehension. We don’t want this to add a stress to anyone.
If you decide to share a calendar with your child and another family member, you can color code each person’s schedule for ease.

Calendars are amazing tools that can help foster organization and decrease stress for everyone. While they do require planning and effort, the rewards are worth the work. And calendars can lay the groundwork for easier transitions to independence for your child, which is a goal that most of us share!

Weekly Habits:

Weekly tasks, when scheduled, can prevent the feeling of being overwhelmed daily and teach children the importance of routine.
Seasonally: before winter or mid-year: vehicle maintenance.

Involving your child in this process teaches them planning and responsibility, skills that will serve them throughout life.

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This post originally appeared on our January/February 2024 Magazine