Ride the Train
The train's swaying, loud noises, strangers close by and sudden horns become a stream of impressions hard to switch off. The visual support below prepares a child so the impressions are recognised instead of catching them off guard.
♂Holding the Pole in the Train
A boy stands in a train holding a pole seen through the window.
♂Looking Out the Train Window
A boy rides a blue train and looks out the window at the scenery.
About this visual support
Inside the train everything happens at once. The carriage sways and shakes, loudspeakers sound, wheels screech and people press in close with their own noises and movements. For a child sensitive to sensory input, the train ride becomes a stream that cannot be switched off and that can build up to too much long before arriving.
Visual support helps by making the impressions expected rather than sudden. When the child sees pictures in advance of the swaying train, the many people and the loud noises, the body knows what it will meet and can meet it with less shock. The predictability does not soften the sound, but it removes the surprise, and it is often the surprise that tips things over.
A tip for the train in particular: pack a pair of headphones or a hat that dampens the noise, and show it as a tool of its own on a picture. The child knows there is a concrete way out if the impressions become too much, which in itself brings calm. You can build the trip with pictures in the Routined app and try it free for fourteen days.