It’s all over. The festivities are officially finished for another year, the tree is slowly going browny-yellow out by the shed and we’ve finally put pay to that period of our year where it feels like we’re eating turkey three times a day. And 2022 brings with it a whole set of new opportunities to learn, thrive and grow together, and bring a little more spark and understanding to the neurodiversity community- as well as a great opportunity to get back to class and really hit the books.

Unfortunately, we’re not quite over the effects of the global pandemic, and the first term of 2022 still looks set to be a little disrupted compared to the way we kicked off the school year in 2019 or 2020. It might feel disappointing, and it might feel like things will never truly get back to normal after a winter of anxiousness and uncertainty, but there’s fair evidence that we’re headed in the right direction. But this doesn’t mean that many young people all over the world aren’t looking at the next few months with a little trepidation, and it’s important to make sure that they’re feeling confident, informed and reassured as they get set to tackle whatever learning 2022 has in store for them.

So we’ve put together a list of talking points and things to discuss with the children and the young people in your life who might be feeling uncertain or scared as they head back into class.

💬 Classroom-based learning looks like it’s here to stay…

Despite where we were last year, classroom-based learning looks set to be a staple in the US and in the UK. The international vaccine roll-out and the emergence of (fingers crossed) less deadly coronavirus variants has, for the moment, led governments to believe that it’s safe for the moment to keep children in classrooms for the majority of their learning. And that’s a good thing for a lot of learners, especially those of them who may be neurodiverse – remote learning has led to some setbacks when it comes to keeping learners on-target and developing key skills like reading and communication, and classroom-based practice is widely agreed to be create a more functional learning environment.

💬 …But it’s still OK if we have to switch back to remote learning.

If there’s one thing that pandemic education has proved, it’s to expect the unexpected. We’ve been back into the classroom a few times and had to leave again, and although it looks like we might finally be back in for good, there might still be some false starts and hurdles to come. Year groups might have to isolate, circuit-breakers might have to be imposed – but these are okay. We did it for the majority of last year, and we’ll do it again if we have to – and education is constantly learning the best way to serve the people in its care. We’re now more switched-on than ever when it comes to making remote learning work, and even though it’s not quite as ideal as learning in the classroom, we’re lucky to be in a technological position where we can keep learning ticking over when we can’t be together in the classroom.

💬 There might be some staff changes.

World governments are preparing for some major staff absences due to Covid-19 related illness this year, and the education system isn’t likely to escape this. This might mean that SENCOs, teaching assistants, and class or subject teachers are going to be absent - perhaps for periods of a week or two. It’s important to reassure learners that this is to be expected, and it doesn’t mean that they’ll be left long-term without specialist help or familiar faces. If you’re worried about the level of support that a learner in your care needs, it’s a great idea to touch base with your school and ask about contingency plans if SENCO and support staff are absent due to illness.

💬 There might still be some changes to their school day.

Some schools are still in the habit of mixing up break and lunch times and class times to keep full-school contact to a minimum, so schedules might look a little different still. And over here in the UK especially, most secondary school pupils will have to deal with popping their face coverings on again to help slow the spread of the virus. They’re likely to be quite temporary measures, and could well be a thing of the past by summer term, but this might also be disruptive to neurodiverse learners who can come to rely on routine, like some of those with Autism and ADHD. It’s a great idea to find out these changes beforehand so that nothing comes as a surprise, and even get in touch with schools to find out if anything can be done to adapt some routines to keep them more in-line with what learners are familiar with.

💬 But as of yet, exams are going ahead.

It looks fairly certain at the moment that planned UK January examinations are going ahead. Desks might be a little more spread out, and maybe some learners will have to take their exams in classrooms or gym halls as opposed to their traditional school-hall settings, but it does look like we’ll be dealing with a normal January and June exam season as opposed to teacher-awarded grades like last year. Revision might look a little different, and study leave might be extended to keep schools less populated in the run-up to exam week, but on the whole things look fairly normal. We’ll keep you updated.

It’s never easy, going back to school after the holidays… and it’s likely to feel even more jarring in pandemic conditions. Looking after children and young people’s mental health is a priority for this term, and making sure that they’re feeling supported and understood in all that they do. Touch base with SENCOs, councillors and teachers if learners are feeling nervous or concerned about anything, and make sure that they know what kinds of support is in place for them both in and out of the classroom. It’s important to open up conversations and make sure that they know you’re listening.

Things aren’t back to normal yet, although the future’s looking considerably brighter than it was twelve months ago, and we need to pay attention to the children and young people in education who might not be going into the new term feeling 100%. Learning in 2022 might not be as plain sailing as it's been in previous years, but it's far from impossible, and things are getting better every day. Be patient, and be open about the changes they might see in the next few weeks - and remember, it won't be forever.