This anxiety and need for schedules is common in leearning disabled children. I remember the nightmare May was at my son'r school. The term was ending, the routine was changing and the fear was palpable. The children were terrified of not knowing what they would be doing every day every hour when school ended.
We have all read how pissed off Tom has been when his coffee was late or cold in the nursing home. Now magnify that a million times and you have an inkling into the stress.
Lists, calendars, nothing worked. Parents simply had to answer the same questions over and over. Yes we'll get up at 7:30 on Monday and have French toast for breakfast - two pieces cut into eight triangles (the Rainman fish sticks are not a joke). Then we will...and so on.
Constant reaasurance is required. Not easy for parent or child.
Now try to imagine the life of a child whose parents are too bsuy or too "uninformed" to deal with it. That child lives in constant fear.
Spaw has the patience of a saint.