Free Visual Support:Trick or Treat (PDF)

https://youtube.com/watch?v=NYmEKETB5Ps%26hl%3Den%26fs%3D1

Trick or Treat is a support designed to help children with ASD participate in and enjoy the Halloween tradition of trick or treating. Many aspects of this activity can be unsettling for children on the spectrum. This visual support is designed to reduce the anxiety that some feel by increasing the predictability of trick or treating. It is a two part support designed – 1) to help family members proactively plan trick or treat activities with their children and 2) to provides strategies for use during the activity. The top of the page helps families create their plan for the evening, while the bottom of the page helps children make decisions about what to do if they encounter a “problem” when they are trick or treating. Two separate pages are designed this way. One is for going trick or treating and the other is for staying home to pass out candy. Modification of the support is encouraged for individual children. The video tutorial discusses the support design and additional considerations for use.

Free Visual Support:Halloween (PDF)
Me Page Template (PNG)
How to add your own picture – (Video Tutorial)

Updated for iPad 3, the Halloween book is also available as an eBook app for iPhone and iPod Touch.
Halloween is a book created by Lorrie Ann Harrington, a parent of a child who was diagnosed with autism in 2004 at the age of three. Since that time, Lorrie has created and used personalized books to teach her son new vocabulary, language-based concepts, and social communication skills. She has found that incorporating her son’s interests, as well as including photographs of him and others close to him, in the stories helps to secure his interest and enables him to stay focused and relate to the teaching topic more easily.

Included here is the Halloween Book (PDF) which focuses on the “WH” question “WHERE?.” This question is introduced repeatedly throughout the book to help children learn location concepts such as- “in front of”, “behind”, and “next to.”  In addition, the story is structured in such a way that it can be used to help teach children to identify, label, and categorize words, by commenting on the text and pictures.

Also included for download is the graphic and text used on the “me” page.  This additional download can be used to personalize Halloween for your child or student.

Free Visual Support:Calendar Time (PDF)

Calendar Time is designed to support students’ active engagement during “morning meeting” times. Many children with ASD and related disabilities struggle to attend during “calendar.” One way to support focus during a heavily language-based task is to provide students with their own visual supports for reference. Calendar Time is designed to be a personal, hand-held support that not only orients students to the topic of discussion, but also encourages them to be active participants in all aspects of a typical “calendar” activity. The video provides and overview of the support and discusses some options for modifications to support engagement at differing levels.

Free Visual Support:Yoga! (PDF)

Yoga is a dynamic way to individualize centering, regulatory breaks for children throughout their day. Included in this support is a sample sequence of yoga poses, as well as a customizable schedule for creating unique sequences. These sequences can be created by staff purposefully to address individual needs or can be created by students when they select poses from the attached library. A very special thanks to Heart & Soul Yoga (www.heartandsoulyogava.com) for sharing their stick figure library with me in order to increase the creative possibilities of this support. Encourage the kiddos in your life to hold each pose in their sequence for 4-5 breaths before moving onto the next pose. The video discusses the structure of the support and possible modifications for use. As always with any exercise, make sure your child or student is healthy enough for physical activity before introducing this yoga support.

Free Visual Support:GO Chart (PDF)
GO Chart Criteria (PDF)

The GO Chart is a graphic organizer designed to help students get the most out of their reading assignments by encouraging them to actively engage with content. Originally designed by Carrice Cummins and Vicki Benson, the GO Chart focuses on comprehension, vocabulary, and personal connections. The support can be used by an individual student or in buddy reading activities. Included for download are the graphic organizer and rubric for its use. The video tutorial briefly reviews the GO Chart.

Free Visual Support:Waiting (PDF)

https://youtube.com/watch?v=gMPV6R8vTVQ%26hl%3Den%26fs%3D1

Waiting is a resource that is designed to help educators, therapists, and family members teach individuals with ASD and related disabilities how to wait. It details many different aspects of waiting that need to be considered when “teaching” the concept which are frequently overlooked. The support is designed to be a proactive approach to teaching a skill that often poses difficulty for individuals on the spectrum. The video tutorial discusses the some additional thoughts behind the support.

Free Visual Support:Adapted Grading Rubric (PDF)

https://youtube.com/watch?v=DfWf39aKo60%26hl%3Den%26fs%3D1

The Adapted Grading Rubric is designed to provide students and their families with authentic feedback about student performance on adapted curriculum materials. Four areas are assessed – independence, active engagement, accuracy, and completeness- for each assignment. Scoring is designed to be simple and consistent with a possible 5 points in each of the areas assessed. The downloadable support includes suggested criteria for the rubric, as well as sample scoring forms that could be printed and attached to a student’s assignment. The video tutorial provides additional information on the potential uses for the support.

Free Visual Support: Grocery Treasures Map (PDF)
Grocery Treasures Map (DOC)

https://youtube.com/watch?v=9e9b7gP78bE%26hl%3Den%26fs%3D1

Shopping with a child can be an adventure. Grocery Treasures Map is designed to help make sure that the adventure is fun. This “grocery list” is designed to capitalize on the interest that many kids have in pirates. When customizing the fillable .doc template for early language learners, photos or google images can be used to ensure comprehension and active engagement. When customizing the list for older kids, written words may suffice. For more ideas on modifying this support visit the video tutorial.

Free Visual Support:4th of July with Lucy and her Ladybug Friends (PDF)
1 child Page Template (PNG)
How to add your own picture – (Video Tutorial)

Updated for 2012, “4th of July with Lucy and her ladybug friends” is now available as a .99 eBook app and simple game for the iPad.

4th of July with Lucy and her Ladybug Friends is a “printable” book created by Lorrie Ann Harrington that focuses on building language and early literacy skills. With simple sentences and a repetitive theme (e.g. “Do you see Lucy’s ladybug friend….?”), it can be used to help teach children to recognize and use location words in addition to 4th of July vocabulary. Use it to encourage active participation, promote commenting, and strengthen the learning by asking your child or learner “WH” questions such as “Where?”, “Who?”, and “What?” (e.g. “Where is Lucy’s ladybug friend?”, “Who has a firework?”, “What is Lucy doing?”, etc.).

Also included for download is the graphic and text used on the “1 child” page.  This additional download can be used to personalize 4th of July with Lucy and her Ladybug Friends for your child or student.

Free Visual Support:4th of July Fun with Numbers (PDF)
1 child Page Template (PNG)
How to add your own picture – (Video Tutorial)

4th of July Fun with Numbers is a “printable” book created by Lorrie Ann Harrington that focuses on teaching early numeracy skills and more. It’s simple structure is designed to help teach children one-to-one correspondence, as well as to identify and label 4th of July vocabulary. Use it to encourage active participation, promote commenting, and strengthen the learning by asking your child or learner “WH” questions such as “Where?”, “Who?”, and “What?” (e.g. “Where is Lucy?”, “Who is that?”, “What number is that?”, etc.) while referencing the text and pictures.

Also included for download is the graphic and text used on the “1 child” page.  This additional download can be used to personalize 4th of July Fun with Numbers for your child or student.