Visual Supports
Visual Supports
• Visual supports assist students with Autism in
various situations and settings
• There are many different kinds of visual
supports to aide in many different situations
Why use Visuals?
• To answer questions such as:
– Where am I supposed to be now?
– When will I get to go _________?
• Teach life skills for cooperation, attention,
independence, and learning
• Reduce Anxiety
• Teach a routine that teaches flexibility
• NOTE: It should be something they can use on
their worst day!
Cont.
• Reduce verbal interaction and increase
attention
• To improve learning by increasing time on
tasks and targeting objectives
• Improves behavior by defining rules, providing
choices, decreasing power struggles and
removing opportunities for negotiation
What does it look like in the
classroom
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Daily schedule
Task list
Work systems
Cue cards
Social stories
Comic conversations
Highlighting text
Power cards
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Choice menu
Game directions
Recipes
Classroom arrangement
Relaxation Exercises
Written Dialogue
Color Coding key terms
Visual game boards
Visual Schedules
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Objects
Photos or pictures
Written
Can vary by length, portability, and who
manages it (adult or child)
• Should be individualized and functional for
Meaning
First Then
First – Then Board
• Show a student what is expected now and
what will come next
• Could be, for example, an adult directed
activity and then a reward activity (first math,
then playground)
• Should not be used to break down an activity
such as first write your name on the page then
do number one
Visual Schedule
Reminder strips
Reminder Strips
• Reminder strips are great for helping to teach
a new multi-step skill or as a reminder for
challenging multi-step skills
• Can be posted on the wall or reviewed prior
to an activity
• Very useful in supporting students through
toilet training, tying shoes, brushing teeth,
packing up etc…
Task List
Task Lists
• Break down difficult or multi-step tasks
• Often used for academic tasks that require
multiple steps (long division, steps to writing a
paragraph)
• Can aide in getting through a routine (getting
dressed)
• As a step is completed it is checked off which
encourages independence.
Health Cards
Health Cards
• Useful for students who experience difficulties
with communication or who have sensory
deficits.
• Help a student pin-point areas that maybe
painful or let someone know they are hurt
Social Skills
Social Skills
• Visual supports can be used to encourage
things like turn-taking, waiting, and other
skills that support meaningful relationships
• Cue cards can also be used to give options of
what to say next
Volume Control
Volume Control
• Many times students with various disabilities
experience difficulties regulating their volume
• Could help with clarifying what volume is
appropriate for what setting
Social Stories
What are Social Stories?
Social Stories, developed for individuals with
autism or pervasive developmental disorders, are
brief descriptive stories that provide accurate
information regarding a social situation. These
simple stories can be used as a tool to prepare
individuals with communication difficulties for a
new situation, address a problem behavior, or
teach new skills.
Why do Social Stories Work?
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Visual
Provide accurate information
Identify relevant social cues
Describe expected behaviors
Subtract social interference
How to Write a Social Story
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Target a situation
Gather information
Select one behavior at a time
Positively state desired behavior
Write the story from a first person perspective
Be specific. Use “sometimes” and “usually”
State desired responses carefully
Include illustrations or photographs if possible
Revise story based on student’s response
Basic Social Story Sentences
•Descriptive Sentences
•Perspective Sentences (2-5 Descriptive and/or
Perspective Sentences)
•Directive Sentences (0-1 directive sentences)
Descriptive Sentences
• Explain what occurs and why
• Often begin a social story
Directive Sentences
• Statements of desired responses
• Follow descriptive sentences, telling a child
what is expected
• Often begin with “I can…”
Perspective Sentences
• Describe reactions of other people
• Relay feelings of others
• Should be honest statements
Resources for Social Stories
StoryMaker for Social Stories app
HandHold Adaptive created StoryMaker to help caregivers everywhere construct
social narratives, an evidence-based practice for individuals with developmental
delays. StoryMaker allows users to create Social Stories using pictures, text and audio.
Add pictures from the built-in Library, or expand the Library with pictures from the
camera, Google, Bing or Flickr. You can than print or email the stories you created as a
PDF.
Price: $29.99
Stories About Me app
Stories About Me allows parents and teachers to create their own social stories for
their children and students. Blending photos, text, and voice recordings into a talking
picture book, children can playback rich media stories of their own personal
experiences. Swiping advances the pages and tapping plays the audio; simple as that!
Price: $5.99
Resources for Social Stories
Stories2Learn app
Stories2Learn is a parent approved app that promotes social messages to individuals
with autism and other developmental disabilities. S2L offers parents and educators
the ability to create personalized stories using photos, text, and audio messages.
These stories can be used to promote an individual’s literacy, leisure, as well as social
skills.
Price: $13.99
i Create… Social Skills Stories app
i Create… Social Skills Stories is an application with the ability to totally customize
sequential steps of a storyline for individuals that need help building their social skills.
The app is designed to make unlimited personalized social skill story books by
importing personal photos, adding titles, text and audio to unlimited pages in the
story.
Price: $4.99
Resources for Social Stories
My Pictures Talk app
My Pictures Talk lets you create stories with pictures, audio, and video. My Pictures
Talk helps you catalog, share, remember, and teach skills to those with autism or
developmental delays. You can create talking photo albums, or use as a teaching tool
to help promote wanted behaviors.
Price: $4.99
ConnectABILITY software
ConnectAbility offers a visuals engine that is great for creating a quick social story on
the fly. There are no downloads necessary. Simply select your template (choose from
choice time, rules, schedules, personal stories and more), add Boardmaker images or
upload your own images and print or save as a PDF.
Price: Free