Tips for Teachers
Successful Transitions Between Activities
Make Transitions Predictable and Expectations Clear
1. Teach students so that they know what they are supposed to do
2. Teach students so that they know when they are making progress
TEac
3. Teach students so that they know when they are done
4. Teach students so that they know what to do next
Inclusive Practices and Co-Teaching
BCPS/MCIE 2011
Successful Transitions Between Activities
Mr. Jones plans engaging instructional activities and uses good strategies for meeting individual needs. But every time his class breaks into
groups, changes subjects, or gets ready to go to a Resource class, things seem to fall apart. Students get noisy and restless and Mr. Jones
often has to raise his voice. One student, Jack, has particular difficulty – he always seems to take longer than everyone else to get ready,
has trouble keeping his materials organized, and gets distracted in the middle of the transition. Mr. Jones urges him to hurry up, but this
only increases his frustration and sometimes leads to him yelling or throwing materials.
By making transitions predictable and clear for the whole class and adding a few individualized supports for Jack, Mr. Jones can create a
more efficient, positive classroom environment and have more time to spend on teaching.
When:
Expectations
Supports and Strategies
For the whole class
Arrival
 Unpack/pack backpack
 Put jacket in locker
 Manage homework
folder
 Eat breakfast
 Listen to
announcements
 Talk quietly with friends
Moving into and
out of small
groups for
instruction
 Gather needed
materials
 Move to designated area
silently
 Sit down and begin work
Transitioning
from one
subject to
another
 Put away one set of
materials and get out
the next
List of morning steps on board or posted
“process chart”
Labeled areas for homework folders, notes
from home, etc.
Five-minute warning with verbal reminder of
what comes next
Countdown or signal immediately before
transition.
Verbal reminder of explicit expectations before
the transition begins (“When I say ‘Move,” red
group take your folders and your reading books
to the front table and blue group get out your
SSR book. There should be no talking.”)
Positive or corrective feedback
Posted schedule
Countdown or signal immediately before
transition.
Verbal and visual cues (e.g,, needed materials
written on the board)
Transitioning
from one class
to another
 Line up
 Walk in hallway without
talking
 Enter new room and go
to designated seats.
Positive or corrective feedback.
Clear direction for when and in what order to
line up (e.g., by rows or table groups; by
birthday month in the order called, etc) and
how to move through the halls
For Jack
Laminated list of morning steps at
desk with dry-erase marker to check
off steps as completed
Individual transition warning and
reminder about next step.
Peer buddy to check that he has the
right materials for the next activity
“Head start” on collecting his
materials
Extra pencils, paper, etc. available if
he forgets something
Color-coded schedule, books, and
folders to help him keep materials
organized
Advance warning of upcoming
transition
Peer buddy to check he has the right
materials.
Extra time to put away/gather
materials (call him in last group to
line up)
Reminder of what to do when arriving in the
next area.
Positive or corrective feedback
For more information:
www. MCIE.org and www.mcieinclusiveschools.org – The Student Planning section of this website
offers information and tools about planning supports in the general classroom as well as examples.
http://education.missouri.edu/orgs/prevention/files/Teaching%20Transitions.pdf
http://www.ehow.com/way_5278522_transition-activities-school-aged-children.html
http://education.odu.edu/esse/docs/transitions.pdf, http://csefel.vanderbilt.edu/kits/wwbtk4.pdf
Inclusive Practices and Co-Teaching
BCPS/MCIE 2011