Independent Play
and visual schedules
Mary wants to play with her Mom after school. They‘ve been separated since 7 am. Mom has several things to do before dinner. Yet asking Mary to play alone after a separation may not be the best idea. Mary’s mom would be much better off playing with her for a bit. There’s almost no limit to the activities to choose from. They could pick the Play-Dough Factory, a board game, sidewalk chalk, a scooter, or any fun activity Mom and Mary both enjoy.
That said, teaching a child to play independently by using “independent activity schedules” can be a good idea. Independent Activity Schedules were invented in the classroom to help children with autism work independently and transition well from one activity to another. The general idea is simple. The schedule comprises pictures or words, depending on the child's age and ability, listed in sequence. Parents post the independent activity schedule on the wall or in a 3-hole binder. The child ‘reads’ the schedule (views a series of photos), and completes the activities listed. When she’s done, s/he receives a pick from a reinforcer menu, which is a posting of various reinforcing objects or activities you are willing to provide after the child completes their schedule. Once the child learns the program, and if the activities are inherently fun enough the reinforcer menu can be faded out or changed over time.
To start, put high-interest toys or objects needed to do a 10-15 minute high-interest activity,- put them in a container (e.g., a plastic bag, a plastic tub, a shoe box). Pick activities the child can complete already. Put a good-sized photo of the activity on the container. Place an identical photo on the schedule posted on the wall (or place your schedule in a 3-ring binder). Find 4-6 more containers and fill them with different high-interest toys or activities. For example, put together Mr. Potato Head, color a page from a coloring book, play with toy farm animals, build something with a pile of Legos, or place a workbook page where the child traces letters or writes their name - I’m sure you can think of short fun activities to put in several plastic containers.
Place the containers on a shelf. Have the child pick the activities to put on his schedule for the day by selecting the appropriate photos and placing them in the binder or on the visual schedule posted on the wall. If an activity is no longer considered fun, replace it with a fun activity. Rotate the activities to keep up interest.
With the containers on a shelf and the schedule on the wall or in a 3-ring binder prompt the child to walk over to the schedule to see what activity is first. Let’s say Mr. Potato Head is first. The child walks over to the container that has the picture of Mr. Potato Head and puts the picture in the container, brings the container to a table (or on the floor), empties the materials, puts Mr. Potato Head together, puts the materials back into the container, puts the container on the shelf, then checks the schedule to see what activity is next. Legos is next. She takes the picture of the Legos and walks to the Legos container, puts the picture into the container, brings the container to the table/floor, takes out the materials, does the task, puts the materials back into the container, returns the containers to the shelf, checks the schedule and so on until all the activities scheduled are completed. The last photo on the schedule is always a photo that indicates the child is ‘all done’. The child hands the ‘all done’ or “Stop” photo to the parent to obtain a pick from the reinforcer menu. The reinforcer menu consists of photos of reinforcing objects and activities posted on the refrigerator that you are willing to provide after the child plays or works independently.
To teach your Mary to play independently do the following:
Introduce 1 activity at a time. Check the
schedule, do 1 activity, the child gets 1 pick from the reinforcer menu. Don’t introduce another activity until your child masters this step.
Prompt Mary by standing behind her. Use a hand-over-hand prompt to prompt her through the activity. If Mary can do some aspect of the task independently let her do that part (s) by herself. So, walk Mary to the schedule, have her take the photo that indicates what to do, walk Mary over to the correct container, put the photo in the container, hand over hand have your child pick up the container, bring it to the table or floor, take out the materials then, prompt Mary as little as necessary through the activity. Afterward, prompt her to put the materials back into the container, put the cover on, and walk her to the shelf. Have Mary put the container back in its place, then walk over to check the schedule. Repeat these steps until all tasks are completed and the child retains the STOP card and hands it to you. When she hands the STOP card to you, give her a pick from the reward menu.
Each day gradually fade out your physical prompts. Then fade out your verbal prompts until Mary does the tasks independently.
As mentioned, start with one activity. Then move to two activities, then three activities, and so on. Change the activities as Mary ages. Let her pick which activities to put on the schedule. Keep the activities age-appropriate. If Mary is in elementary school you can introduce academic activities and chores. Alternate fun activities with a chore or school work.
It will take time to teach a young child the program but soon the child will check the schedule and play or work independently with minimal supervision.
Some people use the visual schedule to teach all the steps necessary to complete a task, such as preparing English muffins. Others use the visual schedule to schedule a series of tasks or chores to be completed. Others use the visual schedule to teach their child to play independently, so all the activities are fun and revolve around play.
A page from the book, “A Cook Book For Non-Readers” by Tabitha Oath (2000)
Here are some pictures of visual schedules. The one above comes directly from 'Visual Recipes' by Tabitha Orth. It's a great way to teach your child to prepare simple meals.
Below I put together some photos that could be used as a visual schedule at home (although the photos below were taken at a preschool) Use these examples to inspire your version of a visual schedule in your home.
Independent activity schedules were designed for children with autism. However, the same technique can be used to teach your child to work or to play independently.
I appreciate any comments, questions, or suggestions you might have.
References
McClanahan, L. E., and Krantz P. J., Activity Schedules for Children with Autism: Teaching Independent Behavior, Second Edition, Woodbine House 2010
Oath, Tabitha Visual Recipes: A Cookbook for Non-Readers DRL Books, 2000
I'm glad you liked it. I wondered if a few people would find it interesting.