When you are responsible for educating young children, you will most likely encounter a wide variety of abilities and differing degrees of understanding among the various children. If you are dealing with any of a variety of specific learning difficulties then you will be faced with an even greater selection of challenges in your attempts to ensure that the children are all up to speed with the schedule for the school week. If your class should be taken on any particular day by a stand-in teacher then they will need to quickly comprehend your planned schedule so that the class can continue following the correct program of work for the amount of time involved. To help staff and children alike understand what they should be doing and at what time, the visual timetable is a valuable tool among key stage 1 resources in helping to bring harmony to an already hectic environment.
Visual timetables help pupils to realise what they are doing and when over a period of time such as the scholastic day. They give structure to the day and often help with reducing anxiety. Symbols or images are used to represent the jobs, activities or lessons and the significance of their graphical representations are explained to the pupil. The visual timetable is then displayed to give a visual reference for what is happening throughout the time period in question .
Often a visual timetable will show the word of the activity alongside a pictorial representation of the activity. For a younger child it may be used just for morning or afternoon activities. For an older pupil it could be a graphical timetable for the week. Visual timetables are evolved and used according to the specific needs of the children in question .
A visual timetable is straightforward to make using symbols or footage and is a good tool in the classroom, helping to give pupils structure to their day. There are many benefits to using visual timetables as a help to classroom management. They promote independence, reduce anxiety, increase confidence and build on a pupil’s strength as a visible learner. They also build upon a pupil’s need for routine, foreseeability and organisation. It will also help to instil a sense of permanency.
Many children on the autistic spectrum can battle with the complexities of the school day. They frequently like to have fixed routines as the world can appear quite unpredictable to them. It is hard for them to take change in their stride so it is best to give an advanced warning to prevent anxiety or a sense of loss of control. Visual timetables may be used to break an activity down into steps giving children a feeling of structure to their day and making them feel secure. Visual timetables provide prompts to help children know what area of the curriculum they are going to be studying, what they are going to need to get their work done and what the social organisation of the class will be. This can reduce anxiety with the final result that children sometimes exhibit less anti-social, unattractive behavior.
Visual timetables may be employed for the whole class or reserved for individual children. If they are going to be utilized for the entire class they have to be displayed in a location where they can be seen clearly by everyone. If a visual timetable is employed for an individual child then a smaller version can be created. The teacher and any classroom assistants must refer to it in the school day till the children are totally acquainted with it. The timetable should be made either from left to right or from top to bottom.
Some children will benefit by being consulted regarding the specific symbols or representations to be used. The child will take greater ownership of the register and it’ll mean more to them as an organisational tool. Some children may need individualised visual timetables because they might be indulging in different activities to the remainder of the class. A personal timetable specific to particular children may include individual speech therapy, physiotherapy or medical needs that may not be relevant for the remainder of the class.
Visual timetables can be useful to help moderate behavior patterns. The timetable will indicate when a break occurs so this is going to be useful for a child on a behaviour intervention plan. She or he will know when a break is due and how much longer they need to be moderating their behaviour before a reward or break will be allowed.
Visual timetables could be a extraordinarily useful classroom management and organisational tool for the teacher in that if a supply or stand in teacher has to take over the class, they can right away see the structure of the school day. Teachers employing a visual timetable will find that their children become less reliant on teaching staff and verbal instructions and the class will generally benefit from a reduction in troublesome behavior and repeated questions. A visual timetable can therefore be of significant advantage for any classroom.