can anyone help me with visual prompts and schedules

[latterlov3r]

So i know ds can cope without routine but i feel like he wants routine so after advice on here ive decided to use visual prompts to help him ive been on the mrs.riley website and got some pictures and started laminating them but i dont know the best way to actually implement them or where to put them, a brief run down of ds' needs are - he always wants to know what happens next, when its happening, where, how longs that... if he dosnt know he will just keep asking over and over very annoying, he always wants to know when hes eating next (hes obsessed with food no exageration!) actually could food be an obsessive thing?? he wants to know what shops we are going to etc and needs reminding of hygiene teeth, washing go to toilet etc

soo ive made 2 cards up for bathroom reminding him to flush toilet and wash hands, i need something with a brief outline of the day but for holidays,weekends and school days, something for meal times so he knows when its coming and something for when to wash etc, im thinking a clock picture put beside a real clock so he knows when he can get up (4am is not acceptable anymore!) should i do this for meals? or would that make him worse? what if i cant get organised on time? something to tell him where we are going shops etc and what ones, something to stop him touching everything in there or running off, something to make him do homework rather than want to play in garden, some sort of reward/behaviour system naughty step never worked, telling him dosnt work, bribes or confiscating things dont work currently sending him to his room dosnt teach anything. Id also like to try and stop the sillyness and more importantly the rudeness i know hes only 6 but his obsession with rude words and generally being disgusting is getting embaressing maybe a red card system? any tried and trusted ideas for best way to design all of the above would be much appreciated :)

If he's capable of using more than a now and next board, you could use a daily timetable with a card for each activity. (Breakfast, wash, get dressed, watch DVD, go to Grandma's, go to school etc.) Usually a vertical strip of Velcro down a door would do. Put each activity up either as a symbol with the word underneath or just the word if he's good at reading. When each activity is finished, remove it from the timetable, (get him to do this) and put it in a 'finished' box or tray. I'd be wary of timing things precisely as if things didn't go to exact plan, you may get a problem.

If he's having a 'moment' take him to look at the timetable. Somehow it's better if it's the timetable telling him to do something, visually, rather than you telling him. HTH

We use a yellow and red card system similar to footballers. Dd3 gets shown a yellow card for unacceptable behaviour, if she continues she gets a red and loses screen time or computer time.

For aggression we go straight to red but she is older and has a clear understanding of what aggression is.

When we show her the card we give her a very clear explanation of what she has done that we dont like.

I also use the MAKATON sign for stop both with Dd3 and at work. When children are being a bit bonkers or having a paddy etc we sign and say "Stop" very clearly but without shouting.

You could even try a small card with a sad face on one side and a happy face on the other, to try to help him to understand that his behaviour is upsetting you. It isn't easy and it doesnt work overnight but I am sure with some visuals in place your DS will start to respond.

We love our visual timetable btw.

Good luck

I would be wary of being too specific as I agree you will then get problems if things don't run to time.

First and then works well for us. DS has never been that bothered by routine and we have been wary of going down the road of a specific timetable - we war told to do the very specific one and finished box at the outset but felt that would give DS a new set of rituals!

When we wanted to teach days of the week we introduced a timetable with just morning and afternoon - so he knew if he was in school or not etc.

I would consider timetables for specific independent skills e.g. washing etc

Even if you do decide to introduce a more detailed daily timetable I would from the start make sure you also teach that things can change and practise this e.g. swap things on the timetable so that you are teaching some flexibility. Obviously start by introducing a change to something he is not that bothered by e.g. which shop you go to - and work up to changing e.g. what will eat for dinner. But if you stick to it rigidly you will reinforce the lack of flexibility.

My ds sounds very similar to yours. I've been taking photos of him doing things like cleaning his teeth, turning off light swithches, the dirty wash basket, his alarm clock at bedtime/get up time, and I've printed them and put them around the house in the nessecary places. It's a working progress, but we'll get there.

thanks for all advice i bought him a watch yesterday he seems to like it although i am getting what time is it now mum every few mins! or dad what time is it? gets answer, mum guess what time it is? i know ds i heard him too! hopefully thats just a novelty and will wear off soon lol

ive decided to go with more specific skills like bedtime routine and hygiene ive figured that if i do a daily timetable and put set times he will constatnly be checking im doing it and if i dont put times he will still keep saying when am i doing x next how long is that etc as happens now, the boy is obsessed with times.

As for behaviour its really difficult as ds is not often specifically naughty more generally annoying that sounds terrible but he seems to annoy everyone as hes VERY attention seeking ALL the time he is always acting silly, silly words, silly faces, trying to climb on me dh or extended family will spend their entire visit climbing or sitting on their lap and trying to rough and tumble play, talks to neighbours if they pass, strangers if they park near the house, checkout operators etc, trying to get him to stop is difficult repeated telling he just ignores until we really shout if hes not doing this hes talking to himself about nonsence constantly and dosnt seem to get the concept of 'talk in your head' or asking for food, hes so emotional hes either manically happy and hyper, angry and grumping or crying over little things if i try red card system i have no idea what the consequences could be as ive tried everything and it makes no difference

TBH, latter, it was quite a long time before I found Dd3's currency but even without it the yellow and red cards let Dd3 know that she is behaving in an unacceptable way.

It also gives me the opportunity to explain clearly what it is that she is doing wrong.

Just being shown the card is often enough to stop Dd3.

We do our morning routine board without set times, each instruction eg. get dressed, brush teeth, have breakfast is on a seperate little laminated card and when she has done each step she takes it off the board and puts it in an envelope.