We are big time bossy pants. We are. It’s in our nature. We can’t help it sometimes. Think about how often you give a verbal direction in your classroom. Almost constantly.

Think about all of the things you say on a daily basis and make sure you have visuals to match. Remember all the great info Sarah shared with us yesterday. Our poor little babies are like American tourists hitting up Tokyo for the first time. They are freaken lost and we are here to guide them on their way.

You will be so busy printing, laminating, and posting you visuals that you may think your job is over after that. No such luck, my dear friends. Once your room is beautifully labeled and the visual prize of perfection, you now need to teach your students how to use those visuals and what those visuals mean. The little Boardmaker conehead man isn’t a miracle worker. Visuals need to be taught.

Model and use them in situation.

During your very busy school day, use those visuals. Grab them off the wall, point to them, and talk about what you are doing.

Only post the visuals you need and use. Limit the space of other distracting items. Save the inspirational poster about leadership for another time. That poster would look perfect in your recycling bin. You want to make sure your students can find and utilize the visuals that are actually functional. So once your room is labeled and visuals are posted where you need them – start scripting away how to use them and why so your hard work pays off and your students can now navigate their new environment!

Snag our Visuals for an Autism Classroom and Labels for an Autism Classroom by clicking pictures below: