Play Schedules

Lots of kids on the spectrum need a little help structuring their free play. One way to do this is to create play schedules, photos of each step of how to build or create with the toys. There is more information on play in the posts linked below.

Each of the toys pictured in this journal entry had a corresponding play schedule.  Mikey would take a bin off the shelf.  Each bin was clear and had a photo on the front of the finished build.  Inside the bin, Mikey would find the toy pieces and a binder.  The binder would show him a photo of every step of the build. It could also include some imaginative play directions like moving the train along the tracks or having the dinosaur ROAR! Each binder would end with a ‘clean up’ page to remind him to take the toy apart and put it all away for next time. Since Mikey could read, his just had the words ‘clean up’ but you could also just have a photo of all the pieces back in the bin with the binder if your child doesn’t read yet.

If your child even struggles to pick out a toy, you can use the photos on the front of the bins.  Make an extra copy and put Velcro on the back.  Then, you can put maybe three photos on a board to help guide your child through a few play activities. Then they have a ‘list’ of activities and a binder for each activity and they can use those tools to play on their own. Just make sure you vary it every time so that they know that playing with toys in any order is totally fine.

For more on play, click the links below.