Structured Teaching using the TEACCh Method (Treatment and Education of Autistic and related Communication-handicapped Children)

1. STRUCTURED TEACHING
TEACCH
Treatment and Education of Autistic and related
Communication-handicapped Children
with TEACHER JAX

2. Study the list below

3. Write down as many words you can
recall from your memory.

5. SESSION OBJECTIVES
At the end of the session, participants will…
1. Understand the reasons why structured
teaching is an effective teaching strategy for
children with developmental disabilities.
2. Be familiar with the basic applications, at home
and in school, of the four major components of
structured teaching:
 Physical Structure
 Schedules
 Work System
 Task Organization

6. What are the characteristics
of our special children
that pose challenges
in teaching them?

7. COGNITIVE-PERCEPTUAL DIFFICULTIES
• Problems of comprehension
• Poor verbal expression
• Attention deficit
• Disorganization

8. COGNITIVE-PERCEPTUAL DIFFICULTIES
• Deficits in auditory processing
• Marked sensory preferences & dislikes
• Poor memory for non-special interest

9. COGNITIVE-PERCEPTUAL DIFFICULTIES
• Abstraction difficulties/concept of time
• Problems with generalizing information
• Difficulty with change

10. RELATIVE PATTERNS OF
COGNITIVE STRENGTHS
• Special interests
• Processing visual information
• Rote memory skills

11. PRIMARY PURPOSE of
STRUCTURED TEACHING
Improve adaptation thru…
• Improving level of skill using special
interests
• Modifying or structuring the environment
to accommodate learning deficits

12. WHAT IS STRUCTURED TEACHING ?
A system of organizing…
• Space
• Change of activities
with schedules
• Work/Study systems to
facilitate learning process
• Material organization
to promote independence

13. STRUCTURED LEARNING HELPS CHILD TO…
• Understand
• Organize
• Become Independent
• Be Calm
• Learn Better

14. STRUCTURED TEACHING
Not a curriculum, but the framework
in which vocational, social and living skills are taught.

15. 4 MAJOR COMPONENTS OF
STRUCTURED TEACHING
1. Physical Structure
2. Daily Schedule
3. Individual Work Systems
4. Task Organization

16. PHYSICAL STRUCTURE
Physical lay-out of the room or space
for teaching, working, leisure or
living activities
Concept of where activities and
functions take place

17. Physical Structure helps...
• As a “prosthetic” device
that will help the child to
achieve independence
• Clarify what is expected
and is a form of behavior
management
• Replace inappropriate
routines

18. Structuring the Physical Activity
1. Consistent, visually clear
areas and boundaries for
specific activities
2. Minimize visual and auditory
distractions
3. Safe physical structure

19. 1. Visually clear areas and boundaries
• Helps the child know what is expected
when sent to an area
• Helps the child understand where area
begins and ends

20. Materials used as markers
• Rugs, Mats, Carpets
• Shelves
• Furniture arrangement
• Partitions/Dividers
• Tape on floor

21. What materials were
used as boundaries?

23. AT HOME 

24. 2. Minimize Visual and Auditory Distractions
• Helps student focus on the most relevant
aspects of their tasks – on the concepts and
not the details

25. How to minimize distractions
• Minimal use of wall décor or blank walls
• No distracting mirrors/windows
• Accessible materials
• Use window shades
• Use dividers
• Remove/Reduce clutter
• Provide adequate space

28. 3. Safe Physical Structure
• Away from exits
• Away from multiple exits
• Safety factor

30. Individual
Workstation
Independent
Workstation
Independent
Workstation
Circle / Group Time
Station

31. Considerations for Work areas
1. Provide space for individual & group work
2. Located in least distractible settings
3. Marked and clear boundaries
4. Consistent work areas for students who need them
5. Teacher has easy visual access to all work areas
6. Spaces for students to put finished work
7. Work materials centralized and accessible to work areas
8. Irrelevant materials are away from specific areas
9. Play or leisure areas as large as possible
10. Remove unused materials, toys and games

32. INDIVIDUALIZE
• Developmental considerations (age)
• Individualization (needs, interests)
• Some will need more physical structure
than others
• Structures can be faded

33. Learning Centers
• Learning centers are independent stations
set up throughout the classroom where
children can go to actually engage in some
learning activity.
• They could be used as:
> Filler Activity
> Interactive Group Activity
> Subject Work Areas
> Work Stations

34. Listening Center
Exploration Center
ADL Center

35. Crash/Quiet Area
Reading Nook

36. In determining Physical Structure…
1. Assess your students’ needs.
2. Determine the activities that are needed
to address them.
3. Determine required equipment, furniture
for each activity.
4. Assign areas for each activity taking note
of space requirements, structure of the
room and the flow of activities.

37. Assess your students’ needs
Name BLS Self-Help Communication Social Skills Motor Skills Cognitive
A
Age 4
Looks when name
is called but
attention fleeting,
easily distracted;
Not toilet trained
Removes but not
dons clothes
independently;
uses spoon but not
fork to eat
Able to follow one-
step simple
instructions within
context;
Engages in parallel
play; no
aggressive
behaviors
Hyperactive; age-
appropriate gross
motor skills
Sorts by color
only
B
Age 6
Sits for duration of
activity but
attention fleeting;
Compliant; motor
imitation poor
Runs to toilet when
he needs to
urinate, unable to
tell others; needs
prompts to
undress/dress;
spoon-fed
Can speak in 3-word
sentences; often
prompted to
respond; follows 2-
step related
commands
Does not initiate
interaction;
engages in parallel
play only;
prompted to greet
Hypoactive with no
gross motor deficits
Can read
simple
sentences;
comprehensio
n has yet to be
tested; can
count, add 1-
digit nos.
C
Age 7
Eye contact fleeting
but complies w/
instructions;
imitates some not
all movements; sits
for 5-8 mins.
Eats only fried
chicken; can dress
self up but needs
constant prompts
to complete; toilet
trained
Follows one-step
commands if/when
attending; able to
label familiar items;
does not respond to
questions
Engages in turn-
taking activities
but only for short
while; prompted
to greet
Hypo-active w/ self-
stimulatory
behaviors

38. Identify activities to address common needs
Activities B L S Self
Care
Comm Social
Skills
Motor
Skills
Cognitive
Circle time √ √ √ √
Toileting √
Dressing Up √ √
Eating √ √ √
Waiting time √ √
Work time √ √
Rote tasks √ √ √
Reading time √ √ √
Movement Time √ √ √ √
Arts & Crafts √ √ √ √ √
Facilitated play -
dyad
√ √ √ √ √

40. Play
Area
Work w/
Teacher
Circle
Time
Rote
Area
Eating
Area

42. Transition Area
• Where all schedules are
placed for students to
know their next activities
• Provides consistency for
the changes that occur
during the day

45. AT HOME 

46. TEAMWORK
Create a classroom layout for your class.

47. DAILY SCHEDULE
Tells student the sequence of events
during the day
Concept of when and what the
activity will be
Teaches flexibility

48. Daily Schedule helps…
• Minimize problems of impaired memory
and attention
• Reduce problems with time and
organization
• Compensate for problems with receptive
language
by…
• Making daily events predictable
• Decreasing anxiety by showing what will
happen next
• Organizing daily events

49. Why Schedule?
• Make transitioning independently between
activities easier.
• Increase self-motivation by visual reminders of
“work first, then play”
• Increase compliance with the low preference
activity knowing that there is something special
at the end of the "chore.“
• Can prevent negative behaviors and get the
child back on track
• Allow children learn to follow directions—a
necessary skill for functioning in adult setting

50. INDIVIDUALIZE
What is the level of communication?
• Object representations
• Color codes
• Photos, pictures, stick figures
• Numbers
• Words

51. Types of Schedules
• Object Sequence
• Single Picture
• Picture/Photograph
Cards
• Written List with
Pictures
• Written List

52. Types of Schedules
• General classroom
schedule
• Individual student
schedule

53. How to Make Schedule Boards
• Arrange top to bottom or left to right
• Can be manipulated to indicate “finish”
• Balance between activities

54. Top to bottom or left to right

55. Can be
manipulated to
indicate “finish”

56. Balance between
activities

57. AT HOME 

58. Schedules are not faded from our students.
These are tools for life-long independence.
Schedule design grows with the child.

59. INDIVIDUAL WORK
Create a general schedule for your child.

60. BREAK TIME
Strike a conversation with your seatmate.
Ask about her next vacation trip!
Or the upcoming great movies to watch!
Smile.

61. INDIVIDUAL WORK SYSTEMS
Systematic way to accomplish tasks.
Informs students what they should do,
how much to do, when they are finished.
Key tools for sequencing, independence
and generalization

62. Work Systems help…
• Teach specific skills in an organized and
structured way
• Teach flexibility by using the same
materials for different tasks
• Inform child what to do while in the area
• Increase productivity
• Clarify meaning of finished and teachers’
expectations therefore minimize frustration

63. These tasks are accessed left to right.
When the child completes an item,
it goes into the "finished" box.

67. Individual Work System answers:
1. What work?
• Contents of work
boxes visible
2. How much work?
• Number of study
boxes on the left

68. What work?
How much work?

69. What work?
How much work?

70. Individual Work System answers:
3. Concept of finished
Work boxes processed
and moved to finished
box on the right
4. What happens next?
Sense of closure,
rewards, next activity

71. What’s next?

72. Check Schedule is "next."

73. Developmental Considerations
• Objects and materials
• Matching cues
(color, shape, alphabet, numbers)
• Written system
• Basic learning skills
(sitting, focus, attention)

75. This work system is presented in order and does not
require that the child gets out of seat
in order to retrieve the tasks.

78. Rote/Independent Work
• Chains of activities that children are taught
to complete from a schedule.
• All tasks that go into a rote work have been
taught to the independent level.
• Individually designed, taking into account
the strengths, weaknesses and interests of
the child.

79. AT HOME 

80. TASK ORGANIZATION
Organization of materials that provides
visually clear guidelines on positional
relationship between parts
Shows how to complete a task

81. Task Organization
• Makes it easier for your
students to understand
the task requirements
• Develops self direction &
organization.

82. What is Visual OCI?
• Visual Organization
• Visual Clarity
• Visual Instructions

83. Visual Organization
• Organizing materials
and space to
modulate the
sensory input
• Container
organization
• Limiting the area

84. Materials should have specific
locations for storage.

85. Small objects should be kept in bins that are
labelled with photographs and text.

86. Jigs may be used to help children
find where toys belong at clean
up time.

87. AT HOME 

88. Visual Clarity
• Highlighting the
important information
• Clarifying the relevant
concepts
• Emphasizing specific
parts of the instructions

89. Color coding
containers

90. Labeling items inside the container

91. Visual Instructions
• Visually tells student the
sequence to complete the
task
• Helps the child to combine
and organize a series of
elements to obtain the
desired outcome
• Used to make the activity
meaningful

92. .
.
Can you
see what
the task is?
Materials define the task.

93. Use picture jig
left to right

94. Top to bottom

95. Product
sample

96. AT HOME 

97. Visuals for
class “jobs”
Visual for one-on-one
area
Visual the shows
when students
can go into the
play area

98. Visual rules
for listening
Visual rules for computer

99. AT HOME 

100. AT HOME 

101. AT HOME 

102. Useful Formats
• Matching
• Sorting
• Sequencing
• Processing

103. Matching

104. Sorting

105. Sequencing
Processing

106. Useful Tips
Make it fun
Make it relevant
Keep it simple
Recycle
Research

107. Make it FUN!

109. Make it RELEVANT

111. Keep it SIMPLE
• No clutter, containerize
• Least distraction
• Organize

112. RECYCLE

113. Useful sites for ideas, materials
and printables
http://www.shoeboxtasks.com/
http://www.preschoolfun.com/pages/teacch.htm
http://www.practicalautismresources.com/suppo
rting-inclusion-with-structured-teaching
http://www.autismtasks.com/
http://www.tasksgalore.com/images/
http://www.theeducationcenter.com
http://www.readinga-z.com/

114. All 4 major components of
structured teaching represent
ENVIRONMENTAL
ACCOMODATIONS
to expressions of our children’s
learning deficits.

115. PHYSICAL STRUCTURE
The
PHYSICAL STRUCTURE
provides routines for location
of function and activity.

116. DAILY SCHEDULE
SCHEDULES
offer routines for
sequence
and activity changes.

117. WORK SYSTEMS
WORK SYSTEMS help to
form habits for learning
tasks, leisure activities
and routines from left to
right or top to bottom

118. TASK ORGANIZATION
TASK ORGANIZATION
provides visually clear
guidelines and systematic
approach to complete a
multitude of tasks.

119. All four encourage
PRODUCTIVE
use of our children’s affinity
for routines.

120. Positive routines can be generalized
Top to bottom
Left to right
Start and finish
First and then
Checking schedules
Using work systems

121. CONSISTENT enough to compensate
for problem solving deficiencies;
FLEXIBLE enough
to change or fade.

122. GOODLUCK AWESOME BUILDERS!
Thank you for Listening!