Welcome to my "Ask Me Anything" blog post series!
I answer lots of questions on my social media channels, and it makes sense to share this information (anonymously!) in case it is useful for others, too.
"Hi, I work in a mainstream reception class. There's a girl in the class who, when she sees the 'now' symbol, has to act on it immediately. For instance, after dinner we go outside and play, but I have to wait till the class has been to the toilet, got coats, etc, but she is very much ‘I need to go and I'm going now’ or she gets so worked up."
The “now” should be immediate, and the “next” should be given the instant the “now” task is completed.
Maybe break the tasks down so what you are wanting her to do is shown as “now” even if it is “wait for the timer” for example.
Using visual cues like timers and/or countdowns could be helpful to slow her down and give her a concrete visual indication of how long tasks last.
Just see this as a promise and always finish the task as soon as the timer or countdown is finished, without any flexibility. It's important that she learns that this is concrete and predictable.
There is info on countdowns in the images of this product here.
I hope that helps! If you have any other questions, let me know.
*I am not a doctor or medical professional, so for some questions, you might want to contact your GP, the National Autistic Society, or the NHS.
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