Leveled Puzzle Work Tasks

Chris over at Autism Classroom News had me worried with all her recent website changes, I was concerned Workbasket Wednesday was a thing of the past. . but lucky for us it is still going and on even better platform than before!  After you check out my leveled puzzle work tasks, be sure to head over to Autism Classroom Resources (formally known as Autism Classroom News) to see all the amazing things Chris has going on as she never fails to impress!

Let's get started...
Puzzles can be excellent workbasket items and with a little bit of tweaking they can even be leveled!  For example, I purchased four wooden alphabet puzzles from Target (for $1.00 each) several years ago and made four different tasks!

For level 1, I glued the puzzle pieces for rows one through three into the puzzle so the students would only have to put in the last row of pieces to complete the puzzle.  Then for level 2, I glued in rows one and two, for level 3 I glued in row one and for level four I didn't glue any rows in.  NOTE: I glued from the top down starting with the letter A rather than gluing from the bottom up starting with Z so student could see themselves complete the puzzle as they put the last few pieces in instead of putting the beginning few pieces in. 

If you look closely you will see Velcro on each of the pieces the children are asked to put in.  Velcro, you ask, but why the pieces are already inset into the puzzle? The truth is, I Velcro the puzzle pieces into almost all of my puzzles. If I am using them as a work task it makes them more permanent. When the students are finished with the work task and slide or dump it into the all done basket the pieces stay and the work is in tact.  Also I am less likely to loose the pieces and my students who are fiddlers or stimmers can be more successful.

Don't have the alphabet puzzles I purchased from Target five plus years ago... NO WORRY!  I picked up these alphabet puzzles (one upper case and one lower case) at the Dollar Tree just last week.   

They can be leveled work tasks without any glue or Velcro! 

To make the foam lowercase puzzle into a work task, I simply hot glued the base to a piece of cardboard and a bowl to the left hand side of the base.  Because the pieces are inset and they fit so snug to the base, I can simply take out the ones you want the child to put in depending on their individual level and ability.

The uppercase space puzzle is even easier!  It has it's own cardboard backing so I can simply take out the pieces I want the child to put in and I have it leveled to the child's needs.

NOTE:  A lot of students learn the letters in their name first, you can use these puzzles to support students in learning the letters of their name by simply taking only those letters out of the puzzle for the students to work on.

You can also take a photo of the completed puzzle and use it for a visual of what the finished puzzle looks like.  I packing taped my visual to the edge of the puzzle and folded it under the puzzle so if a student is struggling I can simply flip the visual up for additional support and even point to it as needed!

Need more. . . I also found these two puzzles at the Dollar Tree.

These also fit snug to the base and have a cardboard backing making them easily leveled!  However I took these puzzles one step further by purchasing two of each, one to keep whole and the other to cut apart into mini puzzles. 

 

For some students even when you only have a few pieces out for them to put in it is overwhelming.  Visually they are not ready for a puzzle of this size regardless of the number of pieces they are expected to put in.  By cutting a puzzle apart into smaller parts students can experience the puzzle in a successful way and then you can build up from there by presenting them different levels of puzzles as they gain skill. 

That is it for now!  Happy puzzle leveling until next time,
Lindy

Work Baskets and Fun Actvities for Boys!

I'm Back!  Sorry for my absence, I have been busy with my 'real job' lately.   That being said we have some great things in store for Early Childhood Educators in Kansas for the 2015-2016 school year be watching the TASN-ATBS Facebook page for more details Kansans!

Now on with today's post, what better way to start back up then with some Dollar Tree inspired work tasks and fun activities for boys!  All you need is to purchase the Dollar Tree items in the photo below: an Ultimate Spiderman board book and piggy bank, toy skateboards, 2 3 packs of match box cars, Easter egg cars and black ponytail holders.

Task 1: Spiderman Put In

 

 

For this one I used the play money that was used in the previous work task post about play money. 

Task 2: Spiderman Put On

 

 

We like to pretend that the black ponytail holders are spider webs.
A great activity for strengthening little hands:)

Task 3: Car Assembly

 

 

This tasks might be hard to come by the cars are actually Easter eggs. 

Write yourself a note to pick them up next spring. 

Task 4: Superhero Colors

 

 

Print page nine from this free Teachers Pay Teachers product and use scissors, packing tape, cardboard and Velcro to make this work task book.

And now for the activities! 

Activity 1: Skateboard Prepositions

 

 

Print page three and four from this free Teachers Pay Teachers product and place page three in a cardboard box lid. 

Have students push the skateboard across the sheet and then use the aided language board below to help them describe where the skateboard landed.  For example: "The red skateboardstopped behind the pig."  For similar activities for sports lovers click here!

 

Activity 2: Color Car Listening Activity

 

Print the cards on pages five through eight from this Teachers Pay Teachers product. 

Then use a Velveeta cheese box, scissors, a marker, and black duct tape to make a brown and black garage. 

 

 

Next use the cards shown in the examples below as a listening activity.  Read the text on each card without showing the student, then after they put the colored cars in the garage show them the card you read and let them lift the cardboard garage up to see if they listened correctly. 

(This game is played similar to the princess puzzle memory game from the girlie work basket post.)

 

You can do cards with both the black and brown garages to make it more difficult for higher students or even call out the numbers on the cars rather than the colors.

 

  

That's it for now!  But if you need a few more oldies but goodies that little boys with love click here:  Sports Sorting and Wiffle Ball Fun!

 

Best wishes! Until next time,

Lindy

Girlie Tasks for Work Basket Wednesday!

I have to say, I was some what of a giddy little school girl putting this month's tasks and work baskets together. Being the mom of two boys and the teacher of many preschool boys with special needs, it was a dream to shop for 'girlie' things at Dollar Tree!

So without further ado, I give you 4 girlie work basket ideas with 12 task variations.  Just purchase these 7 Dollar Tree items: a pink and purple tea set, fabric pony tail holders, day of the week princess rings, pink and purple party favor rings, a Strawberry Shortcake piggy bank, a foam number princess puzzle and a set of two 5 inches Styrofoam circles--plus plastic heart barrettes that are not pictured.   

 

I added Velcro coins to the pink and purple tea set to create an assembly task that works on matching with one to one correspondence.

 

You can create six variations of this task by adding letters, numbers, shapes or colors using a Vis-à-vis marker or permanent marker to each plate and each cup for matching practice.  TIP: the permanent marker obviously stays on better, if you wish to use permanent you are still able to change out the concepts by cleaning the tea set with oops cleaner or nail polish remover. 

 

 

Next up a simple put in task with Strawberry Shortcake!

 

And 2 variations for Miss Shortcake using pony tail holders, 2 strips of colored felt, and plastic heart barrettes also from Dollar Tree but unfortunately not pictured above in items purchased. 

 

Task one: use fine motor skills to stretch pony tails holders over the canister for Strawberry Shortcake hair.

 

Task two: cut out two strips of felt and stick them in the slit in the top of the canister.  Then have students put barrettes on the felt using fine motor and sorting skills. 

 

 

You can also do a two step direction put in task by having an all done can and the bowl of barrettes.  "close the barrette then put in all done."

 

 

Next up a ring put in--  Either errorless with one bowl of rings and one container for putting in or a sorting put in task with both the pink and purple rings using the color ring labels that you can find on my Teachers Pay Teachers store. 

 

Variation: add a popsicle stick to the top of the container and have students put on instead of putting  in. 

 

 

Need more?  use the day of the week princess rings and circle Styrofoam for practicing one to one correspondence.

 

Or print the day of the week ring visual, and circle with the days of the week on it from my Teachers Pay Teachers store.  Cut them out and glue the circle to the 5 inch Styrofoam circle. Then have the student assign the rings to the correct day of the week based on the visual.

 

 

For readers, print the visual list to assign the rings to the correct day of the week. 

 

 

And one last activity before I sign off, it is not a work task put instead a fun memory game using the foam numbered princess puzzles, and calling cards from my Teachers Pay Teachers store. Cut the cards out and ask students to put the puzzle piece together in the numbered order you called out. Then turn the card over to the let them to check to see if they were right.  You can watch a video below of my son and I playing the game.  He wants you to be sure to know, he is not a girl though:)

 

 



 

There are a variety of levels in the card set, 3 numbers in order, 4 numbers in order, 3 random numbers and 4 random numbers.   

 

So there you have it, 4 girlie work tasks, with 12 variations-- PLUS a fun memory game!  Be sure to come back next month when I get back in my element and share work baskets and tasks for boys:)

 

But in the meantime, do you have any ideas for making the foam princess puzzle into a work task?  I came up with the fun memory game in lieu of a workbasket because I could think of a good workbasket but I know there has got to be one out there for these cool puzzle pieces.  Please post your ideas below.  (Dollar Tree has boy versions of this puzzle too:)

 

Happy Dollar Tree Shopping and Workbasket Making!

 

-Lindy 

'Tree'mendous Treasures: Sports Review Boards

I am super excited to share the second post in my 'Tree'mendous Treasures series!

 

All you need is this product from my teachers pay teachers store and these sports shooters from the party favor section at Dollar Tree for a DOLLAR of course!!

 

 

Print the review boards you wish to work on with your students.  There is a basketball court, soccer field and baseball field for colors, shapes, numbers and letters. 

 

 



Simply find a box lid or cardboard flat 9 by 12 inches or cut one down to this size, add the printable of your choice and shoot away!  Have your students take turns shooting the ball and labeling the concept they landed on. 

 

If you have students who are nonverbal or do not label concepts with consistency, you can use the aided language boards below to help students communicate what they landed on.

 

 

If you have students who are beyond colors, shapes, numbers and letters, print the blank basketball court, soccer field and baseball field, and laminate and program it for your own needs.  I use a vis-a-vis marker or permanent marker and Oops cleaner to reuse the pages for various concepts. 

 

 

 

Students can also work on prepositions with the use of this page:

 

 

and the corresponding aided language board:

 





 

Or even better they can use these review boards to work on specific concepts: in and out, inside and outside, and on and off. 

 

 

Then communicate where it landed and graph their answers.

 

 

Need a new work task?  Bonus the sports shooters can be used for an assembly task:

 

 

Or for a sorting task (either errorless with a lid for the ball tokens or without the lid for more of a challenge):

 

And there you have it, 1 party favor from the Dollar Tree with over 25 ways to play!

 

'TREE' MENDOUS for many learners!