Relieve your child's anxiety with a visual schedule

Have you ever tried to transition your child from playtime to not playtime? How did it go? Quite often, the answer to the second question is “not well.” One reason for this is the sudden change for the child. You might have known playtime was coming to an end for several minutes, but in the child’s view, it was a complete surprise. Even if you told them, “Playtime is almost over.” It does not always register in their brains, and if it does, it leaves their brain within seconds.

Most young children respond better to visual communication than spoken language. They see a visual representing the change. They see one visual of their current activity coming to an end and another visual representing the activity they are transitioning to. Their brains register it and remember it more consistently, and they know what is coming up next. This type of schedule, often referred to as a “First, Then” schedule, relieves anxiety and helps transitions occur more smoothly.


"First, Then" schedules, along with more complex visual schedules, can most easily be created with the Viz Kids app. Simply record your statement, “First, go to the bathroom, and then we’ll go to the park.” The Viz Kids app creates a visual that your child will be able to understand and respond to. Less anxiety, less meltdowns. Try the app for free! Download the app for iPhones and iPads here.

Popular posts from this blog

Give your child choices they can understand

Giving your child a choice doesn't just help them in the moment. It also instills agency, confidence and connection long-term. Here are three ways you can give children choices before they can understand spoken language or express themselves with words. 1. Use artifacts (aka the thing itself) Do you want the child to choose between dolls and blocks? Put a doll in one hand and a block in the other. Simple enough! And very effective! However, it's not always that simple. What if you're pushing them on the swing outside? You don't want to go inside to get the artifacts and leave your child alone. You also don't necessarily want to risk a meltdown by taking them from their swing to -- from the child's perspective -- who knows where?! Using artifacts are the best way to give choices when you have few choices and they're readily available. 2. Use a choice board Choice boards are usually about the size of a notebook with pictures of choices the child may want. Thes
Read more

Help your child process requests in 1...2...3

Children need time to process information, including directives like “Eat your vegetables” and “For the love of God, be quiet!” Whichever flavor of counting you prefer – “1, 2, 3” or “3, 2, 1” – it is a way to give them time to process. However, there are two reasons to do it differently. 1. Your child is strong willed If you’re finding that after counting to 2, you have to add 2 ½ before getting to 3, well, there is a better way. Have your child participate in the countdown. Using a visual communication app called Viz Kids, you can show them the countdown to the next activity or desired behavior and have them press the numbers so they feel some control. Also, unlike spoken language that is here in the moment and then gone, visuals are more permanent, and your child can see the countdown and your expectation and keep it in their working memory longer. 2. Your child is preverbal Children who cannot express themselves verbally yet, and may or may not understand language well, can usually
Read more

Why I created the Viz Kids app

Hi all, this blog post is a personal account as the title suggests. If you're looking for more information about communicating with visual supports or about how to use the Viz Kids app, there are entries being posted each month. This post is about my personal journey from not understanding children with autism to having a deep respect for them, and why it led me to become a special education teacher and creator of Viz Kids. In 2020 we found ourselves in a pandemic, and like many I was reevaluating how I would spend my time once the lock down was lifted. I was a work-from-home software developer, but I desperately wanted to have wonderful relationships like I had earlier in my career as a caregiver and teacher. I decided to learn sign language with the idea that I would adopt a Deaf child. How exciting would that be! A child that I can care for and share a secret language with appealed to me deeply. But seeing that the adoption process was going to take awhile, I decided to return t
Read more