Support processing and planning
Suggestion for implementing the strategy ‘Using whole-class strategies to support students with speech, language and communication needs in years 1–8’
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Use visual timetables
Use visual timetables
Linda Ojala uses visuals in a whole range of contexts across her classroom.
They are a key part of supporting students to know what is happening and organise themselves.
Support attention, focus and independence
Support attention, focus and independence
- Break learning into short, focused and clearly defined tasks.
- Vary the level of demand from task to task.
- Provide clear instructions that are visually displayed and can be easily returned to.
- Vary the level of support as necessary and teach buddies how to provide support.
- Provide a variety of technologies to support learning (for example, an iPad or a computer).
- Create an activity box for times when the student needs a change of activity or time out.
Model planning and thinking with mind maps
Model planning and thinking with mind maps
Demonstrate how to organise ideas using mind maps.
Increase their effectiveness by using colour, symbols and images alongside text.
![5183 [mind-map-Barrett-Discovery.jpg]](https://inclusive-live-storagestack-assetstorages3bucket-3uty0hejzw6u.s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/public/inclusive-education/example-images/mind-map-Barrett-Discovery__ScaleMaxWidthWzEwODZd.jpg)
Support thinking
Support thinking
Tools and approaches to help students to recognise patterns, critical features, big ideas and relationships.
- Explain new concepts clearly; take the time to order or sequence information simply and clearly.
- Reinforce abstract concepts with visual and concrete materials.
- Use a mixture of telling, explaining and directing to convey information and instructions.
- Highlight patterns, critical features, big ideas and relationships using visuals, mind maps, 3-D manipulatives, outlines, flow charts and real objects.
- Give students multiple opportunities to engage with new ideas and concepts.
- Use mind maps to brainstorm ideas and make connections.
- Support group and class discussions with visual annotations to prompt later recall of key ideas.
- Offer students a variety of graphic organisers and flow charts to support thinking in all curriculum areas.
Useful resources
Useful resources
Representation
This series of pages lists free tools, with details about each option. Use them for inspiration as you seek to increase the number of ways information is represented.
Publisher: British Columbia Ministry of Education
Free graphic organiser templates
Free graphic organiser templates in pdf format.
Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
Next steps
More suggestions for implementing the strategy “Helpful classroom strategies years 1-8”:
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Current page Support processing and planning
Return to the guide “Speech, language and communication needs ”
How to use this site
Guide to Index of the guide: Speech, language & communcation needs
Understand:
Strategies for action:
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Identify needs and how to provide supportShow suggestions for Identify needs and how to provide support
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Key areas to supportShow suggestions for Key areas to support
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Helpful classroom strategies years 1-8Show suggestions for Helpful classroom strategies years 1-8
- Support participation and confidence
- Present information in different ways
- Support processing and planning
- Provide options to create, learn and share
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Helpful classroom strategies years 9-13Show suggestions for Helpful classroom strategies years 9-13