Structured tasks

Students with autism benefit from visual structure when completing new and familiar tasks. Verbal instructions are difficult for an individual with autism to process and retain as language is transient, whereas visual structure is non-transient, will increase clarity of the task and removes the need for the student to process verbal language. Importantly, it also increases independence and generalisation skills.

Aims of structured tasks

To remove/reduce the need for verbal instruction
To provide visual clarification of what is to be done
To show when a task is complete
To increase independence
To increase participation
To reduce anxiety
To teach target skills and
To help with generalisation

Structured tasks should not be limited to the independent work desk or to one-to-one teaching times; structure should be extended to all daily activities in all settings.

Examples of structured tasks