Another Take on Personal Organizers

Many people carry date books or personal digital assistants (PDAs) to keep track of daily tasks, errands and appointments. These devices lessen the stress and tension of trying to remember all the details of our busy lives.

Pat Shedden, who teaches a class of six autistic children at Queensville Public School in Queensville, Ontario, has created similar devices for her visually oriented, anxious students. "We can visually show them their day," she excitedly explains. "Our organizers provide a visual, concrete presentation of what's going to happen next - something that the children are often quite anxious about - and allow them to plan and predict their day."

Shedden's personal organizers are made of firm, thick cardboard about 35 cm long by 24 cm wide. The cardboard is scored in half horizontally so it can stand on the child's desk, and is laminated and divided into sections. The outside shows the different time periods of the day, while the inside stores small icons symbolizing all the possible activities of the day.

The icons are standard picture-symbols created with BoardMaker, a program used to create symbols for speech boards, Shedden explains. (Speech boards have touch-sensitive panels and speech capability, and are used by those who have difficulty speaking.) Shedden and her educational assistants attach icons to the appropriate spot on the personal organizer with Velcro so the child can visually review and anticipate each event of his day.

"This idea of personal organizers isn't new," comments Shedden, "but by making them small and easily re-arrangeable with Velcro, the children can carry them to their classes and use them to break down tasks and events into as many small actions as necessary." By lessening their stress and anxiety, the personal organizers allow the children to relax and learn.