VISUAL CUES AND GESTURES:

WHOLE BRAIN INSTRUCTION

By: Shelby Wilbert

What is Visually Cued Instruction?

• “Visually cued instruction is a teaching method that uses objects or pictures as reminders and cues during learning activities, routines and transitions.”

• Great teaching strategy because it targets all learning styles.

• What kinds of things can be visual cues?• photographs

• drawings

• objects

• written words

• lists

Who can benefit from Visual Cued Instruction?• Visual cues work really well for students diagnosed with Autism

or Autism Spectrum Disorder.

• Why do they work well for students with Autism?• The main features of ASD are challenges in: interacting

socially, using language, and having limited interests or repetitive behaviors. Visual supports help in all three areas.

• Students with Autism:• don’t always understand social expectations, such as how to

start a conversation. Picture cards can help teach social skills.

• may find it hard to understand spoken instruction. Visuals can

help guide them through instruction and ease communication.

• sometimes act out when a schedule or routine changes. Visuals help reduce anxiety when changes occur and allows them to cope with the change.

Is Visual Cued Instruction just meant for children with Autism?

• If you are driving along on the road, how do you know when you are supposed to stop? • Stop signs and stop lights are visual cues we use in our everyday lives. We have been

conditioned to stop at a red light. With Whole Brain Instruction, you can teach your students visual cues or gestures that can be used in your instruction.

Is Visual Cued Instruction just meant for children with Autism?• How many of you write down your assignments in a planner of some

sort? Why do you do that?• A list or agenda can be used to help students know how the day will go.

• Visuals help jog our memory and can make things easier to remember.

STEPS FOR IMPLEMENTATION

Step 1: The teacher needs to decide on appropriate situations to use visual cues.

Directions

Step 1: The teacher needs to decide on appropriate situations to use visual cues.

Schedule

Step 1: The teacher needs to decide on appropriate situations to use visual cues.

Discipline

Step 1: The teacher needs to decide on appropriate situations to use visual cues.

Labeling

Step 2: Teach students/Teacher Modeling

• It is important to model it for your students.

• For example, Noise-O-Meter, you need to demonstrate to your students what the noise levels are. You can’t expect all students to understand it without a demonstration.

• When working with children with Autism, it is best to show them these examples when they are already calm, so as not to upset them.

Step 3: Practice/Implement

• The main thing I noticed when watching videos of visual cues or gestures is that the children all have the hand signals learned perfectly. I imagine that it took lots of rehearsal at the beginning before it went smoothly.

• Allow students to teach their shoulder partner. Research shows that learning is retained longer if you can tell it to someone else.

Problems that may occur…

• The possibility of having substitute teachers or para-educators in the room.

• I think it could throw the kids off if the teacher isn’t familiar with the hand signals.

•Example from Lakeside.

• It could be time consuming to constantly be making new charts or picture cards.

WHOLE BRAIN INSTRUCTION

Demonstration

What is Whole Brain Teaching?• “Whole Brain Teaching is an approach designed toward maximizing student engagement, and focusing on the way the brain is really designed to learn.”• “It is an integrated method combining

effective classroom management and

academically sound approaches to student engagement that are effective with a wide

range of student learning populations vetted

through 15 years of classroom application.

From this research and experimentation

Whole Brain Teaching was born.”

Whole Brain Teaching: The Big Seven

1. The 5 Rules• The five rules are meant to be rehearsed in class over and

over again and have gestures to go with them. When they are, 7 areas of the brain is engaged.

• These areas are the:• prefrontal cortex (reasoning)

• Broca’s area (speaking)

• Wernicke’s area (listening)

• limbic system (emotions)

• hippocampus (moves information from short to

long term)

• visual cortex (processes visual information)

• motor cortex (movement)

Whole Brain Teaching: The Big SevenLet’s Practice!

• 1. Follow directions quickly. • make your hand shoot forward like a fish

• 2. Raise your hand and ask for permission to speak. • raise your hand, then pull it down next to your head and make a talking

motion.

• 3. Raise your hand for permission to leave your seat. • raise your and, and then make a little walking figure with your index and

middle finger

• 4. Make smart choices. • tap one finger to your temple as you say each word

• 5. Keep your dear teacher happy. • hold up each thumb and index finger out like an “L” framing your face;

bob your head back and forth with each word and smile really big!

Whole Brain Teaching: The Big Seven

2. Class Yes• Attention getter• Same tone of voice as teacher

3. Hands and Eyes• Students snap to attention• Eyes on teacher, hands in lap• Teacher gives piece of

information

4. Teach-OK!• Clap Twice and say “Teach!”• Students clap twice and say

“OK!”

5. Switch• Teacher yells switch while

students are talking to their partner so that the other partner has a chance to talk

6. Mirror• “Class! Yes! Mirror! Mirror!”

Speak briefly using gestures while students copy you. “Clap twice, Teach! Ok!”

7. Scoreboard• T-chart for teacher and

students• Keep within 3 at a time (not

too many smileys or frowneys)

WHOLE BRAIN INSTRUCTION

Demonstration

Example

QUESTIONS?

Resources:

• Powerpoint: https://www.autismspeaks.org/docs/sciencedocs/atn/visual_supports.pdf

• Powerpoint:http://archives.gadoe.org/DMGetDocument.aspx/Using_Visual_Cues_to_Improve_Clsrm_Instruction_for_Young_Child_w_Develop_Delays.pdf?p=6CC6799F8C1371F62A8A0CC1174F95E5EA8753C85CC78B60B39C404DEEA2FC6B

• News Article: http://www.dispatch.com/content/stories/local/2013/10/28/language-teachers-use-visual-cues-to-engage-students.html

• Blog:

http://agendreau.weebly.com/visually-cued-instruction.html

• Whole Brain Teaching:

http://www.commontothecore.com/2012/07/the-whole-brain-teaching-big-7.html