1. Transition Skills and Interventions

2. What is a Transition? Transition = Change
A transition is a time period that exists between times allocated for learning activities.
Time it takes to move from one activity to another.
Examples:
Changing from one subject to another
Moving seats to or from a group activity
(Thomas J. Stacho, “My Students Have Trouble with Transitions…What Can I Do?” p. 4)
Studies have indicated that up to 25% of a school day may be spent engaged in transition activities
(Kara Hume, Ph.D., “Transition Time: Helping Individuals on the Autism Spectrum Move Successfully from One Activity to Another” p. 2).

3. Why are smooth transitions important?
Inefficient transition periods take away from instruction time.
Elementary
Beginning of the school day
Specials (gym, art, music)
Lunch
Recess
End of the school day
Middle/High School
Entering each class at the beginning of the period
Coming back from lunch if the period is broken up
Poorly managed transitions can result in poor student behaviors and an unsafe environment.
Often times asking children to move from one activity to another presents opportunities for disturbance, if not chaos, when not planned carefully. (Timothy J. Fox, “Effective Transition Techniques”, p. 10)

4. So what?
“If a teacher increases instructional time by just fifteen minutes a day through the use of more efficient routines and procedures, students in that classroom would gain forty-five hours of instructional time per year.” (Thomas J. Stacho, “My Students Have Trouble with Transitions…What Can I Do?” p. 4)
What would you do with an extra 45 hours of instruction?
45 HOURS

5. Who struggles with transitioning?
Students typically recognized as struggling with transitions are those on the Autism Spectrum.
“This may be due to a greater need for predictability, challenges in understanding of what activity will be coming next, or difficulty when a pattern of behavior is disrupted” (Hume p. 2)
In reality, any student who has poor attention, impulsivity, or hyperactivity can react poorly to transitioning in the classroom.
Several factors that complicate transitioning:
Difficulty sequencing information and recognizing relationships between steps of an activity can impact one’s ability to transition as well.
The ongoing activity may be more reinforcing to the individual than the activity he/she is moving to or a second activity may be more demanding or unattractive to the individual.
(Hume, p. 3)
The need to put closure to the current activity.
The need to focus upon and comprehend the teacher’s directions.
The distractions created by the movements and behaviors of peers.
The coordination of materials during transition periods by having to engage simultaneously in a number of activities.
(Fox, p. 10)

6. Procedures
routines
Explain the accepted process for carrying out a specific activity, such as walking in the hallway, using lockers, sharpening pencils, attending an assembly, and going to the restroom.
Continuously following procedures to form routines that help students meet expectations in the classroom.
Allow consistent process for common experiences such as transitions.

7. Transition Strategies
“Transition strategies are techniques are used to support individuals with ASD [or any student] during changes in or disruptions to activities, settings, or routines (Hume p. 2).”
When: Before, During, After
How: Verbal, Audible, Visual

8. Visual Timer Time Timer
Allows students to actually see how much time is left in an activity.
Because time is abstract, its hard for some students to interpret, especially if they struggle with time-telling skills. Making time visual makes it more meaningful.
(Hume, p. 3)
The only issue with this device is when the timer is within a student’s reach and they adjust the time without the teacher or staff member knowing. Be vigilant!

9. Visual Countdown
The visual countdown is similar to the visual timer, except that the time can be varied depending on what the student needs.

10. Visual Schedules
Visual schedules allow individuals to view an upcoming activity, have a better understanding of the sequence of activities that will occur, and increase overall predictability (Hume, p. 4).

11. References
Hume, Kara, Ph.D, “Transition Time: Helping Individuals on the Autism Spectrum Move Successfully from One Activity to Another.” Helping-Individuals-on-the-Autism-Spectrum-Move-Successfully-from-One-Activity-to-Another
Stacho, Thomas J., Ed.S., “My Students Have Trouble with Transitions…What Can I Do?”
Fox, Timothy J., “Effective Transition Techniques.” Concordia University Portland