Baseline Data in the First Month of School
3 min read
Visual Routines
Measuring Whether a Routine Is Working without turning your kitchen into a clinic.
You think the morning is better than it was six weeks ago, and you genuinely could not say whether that is true or whether you have just got used to it.
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Why it works here
Why a visual routine helps with measuring whether a routine is working
Memory is a poor instrument for slow change, and families routinely underestimate their own progress. One number tracked lightly across a few weeks tells you whether to keep, adjust, or drop a routine, which is a decision that otherwise gets made on a feeling.
You will recognize this if
- You cannot tell whether things are actually better.
- You are considering changing a routine based on the last bad day.
- Your therapist asks how it is going and you guess.
What the research saysIn one multi-site trial analysis, 126 of 168 children showed no disruptive behavior during structured clinic observation despite meeting enrollment criteria, illustrating how much a single observation can miss.
Research in Autism Spectrum Disorders analysis
The setup
How to set it up for measuring whether a routine is working
Takes about five minutes. Use it as written, or keep only the steps your family needs. A short setup that gets used beats a complete one that gets abandoned in week two.
- 1 Pick one number, such as completed steps or minutes to leave the house
- 2 Record it once a day, in under five seconds
- 3 Track for two weeks before changing anything
- 4 Compare weeks rather than days, because days are noisy
- 5 Bring the pattern to appointments rather than an impression
- 6 Stop tracking once the decision is made
The mistake most families make
Judging a routine by yesterday is the most common error, and yesterday is the least reliable data point available. Weeks tell the truth that days obscure.
In the app
Built into the routine, not bolted onto it.
The Visual Routines lives inside the same routine your child already follows, so measuring whether a routine is working is a step with a visible length rather than a separate tool somebody has to remember to open.
- Attach it to any step in any routine
- Works for pre-readers, gestalt language processors, and AAC users
- Same setup at home, at school, and in therapy
Set this up for your child.
Five minutes to build, and your child sees it every time measuring whether a routine is working comes around.
$6.99/month after the free trial · Cancel anytime · Also at app.vizyplan.com
Common questions
About measuring whether a routine is working
How long before I judge a routine?
At least two weeks, and longer for anything involving sleep. Most routines get worse before they get better while your child learns the new pattern.
What should I measure?
One thing, cheaply. Completed steps or minutes taken answers most questions, and a complicated system will not survive a real week.
Do I need to track forever?
No. Track long enough to make the decision, then stop. Tracking is a diagnostic tool rather than a permanent obligation.
VizyPlan supports routines and communication at home and school. It is not a medical device and does not diagnose or treat any condition. Talk to your child's care team about clinical questions.
