Welcome to the Resources for Paraprofessionals Series, where we will be looking at the wide variety of tools and resources available to paraprofessionals across different settings. 

In Part 1, we will be focusing on working memory resources, then routine-building resources in Part 2. In Part 3, we will take a look at some communication resources and round out with self-regulation resources in Part 4. Let’s start by taking a closer look at working memory resources that we can have at the ready to support our students!

Working memory is all about how we remember to do a particular task that we have learned before. Working memory is both a skill that can be worked on and a need that we can support with the right tools. Let's take a closer look at some resources we can use to support student working memory.

At its core, working memory is all about remembering the steps associated with a given task, and sometimes the best help we can get with tricky-to-remember steps is a quick visual cue. 

A visual cue can be a physical item, a picture, or even a hand gesture depending on the circumstances. The great part about visual cues is that they can both be practiced ahead of time and they do not need to be especially elaborate. 

A quick little reminder is often all we need to fill in the gaps with the information we already have! 

Classic examples of visual cues can include a picture of the item you need to use next or a visual symbol next to the location of an important item in the workspace.

Visual supplements and visual cues may overlap, but whereas a visual cue might be a quick reminder that we use when needed, a visual supplement might outline all the steps of a task so we can have it handy throughout the task. 

While it may eventually be our goal to complete a task without any kind of guide or reminder, visual supplements can help us along. 

Likewise, some people may find they prefer to always have a visual supplement with them when working on a task, and that is great too! 

Classic examples of visual supplements can include a list outlining the steps of the task (e.g., task analysis), to do lists, choice boards, and quick decision trees.

This is the part of the blog post where we will begin to sound a bit like a broken record, because social stories can be a helpful resource across all these different learning areas! That is because social stories are so customizable to fit not only the needs of the situation, but the needs of the individual using the social story. 

In this case, a helpful social story can outline not only each step of a task but why each step is important. While social stories might not be as convenient a visual reminder as some of the other resources we have discussed, it can be one of the most helpful ways to start building working memory without cues.

There are so many types of resources out there for paraprofessionals, some of which may be familiar and some of which may be new. We hope that this post and the remainder of the upcoming series will offer some helpful situational starting points! If you have any suggestions or feedback, feel free to drop us a line at hello@autismgrownup.com and stay tuned for Part 2!