Task Boxes: Fostering Independence in Special Education

Task boxes are a valuable tool in special education, designed to promote independence and engagement in students, particularly those with autism. These self-contained activities provide structured, repetitive tasks that students can complete independently, fostering a sense of accomplishment and reducing reliance on direct instruction. The goal of task boxes in special education is to make students work independently.

The Importance of Independent Work Stations

Independent work stations, utilizing task boxes, are key in special education classrooms. Many special education teachers feel that they can never have too many work tasks for autism. These stations provide opportunities for students to practice skills, generalize knowledge, and build self-reliance. They also free up educators to work with other students or focus on other classroom needs.

What are Task Boxes?

Task boxes are containers, often shoeboxes or plastic bins, that hold all the materials needed for a specific activity. The activity within the box is designed to be simple, repetitive, and clearly defined, with a clear beginning and end. This structure helps students understand the expectations of the task and complete it successfully.

Benefits of Task Boxes

Promote Independence: Task boxes allow students to work independently, building self-confidence and reducing reliance on teacher prompts.
Increase Engagement: The structured and repetitive nature of task boxes can be highly engaging for students, particularly those with autism, who often thrive on routine and predictability.
Skill Development: Task boxes can be designed to target a wide range of skills, including fine motor, visual discrimination, sorting, matching, and academic concepts.
Generalization of Skills: By practicing skills in a variety of contexts, task boxes can help students generalize their knowledge and apply it to new situations.
Classroom Management: Task boxes can be used to fill in waiting time and keep students engaged, reducing challenging behaviors and improving classroom management.
Data Collection: Work systems allow for easy data collection, which can be used to monitor student progress and adjust instruction accordingly.

Ideas for Task Boxes

The possibilities for task box activities are endless, limited only by your creativity and the needs of your students. Here are some ideas, incorporating the user's provided suggestions:

Fine Motor Skills

Packaging Items: Use plastic eggs to package items. This works well for students who are working on those basic skills.
Sorting: Buttons or screws can be used for sorting activities.
Building with Blocks: Use cards to teach students to build with blocks to match the card. This task is great for fine motor skills, attention to detail and spatial awareness.
Folding Towels/Napkins: Provide towels or napkins and have students practice folding them. There are several different ways towels/napkins can be folded. This is a really inexpensive task to make!
Installing Batteries: Find different battery-powered items that take different-sized batteries. Students will find which batteries go in each device, and properly install the batteries so that the device turns on.
Pouring Salt & Pepper: Students will practice pouring salt & pepper into separate containers without spilling and being able to properly twist the lids back on.
Opening Containers: Save those containers once you are done using them (ask your staff and coworkers for donations). Try and get a variety of different containers so that students have to match and figure out which goes to which. Try to also get a variety of containers that have different ways to open a lid to practice those fine motor skills.
Folding/Taping Boxes: Save those Amazon boxes and cut the tape to undo the boxes. Students can practice folding or taping a box together.
Hanging Clothes: Putting clothes on a hanger is a skill in itself. Take it to the next step by having students sort the clothes by type (eg. Pants vs Shirts) or by size.
Coffee Cup Assembly: Have students practice fine motor skills of placing sleeves and lids on coffee cups. You can also do this activity with cups that require straws.

Academic Skills

Counting: McDonalds visual helps students count out 5 fries (pipe cleaners) to put in each bag.
Money Skills: Dollar over one. The student reads the price on the card and attaches the correct amount with the paper clip.
1:1 Correspondence: A simple 1:1 correspondence activity - to put one object (in this case a foam letter) in each container.
Color Matching and Counting:
Matching Letters: Students can match letters, words, numbers, and so on.
Addition with Plastic Eggs: Students complete the addition problem (adding the number on top to the one on the bottom) and place it in the egg carton with that number on it.
Noun vs. Verb Sorting: In this example the students are sorting by whether the picture depicts a noun or a verb.
Sorting: You can use using common materials for younger students, like farm animals vs. food or sorting different shapes. Or use a file folder or sorting mats to practice sorting by category or characteristic, as you see with the flower sorting mats below.
Card Sorting: In the task below, I set it up so students are separating out the red cards from the blue cards. Similarly you could have the students count out the number of cards to deal a hand.
Letter Board Activities: Students can do several activities with a letter board! First you can have students put today’s date for display. Next, students can use flashcards and spell vocabulary words. Lastly, you can have students sort the letter board letters.
Calculator/Keyboard Pop Toy: I used a calculator pop toy which you can find HERE, with math flashcards I found at the Dollar Tree. I used a keyboard pop toy which you can find HERE, with vocabulary task cards for higher-level students.
Measuring Activities: Have students measure the length, circumference or weight of various items (can be anything free you have laying around).
Fraction Measuring Cups: All you need if a set of measuring cups which you can find at Dollar Tree, and a bag of rice! If you want to use the color-coded fraction measuring cups, you can find those HERE.

Life Skills

Packaging Items: Use plastic eggs to package items. Or you can make academic tasks out of them from matching letters to life skills packaging money to match a price.
Functional Sorting: For older students and life skills students, you want to look for more functional materials that they would need to complete sorting in independent tasks. For these students, think about functional items you have around your house.
Sorting Recyclables: You can collect cans/bottles in your classroom or around campus and have students sort them before taking them to the recycling center.
Grocery Bagging: Save empty containers or use those expired canned foods for this activity. Students can practice bagging groceries. Take it to the next level by having students be aware of having heavier items on the bottom, or bagging food separate from chemicals. Download printables to assist you with this activity.
Filing Documents: Here are some activities you can use to practice filing documents. This idea can be as simple as writting a letter on each index card and filing them.
Using Locks and Keys: You can find locks and keys at the Dollar Tree. This is a great one to do around the holidays.
Writing in a Planner: If you have a school calendar with important events like a field trip, school dance, graduation…etc, have students practice writing these into a planner or calendar!
Inventory Management: Students can work on counting, sorting, stocking and reporting inventory. These are great tasks especially if you run a coffee cart student business.
Paper Shredding: This is a great office skill to practice and some students even find it calming. to shred paper! Make a pile of papers you need shredded or collect shredding paper from teachers around campus.
Sweeping: Taping a square on the ground helps students focus on an area to bring the trash they are sweeping to.
Reading Glasses & Cases: Reading glasses & cases can be found at Dollar Tree or Daiso (or maybe you have a bunch lying around). This is a wonderful wood & velcro set from Melissa and Doug you can find HERE.

Errorless Task Boxes

Errorless task boxes are designed with no wrong answers. Errorless task boxes are essentially just that: task boxes with no wrong answers. But why would I want to give my student an errorless task? Are they still learning? YES!! Errorless task boxes are designed for beginner learners who are starting to acquire independent skills.

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Creating and Implementing Task Boxes

Gather Materials: Anything can be a task box. Gather materials that are appropriate for your students' skill levels and interests. You may be able to find items around your classroom, at the Dollar Store, or even recycle items from home.
Choose a Container: Use shoeboxes, plastic bins, or other containers to hold the materials for each task.
Prepare the Activity: Set up the activity within the box so that it is clear and easy for students to understand.
Label the Box: Label each box with a clear and simple label that includes a picture or symbol representing the activity. I like my labels to be functional and appropriate for all ages, so the system can continue with them as they get older. This is another great place to utilize color coding.
Create a Designated Space: Make a designated space. It can be a shelf, a cart, a corner, or even a desk. BUT you NEED a designated space. That way, when your students are there… they know the expectations of that center.
Setup Your Schedule System: My students match a picture on their schedule to the picture on their box. You also want to figure out how to organize them. The ways you setup your schedule can be different too. I like to have a schedule separate for each student in the independent work center right next to the boxes. Some teachers put it right on their main schedule, or have it in a student binder.
Teach Students How to Use the Task Boxes: Prep your students. Once the space and materials are ready to go… you need to prep your students. I’m going to be honest here. This area is absolutely vital for my classroom survival. It frees up staff members and is an independently run center. Do you know how amazing that is in self contained? YUP. So I spend about 2 weeks straight teaching the skill. How to complete a schedule, put away, clean up, get access to reward.
Monitor Student Progress: Observe students as they work with the task boxes and collect data on their performance.

Organizing Task Boxes

Storage: Don’t have room for a big task box shelf? You can use the 3 drawer system.
Schedule: When students are done with the bin, what do you want them to do? Some students may like to take apart the task and put them back, while I like to have students place the bin in an “all done bin” to mark completion and move to the next on their schedule.

Adapting Task Boxes

Task boxes can be easily adapted to meet the individual needs of students. Consider the following adaptations:

Simplify the Task: Break down the task into smaller steps or reduce the number of steps required.
Provide Visual Supports: Use pictures, symbols, or color-coding to help students understand the task.
Modify the Materials: Use larger or more easily manipulated materials for students with fine motor difficulties.
Offer Choices: Allow students to choose from a selection of task boxes to increase motivation and engagement.

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