Calm Down Choice Board
A calm down choice board shows a handful of coping strategies as pictures, so a learner can point to what they need when words are hard to find. It works best when it is taught during calm moments. Keep it where the learner can reach it.
Free to print with no account. The customized board also runs on a tablet in a session.
About this template
When a child is upset it is hard to think of a strategy, let alone explain it. A board with the options laid out turns the task into recognizing a picture, which is much easier. The six choices here are common ones, and it is worth swapping any that your learner does not like.
How to use it
- Print the board and talk through each picture with the learner when they are calm, trying each strategy together.
- Remove any choice the learner does not like and add the ones that help them, by customizing the board.
- When the learner starts to get upset, bring the board over and offer it quietly, without a lot of talking.
- Let them point to a picture, then support that choice and praise them for asking for help.
Make it yours
- Use four choices instead of six for a learner who gets overwhelmed by many options.
- Add real photos of your own calm corner, soft toy or headphones.
- Make a pocket version to take on trips and to school.
- Show the board on a tablet in a session, where tapping a picture fills the screen and says the word out loud.
Questions
When should I teach the board?
Teach it when the learner is calm, so they know what each picture means before they need it. Practicing for a few minutes a day is a common approach.
Will a calm down board stop meltdowns?
It is not a cure. It gives a learner a way to ask for help earlier, which may reduce how often things build up. Your BCBA or team can help you build a bigger plan.
Which strategies should be on the board?
Choose the ones that work for the learner. Ask the learner, their therapist and their teacher what has helped before, and remove any that do not.
Related templates
- Choice boardsReward choices
- Token boardsWork for a break token board
- First/then boardsLeaving the park
- Build one from scratch with the Choice Board Maker maker.
- Read more: Choice boards for autism.
- See all free templates.
General information only. Your BCBA or team can adapt this for your learner.
Pictures are from open symbol sets. See the credits.