After school routine chart: free printable visual schedule

Who it’s for

Children who come home from school tired, hungry and finished with being asked to do things, and the grown-ups who would like the afternoon to go more smoothly. The chart suits children who use pictures to know what comes next, including autistic children and children who don’t speak or don’t speak much. Older children can tick the boxes on their own.

How to use it

1. Make the steps your own. Cross out what you don’t do, and glue a card from page 2 over any step that changes during the week: therapy on Tuesdays, sports on Thursdays.
2. Put the chart by the front door, where the afternoon starts, at your child’s eye level.
3. Show the first step before you go in: “First, home. Next, unpack.” Point to each step as it happens, and let your child tick the box.
4. Keep the order the same every day, so your child can count on it. With play outside after homework, the harder step comes first and the fun one is waiting.
5. Leave room for a rest. A snack and a few quiet minutes before homework can matter more than getting through the list fast.

The same steps in the schedule maker

The chart has the same seven steps as the after school routine in the free visual schedule maker. Open the after school routine in the schedule maker to change a step, add a photo of your own front door or your child’s favorite snack, or turn the steps to go across the page, then print it.

Talking about the school day

“What did you do at school today?” is a hard question for anyone, and harder for a child who uses AAC: the answer has to be found before it can be said. Page 3 gives the words: what we had, who it was with, how it was, and the things a child most needs a way to say, like I got hurt or someone was mean.

Ask the teacher for one thing that happened today, in a note, a photo or a line in the communication book, so you have somewhere to start: “You had music today! Was it fun?” Point to the words as you ask, and wait. If your child points to I got hurt or someone was mean, take it seriously, ask a few yes-or-no questions, and talk to the school.

What’s on the PDF

After school steps

• home
• unpack
• wash hands
• snack
• homework
• play outside
• dinner

More picture cards (page 2)

• hang up my coat
• shoes off
• tell about my day
• rest
• read
• free time
• TV
• feed the pet
• chores
• therapy
• sports

Today we had

• circle time
• reading
• math
• art
• music
• gym
• recess
• lunch
• library
• science
• therapy
• the bus

With

• teacher
• a friend
• classmate
• helper
• bus driver
• principal

It was

• fun
• good
• hard
• easy
• funny
• boring

Something happened

• I did it!
• I got hurt
• I was sad
• someone was mean
• I need help
• I want to tell you

Printing tips

• Laminate the chart, or slide it into a sheet protector, and tick with a dry-erase marker, so it wipes clean for tomorrow.
• The cards are the same size as the cards for the morning routine chart and the bedtime routine chart, so one set of hook-and-loop dots works for the whole day.
• For the school day itself, use the classroom visual schedule; for one hard step, a first-then board.
• New to pointing while you talk? The one-page AAC modeling handout for parents shows how. For notes and photos that travel between school and home, read home and school, working together.