Using pictograms

November 1, 2013 | Joe-Ann Benoît

What is a pictogram?

A pictogram is a simplified drawing that depicts in the clearest way possible an action or a more abstract concept such as an emotion. The meaning of a pictogram is crystal clear and can be understood by any untrained observer. It conveys a message. Though they were first developed to stimulate children with persuasive developmental disorders, pictograms are educational tools that can be used with any preschool-aged child.

Pictograms can convey all types of meanings including:

• Action verbs such as Make eye contact, Close your mouth when you eat, Wait your turn, Put away your toys, Share, Listen, etc.
• Prohibited conduct and the related positive social behavior: e.g. No screaming or yelling / Talk softly; Do not stray from the group / Stay with the group; No hitting / Express yourself using words, etc.
• Emotions: happy, sad, angry, shy, afraid, tired, etc.
• Tasks and responsibilities: Turn the light on, Lead the group, Water the plant, Set the table, Pass out the spoons, etc.
• Routine or everyday tasks such as getting dressed, brushing one’s teeth, washing one’s hands, blowing one’s nose, taking a nap, walking in a straight line, sitting in a circle, etc.
• Games or toys: blocks, arts and crafts supplies, board games, etc.

How to make pictograms

Decide on the pictograms that will be most useful in your environment. Pictograms for use in a day-care centre should be approximately 8 cm x 8 cm so they can be easily held in the palm of the hand. Print them on thin cardboard, cut them out and get them laminated. The small investment of time and money will be well worth your while: they will be way more durable and easy to disinfect – a significant advantage since children like to hold pictograms in their hands. You can glue a piece of Velcro on the back of each pictogram to create sequences on a piece of cardboard. (You can also use reusable adhesive for this.) The children can get involved by removing the pictograms (or ticking them off) as the actions are completed.

Do not keep your pictograms in a pile as you would a deck of playing cards because looking for a specific pictogram can be quite frustrating. Keep them in transparencies with pockets (one pictogram per pocket), such as pocket pages for hockey card, and keep the transparencies in a ring binder. It will be a breeze to find the pictogram you want. You can also keep the pictograms you use most often in a mosaic pattern (with reusable adhesive on the flip side) behind a cupboard door or on a wall out of the reach of children. Finding the pictogram you want will be easy.

How to present pictograms to children

In general children love pictograms and are curious to see, touch and manipulate them. Make sure you have the child’s full attention before showing a pictogram. Simply say what the pictogram means (action, emotion, instruction, etc.) when presenting the image. You can put it in their hands, ask them to point to it, make them choose between two different pictograms, or ask them what they think the image means. With pictograms, the impact of your message will be greater since it will appeal to more than one sense: in this case hearing, sight and touch. If you use a pictogram with a child who does not always look you in the eye, place it within their reach, at eye level, so that the child gets used to looking at you when you’re talking.

Multiple uses for pictograms

Structuring time

Place the daily schedule at eye level in front of the child. This tool helps children keep their bearings in time and anticipate the events of the day. When children miss their parents and are wondering when they will return, or when they have difficulty accepting to put an end to an activity, bring them to the schedule and show them where they stand at on the timeline and the activities that are yet to come. Some educators make a cardboard arrow, which they stick (with reusable adhesive) above the pictograms, and move as the activities are completed so that the children see the day move forward. Others have the children remove the pictograms as the activities are completed. You can also have the needles of a clock point at each activity and associated pictogram to indicate start times and to help the older children to learn to tell time.

Structuring the environment

Identify each pictogram on the wall and the function of each play area: reading, blocks, arts and crafts, etc. identify the contents of each bin with pictograms to enable the children to be more self-sufficient; they will be able to pick the right bin (without emptying the contents of each container on the floor) and put away the toys in the right place when they are done.

Structuring the children’s behavior during a sequence

Transitions are simple and quick activities that connect two more substantial activities or bring about a change of activity or place. Transitions generally include a sequence: tidying up, personal hygiene such as going to the toilet or washing one’s hands, getting dressed or undressed, gathering together, waiting, or going somewhere. For children who are usually disorganized during transitions, you can make pictograms in advance to show the actions to be carried out in the correct sequence:

Put away your toys / Go to the toilet / Wash your hands / Go sit down / Eat your snack

When the transition begins, show the children the pictograms one by one and ask them to follow the instructions on the illustrations. If they want to see the next image, tell them they will be able to look at it once they have completed the activity shown on the pictogram they are holding in their hand. When the activity is over, they can give the pictogram back and get the next one, and so on.

A sequence can apply to an action such as Get undressed after an outdoor activity, which can be broken down into steps. The following would apply during the winter:

Getting dressed Remove your shows Put on your warm-up pants Put on your boots Put on your neck-warmer Put on your tuque Put on your coat Zip up your coat Put on your mittens

Getting undressed Remove your mittens Remove your tuque Remove your neck-warmer Unzip your coat Remove your coat Remove your boots Remove your warm-up pants Put on your shoes

This strategy will help the children to get organized and to get a move on. This will make your tutoring more efficient.

Teaching social skills

Pictograms are very useful in helping children to identify emotions. The activity leader presents the Emotions game. With the young children, start with basic emotions such as cheerful, sad and angry, and gradually work up to more complex emotions such as tired, shy, disappointed, afraid, and bored.

Cheerful / Sad / Angry

Start in receptive mode: call out an emotion and ask the child to pick the corresponding pictogram. For each emotion, the leader asks: “How can you tell the little boy is sad?” The leader then points out the facial features (eyebrows, eyes, mouth pulled down). We can tell emotions by observing facial expressions.

Continue in agent mode: pick an image and ask the child to identify the emotion. Once again, children must identify the facial expressions that convey the emotion. When the children manage to identify all the emotions on the pictograms, repeat the activity with real-life photos of children’s faces – a much more difficult task!

The activity leader gives the children small mirrors and asks them to mimic the emotions on the pictograms, one by one, while identifying the telltale signs. Children are often surprised to discover how their own face changes when they experience different emotions. The final step is the identify emotions directly on a person’s face.

You can also use pictograms to reinforce sound-based instructions that promote appropriate behavior. Many pictograms can be combined to illustrate a specific behavior for a specific situation: this is called a social script. It is important to emphasize the desired behavior rather than the unwanted behavior when acting out a social script.

For example, instead of saying “When I am angry, I hit someone and there are consequences,” show the proper conduct instead:

When I am angry / I take deep breaths to calm down / I express myself using words

Pictograms involving prohibitions (such as “No hitting”) can be used when discussing what behavior would have been more appropriate. Consider the case of a child who bites. After the incident, the child who bit someone can be removed to the “time-out chair” while the child who was bitten is taken care of. Face the chair to the wall and stick two pictograms on the wall at eye level with reusable adhesive: one of a child biting an apple and another of a child biting his or her friend. Give the child a big sticky cardboard “X” and ask him or her to put the “X” over the image representing the inappropriate behavior. The child should naturally put the “X” over the image of a child biting another child. Use the image to repeat the instructions: “It is forbidden to bite someone” and “Teeth are made for biting into food.” Complete your intervention with a third pictogram showing what must be done instead of biting someone, such as “I express myself using words” (with a child who speaks) or “I put out my hand to ask for a toy” (with children who cannot speak yet).

Enriching the children’s vocabulary

Pictograms can be used as visual support to enrich the children’s vocabulary through image-word associations. This is particularly useful with children with language delay, especially with more abstract words or action verbs.

In conclusion

Pictograms are practical tools with toddlers. By combining auditory (verbal instructions), visual (pictograms) and tactile (hold the pictogram, point, execute the behavior) stimulation, your message will be greatly reinforced.[1]