Environmental Arrangement  

EBIP_communication_environmental arrangement_10

Overview

Environmental arrangement involves purposefully planning the placement and organization of classroom materials, furniture, and activities to promote appropriate behaviors and decrease the likelihood of problem behavior. Research has demonstrated environmental arrangement can lead to increases in the frequency of communicative acts and social interactions with peers and adults. EA has been used in individualized, small group, and large group activities. To use EA, you should plan how to arrange the environment before an activity occurs. Strategies for two aspects of environmental arrangement strategies are discussed on the following pages:

Where can I find additional information regarding environmental arrangement?

  • TEACCH Educational Approaches
  • Hwang, B., & Hughes, C. (2000). Increasing early social-communicative skills of preverbal preschool children with autism through social interactive training. Journal of the Association for Persons with Severe Handicaps, 25(1), 18-28.
  • Kashinath, S., Woods, J., & Goldstein, H. (2006). Enhancing generalized teaching strategy use in daily routines by parents of children with autism. Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Research, 49(3), 466-85.
  • Kaiser, A. P., Ostrosky, M. M., & Alpert, C. L. (1993). Training teachers to use environmental arrangement and milieu teaching with nonvocal preschool children. Journal of the Association for Persons with Severe Handicaps, 18(3), 188-199.
  • Ostrosky, M. M., & Kaiser, A. P. (1991). Preschool classroom environments that promote communication. Teaching Exceptional Children, 23(4), 6.

To cite this page (APA 6th edition):

  • Zimmerman, K.N. & Ledford, J.R. (2016). Environmental arrangement. In Evidence-based instructional practices for young children with autism and other disabilities. Retrieved from http://ebip.vkcsites.org/environmental-arrangement