Token boards don’t need to be fancy – our go-to is usually pennies velcroed onto a laminated cue cards. If it’s more motivating for the child, you can use pictures or stickers of preferred characters. For some kids, we often change the tokens (i.e., different pictures) so that they don’t become rigid and stuck on the token delivery.

When is a student ready for a token board? When they have a concept of first/then and they are able to sit and attend for a few minutes at a time. It’s a good idea to teach the token board by backwards chaining: have all the tokens on the board except the last one and pair the last token with reinforcement (i.e., at the same time as you deliver R+, deliver the token). Then, start having them earn the last 2 tokens (and the last token is still paired with R+), etc.

Whether it’s 5 tokens or 10 tokens is up to the age of the learner and how much they can tolerate. You can also manipulate the pace that they receive tokens so that even a 5-token board can last longer and a 10-token board can be quick if every response is being reinforced.

For more behavior chart ideas, check out this website: https://www.freeprintablebehaviorcharts.com