Size of the Problem Reference Ring for Special Education

About this resource

EVERYTHING INSIDE — 19 pages

• 3 size-reference cards, 2 inches square (Small, Medium, Big), with a reference table on the same sheet naming what each size usually takes, usually needs, and the one line to say when you show it
• Every card again in black-and-white ink-saver, for a spare ring or a second adult
• 12 blank ring cards with a type-in word line, for a spare card or a replacement — the three sizes themselves do not grow a fourth
• A how-to page: before the first use, the three moves every time, choosing a size, if the size picked surprises you, when a situation doesn't fit cleanly, writing down what changes, what this ring is and is not, sending it home and handing it off
• A Size Reference Ring Log (16 rows: date, situation in your own words, size shown, how independently it was matched, notes — one row per situation)
• A weekly roll-up (8 weeks) with a percent-matched graph
• A filled example — an invented student, one day and three weeks on the roll-up, every percent re-counted from its own row
• A family page with the same three sizes to point to at home and a week of home practice to initial
• A hand-off page so a paraprofessional, general education teacher or another adult carries the same ring the same way
• A phrase bank: 24 lines in 6 groups (spoken lines for each check, written starters for the log, the roll-up and the note home)
• A storage and binder label sheet
• Start Here, a contents page with page thumbnails, and a "what's next" back page

The chart-and-sort-board version of these same three sizes stays where it is posted. This file prints no chart and no sort board: the same three size cards, cut apart and punched near the top edge, threaded onto a one-inch book ring, so the scale travels on a lanyard or belt clip into the hallway, a small-group table, or a specials class — anywhere a posted chart and board are not within reach.

THE SIZES (reused verbatim from the chart-and-board version, same words and pictures)

1. Small — passes quickly, often with no one else's help

2. Medium — takes longer to settle, usually with one other person's help

3. Big — needs an adult right away

Look at the clues first — what happened, how long it lasted, who was part of fixing it, if anyone — then show or point to the matching size card on the ring. There is no fourth size and no blank size card: the scale is closed on purpose, so the twelve blank cards in this file are spares and replacements, not a way to add a size.

What This Is, And What It Is Not

It is a fillable PDF: type into the log, the roll-up, the family page, the hand-off page and the blank cards, or print and use a pen. The card sheet prints on cardstock or plain paper, cuts around each card, and punches near the top edge for a one-inch book ring (sold separately). It works offline with no account or subscription. It is NOT an editable online slideshow or word-processor document.

Who This Is For

Special education teachers, paraprofessionals and general education teachers who already teach a three-size problem scale and need the reference to travel with a roving adult — the hallway, the specials class, the small-group table, a substitute — plus the case managers who need that use to show up as data, and the families who get the home page sent home.

More In The Collection

This single sits alongside Size of the Problem Visual Sorting Board (the posted chart-and-sort-board version with the same three sizes), Lanyard Cue Cards for Special Education and Voice Level Wearable Ring Cards for Special Education (the same ring mechanic on different interchangeable and graded-scale banks), and the free Visual Supports Starter Set.

Pictures (color pages): Noto Emoji by Google, Apache License 2.0. Pictures (ink-saver pages): Fluent Emoji, Copyright (c) Microsoft Corporation, MIT License.