Put It in Order: Grocery Store Checkout
Seven steps for paying at a grocery store checkout, dealt out of order for the student to sequence and retell.
Tap two cards to swap them
How to run it
Read every step aloud first so the task stays about sequence rather than decoding. Once the order is set, have the student retell the checkout in their own words using first, then, after that and finally. If you can, rehearse it as a role-play with a pretend total, and let the student play both the shopper and the cashier.
Cueing ladder
Start at the top. Add support one step at a time.
- IndependentPresent the item and wait 5 seconds of quiet before helping.Log as correct
- Question promptAsk a story-grammar question: who, where, what was the problem, what happened next?Log as cued
- Two choicesOffer two possible next parts of the story and let the student pick and say it.Log as cued
- ModelTell that part yourself; the student tells it back in their own words.Log as cued
Adjust it
Use fewer parts, and keep a first-next-last visual on the table.
Ask for the retell without the pictures, with a feeling or a reason added to each part.
Matching IEP goal
Given a picture or story prompt, Student will put events in order and retell them using first, next, then and last in 4 of 5 opportunities across 3 consecutive sessions, given no more than one question prompt.
Send it home through the parent portal →About this activity
Seven steps for getting through a grocery store checkout, from wait in line with your cart and put your items on the belt to listen for the total price, pay with cash or a card, and carry your bags out. The steps arrive mixed up and the student puts them in order. It is written for middle and high school students who are building independence in the community and need the routine to be something they can say, not only something they follow.
What to listen for
Notice whether the student orders by logic or by trial and error. Paying before the total is announced is the most common swap, and it usually means the student is not yet picturing the moment at the register. In the retell, listen for whether every step survives or the middle collapses into one vague step.
Carrying it home
Let the student lead the checkout on the next family grocery trip, even with only a few items. Before you go, ask them to tell you the steps. Afterwards, ask what happened at each one: did they listen for the total, did they take the receipt. Real practice in the actual store carries over best.
What's in this activity
- Wait in line with your cart
- Put your items on the belt
- Watch each item get scanned
- Listen for the total price
- Pay with cash or a card
- Take your receipt and change
- Carry your bags out
Questions
- Who is this for?
- Students in grades 6 through 12 working on functional sequencing, transition skills and retelling a community routine in order.
- Can I change the steps to match our local store?
- Yes. Open it in the Activity Studio, edit the steps in the right order and keep it as Rank Order. The board shuffles them for the student.
- Is it free?
- Yes. It plays free in the browser with no login. An account adds session data, goal scoring and assignment to a student.
Use this board with your caseload
With a free account, every correct, cued and incorrect mark is saved to the student and scored against their IEP goal, with the data written up for you. Assign it as home practice through the parent portal.
Track progress freeFree for SLPs. No card, no trial clock.