The eight tasks that comprise PREP are—window sequencing; connecting letters; joining shapes; transportation matrices; related memory; tracking; shape design; and shapes and objects. A brief description of these tasks follows.
Window Sequencing
Global
This task focuses on successive processing. The student is asked to reproduce the order of a series of chips that vary in color and shape, in the same order in which they are presented by the facilitator. The chips are presented one at a time, left to right, through a small window. Each chip appears in the window for about a second. The series range in length from three to six chips. Four series of each length are presented per session, for a total of 12 items. There are three levels of difficulty in the task.
• Difficulty Level 1: Involves sequences of two different types of chips (circles and squares) while the color remains constant.
• Difficulty Level 2: Involves different color chips (white, yellow, blue, and black) while the shape remains constant.
• Difficulty Level 3: Involves manipulation of both color and shape of the chips.
Bridging
The student’s task is to (a) reproduce a series of letters in the same order in which they are presented by the facilitator, and (b) say or write the word that is spelled by the letters. The letters, which the student views for approximately one second through a window, are presented one at a time or in consonant or vowel combinations. There are three levels of difficulty which correspond to the phonetic complexity of the words used.
Connecting Letters
Global
The student is required to follow a line to find which letter on the left side of a card is connected to which letter on the right side of the card. Each card contains five letters on each side. The students are presented with each item individually. They are then required to write (or say) all of the connections. After an initial trial, the facilitator directs the student’s attention to any errors so that cor¬rections can be made.
There are three levels of difficulty (three items are presented at one difficulty level during a single session).
• Difficulty Level 1: Contains strings that are color-coded to aid in scanning.
• Difficulty Level 2: Contains black lines only.
• Difficulty Level 3: Contains black lines as well as “distractor” lines that are not connected to any letters.
Bridging
The student is presented a card with a column of five letters on the left side and a column of five letters on the right side of the page. The letters are connected with lines that run across the page. Along these lines there are more letters. Sometimes the letters are pre¬sented alone and sometimes they are in small groups (consonant or vowel blends, or digraphs). Together, the sequence of letters on each line forms a word. Each line is color-coded.
The student is required to visually follow each line, mentally connecting the series of letters that run across the page, and say or write the word that is spelled by the letters. Four levels of difficulty are provided. Each corresponds to the phonetic complexity of the words.
Joining Shapes
Global
This task focuses on successive processing. The purpose of the task is to join a series of geometric shapes with a line in response to (a) a series of verbal instructions and (b) a set of rules provided by the facilitator. The shapes (triangles, squares, and hexagons) are presented in rows on a sheet of paper. Each row of triangles, squares, and hexagons is separated by a row of circles. In each session, six items with varying numbers of rows are presented. The first two items contain one row of triangles and one row of squares, with a row of circles in between. The third and fourth items contain one row of triangles, one row of squares, and one row of hexagons, with rows of circles in between. The fifth and sixth items contain a row of hexagons, a row of triangles, a row of squares, and another row of hexagons with rows of circles in between.
Bridging
Several rows of letters are presented to the student on a sheet of paper. The purpose of the task is to join the letters from the top row to the bottom row, moving diagonally from left to right, and following a set of rules to produce a word. When the student reaches the bottom, he/she takes the last letter of that word as the first letter of the next word and proceeds back to the top in the same manner to produce another word. This is continued until the student reaches the end of the sheet. The student is required to tell the facilitator the words that he/she formed. There are four levels of difficulty, corresponding to the length of the words.
Transportation Matrices
Global
The student’s task is to reproduce a series of transportation pictures in the order in which they are presented. The entire sequence is shown for approximately five seconds and then turned over. Then, moving from the student’s left to right, each individual picture is displayed for approximately two to three seconds and then turned over again.
Bridging
The student’s task is to reproduce a series of letters in the correct order and state the word that is formed by the letters. The letters are exposed on a single line matrix which is divided into cells to match the number of letters in the word. The letters are presented simultaneously, and then one at a time, in their respective cells in the matrix, using a window shield. There are four levels of difficulty, corresponding to the phonetic complexity of the words.
Related Memory
Global
This task involves both simultaneous and successive processing. The student’s task is to match the front half of an animal with its appropriate other half. Three front halves are presented in a column on the left side of a page and one back half is presented on a card that is placed on the right side of the page. The student is required to make a verbal prediction about which front and back half go to¬gether. Once he or she has done so, they place the front and back half together to determine whether the response was correct. The student is then allowed to alter his/her prediction, if necessary. There are three levels of difficulty, corresponding to the degree of discrimination required.
Bridging
The purpose of this task is to (a) choose the proper front half of a word to match the other half and (b) to read the word. The student chooses from three front portions of words, which are placed on the left side of a page in a column. To the right of this column is the other half of one of the words. The student is required to draw a line between one of the front halves and the back half. There are four levels of difficulty, corresponding to the complexity of the words.
Tracking
Global
In the global part of this simultaneous processing task, the stu¬dent is presented with a village map with houses and trees, and tracking cards that illustrate a path from a starting point to either a numbered house (Level 1) or a lettered tree (Level 2). The tracking cards outline the roads and street intersections on the map. The student’s task is to survey each card and the map, and then locate the number of the house or the letter of the tree on the map.
The second version of this task involves a letter map (Tracking Map II) and tracking cards with squares identified by a letter of the alphabet. The student’s task is to locate the appropriate lettered square.
Bridging
The student is presented with a map of the West Edmonton mall, on which several key features are identified: Shark World, Water Park, Bingo, Ice Palace, Miniature Golf, Submarine, Roller Coaster, and Water Slides. He/she is allowed some time to become familiar with the locations of these features. The student is then given a series of printed passages (eight in total), one at a time. Each passage specifies a point of departure and two to four key features (listed randomly in the passage) that are to be visited by the student.
The student’s task is to
1. read each passage as it is presented (with as much assistance as is required),
2. identify the point of departure and the key features that are to be incorporated into the visit, and
3. use the floor plan (map) to trace a path that will begin at the designated point of departure, incorporate all the specified features, and move through the mall as quickly as he/she can.
The student begins with a passage that specifies two key features (including the point of departure) and finishes with a passage that specifies four features.
Shape Design
Global
This is predominantly a simultaneous processing task in which the student is required to (a) study a design that is presented for 10 seconds and (b) reproduce it with the colored shapes provided. The shapes include circles, rectangles, squares, and triangles, in three colors (red, blue, and yellow) and two sizes. The designs range from a simple combination of three shapes, different only in color, to a complex combination of six shapes, differing in color, shape, and size. The task is divided into three difficulty levels with six items at each level.
Bridging
The student’s task is to read a phrase or story from a card that describes how two to five animals are arranged in relation to one another. He/she visualizes the scene with the animals appropriately positioned. Then, with the reading card turned over, the student arranges the animals to correspond with the scene as it was de¬scribed in the phrase or story. There are three difficulty levels, cor¬responding to the number and complexity of relationships.
Shapes and Objects
Global
In this simultaneous processing task, the student is required to match a picture of an object to an abstract shape (Level 1) or match a colored chip (shape) to a geometric shape (Level 2). He or she is asked to sort the picture cards or chips into the shape category that each one most resembles. In Item 1, there are 15 indi¬vidual cards which are matched to one of the three illustrated ab¬stract shapes. For item 2, 24 colored chips are matched to one of the four illustrated geometric shapes.
Bridging
The student is presented with sets of 7, 10, or 13 phrases or sentences, subsets of which can be categorized on the basis of thematic similarity. These sets each contain either two subsets of three phrases, three subsets of three or four phrases/sentences, or four subsets of three phrases/sentences and a “distractor”. The student begins with a two-group set, proceeds to a three-group set, and finishes with a four-group set. He or she is also presented with the appropriate number of labels, each of which identifies a thematic category. For each set of phrases/sentences, the student is required to
1. read the phrases/sentences aloud;
2. sort the items into the specified categories; and
3. identify the distractor.