Like any educational tool, a token board is most effective when used consistently within the context of a comprehensive classroom management plan. Token boards have been associated with Applied Behavior Analysis, as they provide a simple and visual method of structuring and providing reinforcement. They can be used to narrow or broaden your reinforcement schedule. They can be used to teach children how to defer gratification. They can be used narrowly to address specific behavior problems.

At the same time, unless you and your staff or you and your collaborating teacher are clear about how a token is earned, you can end up with a lot of dysfunction. The purpose is to provide clarity about which behaviors, even academic, that you are reinforcing. If you get preoccupied and don’t consistently award tokens, you also undermine your whole reinforcement plan. For these reasons, it’s important to address how you make and use a token board in your classroom.

Basically, a token board has individual pictures or tokens that are held in place by Velcro. The tokens are stored on the back of the board until they are moved to the front of the board. Usually, the number of tokens is determined by how long you believe you can defer reinforcement.