Category Archives: Academics

Annotated Resources: Bullying

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October is National Bullying Prevention Month! In this month’s ASAT feature, Sunbul Rai, MSc, BCBA, Renee Wozniak, PhD, BCBA-D, and Rachel L. Liebert have collected some amazing resources to address the issue of bullying. To learn more about ASAT, please visit their website at www.asatonline.org. You can also sign up for ASAT’s free newsletter, Science in Autism Treatment, and like them on Facebook!

Bullying is an unfortunate reality for many individuals with (and without) autism spectrum disorder (ASD). This list of annotated resources has been created to serve as a helpful reference for individuals with ASD, parents, clinicians, and educators alike. Included are resources that provide realistic strategies around both preventing bullying and addressing existing bullying. We hope that this information will support informed decisions and assist you in taking a strong stand against bullying.

 

1.  National Autism Association (2015). A & S bullying: 5 things parents can do – www.autismsafety.org/bullying-tips.php The National Autism Association (NAA, 2015) provides a brief and practical list of five steps parents can take to address and prevent bullying in school, including 1) preparing the team, 2) addressing bullying with specific goals in the Individualized Education Plan (IEP), 3) preparing your child, 4) monitoring your child for signs of being bullied and 5) using the complaint process. At the outset, the authors stress the need to clarify the school district’s policies on bullying as a first step to prepare the team. Next, NAA suggests politely making it clear that you will be involved in helping the team to avoid your child’s victimization, and clearly communicating with teachers, administrators, the school board, and possibly the child’s peers to provide information on the child’s specific strengths and challenges, autism spectrum disorder, and the problem of bullying. In the IEP, NAA suggests addressing bullying by including social skills and self-advocacy goals, applicable accommodations, a familiarization plan, and specific peer support. To prepare your child, it is suggested to talk to him/her about appropriate friendships and about bullying, obtain social skills training if possible, and to help him/her get organized and oriented to the school in advance. Next, NAA suggests monitoring your child consistently for signs of being bullied by visiting the school often and keeping the lines of communication open with your child and teachers. If the complaint process is necessary, be persistent while avoiding being overly emotional; begin with informal written resolutions, moving to filing a complaint if necessary, while keeping in mind your rights under “The Individualized with Disabilities Education Act” (IDEA, 2004). “A & S Bullying: 5 Things Parents Can Do” is a quick read that may help parents take some simple first steps in addressing and preventing bullying issues for their child.

2.  Autism Speaks (2015). Combating bullying – www.autismspeaks.org/family-services/bullying “Combating Bullying” is a compilation of information surrounding bullying of individuals with ASD, incorporating links to a variety of Internet and other resources. Some of the links include the Interactive Autism Network (IAN)’s study on bullying experiences of children on the autism spectrum, a Special Needs Anti-Bullying Toolkit, the trailer for and information on Bully: A Documentary, links to almost 20 books, 10 websites, and to other resources including a DVD and a list of signs to look out for that your child might be being bullied. The compilation addresses bullying of individuals with ASD and Asperger’s Syndrome, and includes information on bullying in schools, cyber bullying, and more. Information may be useful for parents, caregivers, educators, school administrators, individuals with ASD, and peers/friends of individuals with ASD.

3.  Autism Intervention Research Network on Behavioral Health (2013) – Remaking Recess www.airbnetwork.org/remaking.asp The Autism Intervention Research Network on Behavioral Health provides access to a booklet on a social skills intervention called “Remaking Recess” for use in the school setting. The booklet provides a treatment overview (helping children with ASD learn to engage with peers in the school setting) and a brief summary of playground engagement states (solitary, onlooker, parallel, parallel aware, joint engagement, games with rules) followed by specific strategies that can be implemented at recess time. Intervention strategies are included for a variety of situations, including 1) transitioning to an engaging activity and setting up, 2) providing popular developmentally-appropriate games and activities, 3) in-vivo social skills instruction, 4) facilitating peer conversations, 5) playing games, 6) sustaining engagement, 6) fading out of an activity and 7) a quick guide to boosting peer engagement. One of the main purposes of the intervention is to prevent bullying by aiming to improve the social inclusion of elementary-aged children with ASD by means of facilitated interactions with peers. “Remaking Recess” may be useful for individuals in educational settings who wish to take proactive steps to reduce bullying.

4.  Committee for Children (2015). Second step bullying prevention unit – www.cfchildren.org/second-step/research The Committee for Children is a non-profit organization that uses education with the aim of preventing bullying, child abuse and youth violence. The Second Step Bullying Prevention Unit is an initiative through The Committee for Children and is aimed at reducing bullying and peer victimization. The website includes information on the Second Step Bullying Prevention Unit Program as well as program outcomes. It comprises an article on the role of social-emotional learning (SEL) in bullying prevention efforts and highlights the importance of specific social and emotional skills taught in SEL programs, which include 1) empathy, 2) emotion management, 3) social problem solving, and 4) social competence. The website indicates that the implementation of the Second Step Bullying Prevention Unit can help empower schools to prevent and reduce bullying. It may be useful for professionals and parents alike to help them better understand specific skills that need to be taught to children to help prevent bullying.

5.  AbilityPath.org: Support for Parents of Children with Special Needs (2014). Bullying – www.abilitypath.org/areas-of-development/learning–schools/bullying/ AbilityPath.Org provides many bullying resources on its website and one of its highlights is the comprehensive report on bullying which focuses on supporting parents of children with special needs. The report is entitled “Walk a Mile in Their Shoes: Bullying and the Child with Special Needs” and emphasizes the “silent epidemic” of bullying that children with special needs face on a daily basis. It has several sections, which include: an overview of the report, testimonials from parents and children, targets: children with special needs, statistics, signs of being bullied, cyber bullying, teachable moments, the IEP, the law, the experts, the anti-bully program, and the call to action. Furthermore, it has several parent toolkits along with a teacher toolkit to help caregivers identify signs of bullying, and it highlights proactive steps that can be taken to protect a child with special needs. The information is also geared towards cyber bullying, which is bullying that can be conducted through the use of technology and social media sites. For example, one of the parent toolkits stresses the importance of protecting a child with special needs by teaching the child not to reveal personal information online, limiting online time, reviewing security settings on the computer and so forth. “Walk a Mile in Their Shoes: Bullying and the Child with Special Needs” promotes awareness, provides resources on bullying and its impact, and may be useful for parents, caregivers, teachers, administrators and other professionals working with children with special needs.

6.  PBIS: Positive Behavioral Interventions & Supports (2015). Bully prevention in SWPBS – www.pbis.org/school/bully-prevention PBIS: Positive Behavioral Interventions & Supports (2015) provides bully prevention manuals for the elementary, middle, and high school levels. The manuals are meant as a resource for the school setting and aim to provide students with the tools needed to be free of bullying through the use of school-wide positive behavior interventions and supports. The program described in the manual is divided into six lessons and focuses on the “stop/walk/talk procedure” for gossip, inappropriate remarks, and cyber bullying. The stop/walk/talk procedure involves physical and verbal components with examples of when these components can be used appropriately and when they should not be implemented. The manual emphasizes teaching the skill, followed by practice and roleplaying for a variety of scenarios. The lessons are easy to read and are ready for implementation in the classroom setting. PBIS’s bully prevention manuals may be useful for teachers or other educators in school and similar settings.

7.  National School Climate Center. (2015). Educating minds and hearts… because the three R’s are not enough – http://schoolclimate.org/ The National School Climate Center is an organization that utilizes relevant research to establish and distribute guidelines to encourage acceptance and safety in schools. The Center offers professional development programs for educators, parents, and after-school supervisors to better understand and promote children’s social and emotional wellness and communication. Their website offers guidelines to help educators and parents establish and maintain safe, comfortable schools and homes by understanding social and emotional learning. The “Bully Prevention” section of the website includes a toolkit entitled “The Breaking the Bully-Victim-Bystander Cycle Tool Kit.” This resource may be useful for educators who wish to create a positive school climate.

8.  The Bully Project (2015) – http://www.thebullyproject.com/ The Bully Project is a website that aims to take action against bullying. It focuses on a documentary about children who were bullied during the 2009-2010 academic year and how their parents supported them and modeled “upstander” rather than “bystander” behavior. The website invites users to share their own stories and host or organize screenings of the film to raise awareness. The site also includes tools (including DVDs and toolkits that can be purchased) for students, parents, advocates, and educators, with a section devoted to individuals with special needs. The tools for educators are also available in Spanish. The “Roadmap to Building a Caring and Respectful School Community” includes work that was produced with the assistance of the Making Caring Common Initiative at the Harvard Graduate School of Education. The website also provides interested individuals a platform in which they can take action by joining regional anti-bully project teams. This resource may be useful for those looking to increase awareness and to take steps toward reducing bullying.

9.  Pacer’s National Bullying Prevention Center (2015). The end of bullying begins with you – www.pacer.org/bullying/ Pacer’s National Bullying Prevention Center’s website was developed for children and teenagers to be part of a social cause to end bullying. It includes a section dedicated to students with disabilities with legal information and template letters for parents to send to their child’s school to serve as notification of a bullying situation and a written record of having done so. The website also directs children and teenagers to other helpful resources including KidsAgainstBullying.org and TeensAgainstBullying.org. Ample information is provided about National Bullying Prevention Month (October) including a brief history, opportunities to register for events, key points to make should you wish to give a presentation, and directions to request a governor’s proclamation. Educator toolkits are available under the resources tab, and they include classroom toolkits, community toolkits, student-created toolkits, and activities for youth. Additionally, there is a guide for planning school events, and a peer advocacy guide. This website may be useful for children and teenagers who want to make a difference and provides tangible resources to reduce bullying.

10.  U.S. Department of Health & Human Services (2015). Stopbullying.gov – http://stopbullying.gov This government website provides a wealth of resources across a variety of areas, in both English and Spanish. An array of topics is covered with related subtopics and links. General topics and subtopics include:

  • What is Bullying – definition, roles kids play, and related matters (e.g., harassment, teen dating violence, peer conflict and more)
  • Cyber Bullying – what it is, how to prevent it, how to report it, and risk factors
  • Who is at Risk – warning signs, effects, and considerations for specific groups (including bullying and youth with disabilities and special health needs)
  • Preventing Bullying – how to talk about it, prevention at school, working in the community, and a training center which includes videos, reading modules, research and statistics, training manuals, toolkits, user guides and additional resources
  • Responding to Bullying – stopping it on the spot, finding out what happened, supporting the kids involved, and being more than a bystander
  • Get Help Now – includes steps to take to resolve a range of bullying situations

Cite this:
Rai, S., Wozniak, R. & Liebert, R. L. (2015). Annotated resources: Bullying. Science in Autism Treatment, 12(4), 23-27.

Bullying can be complex and the Association for Science in Autism Treatment has other resources available for help with this, as well. Please check out the links below to learn more!

1. Clinical Corner: Preventing and Addressing Bullying, Lori Ernsperger, Ph.D., BCBA-D
https://www.asatonline.org/research-treatment/clinical-corner/bullying/

2. Clinical Corner: Teaching Safety Skills to Adolescents, Shannon Wilkinson, MADS, BCaBA
https://www.asatonline.org/for-parents/education/lifespan/teaching-safety-skills-to-adolescents/

About The Authors 

Sunbul Rai, M.Sc, is a Board Certified Behavior Analyst® with a background in education and psychology.  She has extensive experience working with individuals on the Autism Spectrum in a variety of settings across Canada.  Sunbul serves as the Practicum Consultant for the University of New Brunswick’s Autism Intervention Training Program.  She is also the founder of the ABA Little Tots Program at Autism Services, the first intensive behavioural intervention (IBI) program in Saskatchewan.  She is committed to enhancing the quality of life of individuals with Autism so that they can reach their full and utmost potential.

Renee Wozniak, PhD, BCBA-D, joined the ASAT Board of Directors in 2016. Prior to serving as a Board Member, Renée was a part of ASAT’s Externship, where she assumed the roles of Media Watch Co-Coordinator and Media Watch Lead. Renée received her Ph.D. in Special Education, focusing on Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) and Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA), from Arizona State University. She has worked in the fields of ASD and ABA in a variety of capacities since 1998, serving in public schools as a special education teacher, behavior intervention teacher specialist and district-wide autism trainer, and in clinical and home-based ABA programs as a research assistant, clinical/behavior interventionist, and program supervisor. Renée has trained families, therapists, teachers, teacher candidates, paraprofessionals, administrators, and others working with individuals with autism, and has instructed master’s level ABA, ASD, research and special education courses. She currently serves in the roles of faculty and subject matter expert in Capella University’s Applied Behavior Analysis program. Renée is passionate about helping individuals with autism and their families by supporting and disseminating scientific research in autism treatment.

Rachel Liebert was an extern at ASAT from 2015 to 2016 while she was studying psychology at Barnard College of Columbia University.  She is currently a second-year law student at Fordham University and plans to pursue a career in public policy and child welfare.

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Building Variability Into The Routine

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Several years ago, I was working with a 6-year-old boy we’ll call Terrence. Terrence was diagnosed with autism. He was a very playful child who was generally good-tempered, enjoyed playing with trains and watching TV, and posed few difficult behavior issues for his parents…until the day there was construction on their walk from the grocery store to their apartment and they decided to take a different route home. What happened next is what most people would call a full-blown meltdown: Terrence dropped to the ground, screaming and crying, and refused to move.

Many of the parents I work with have a similar story when it comes to their child with autism and an unexpected change in the routine. The change varies: the favorite flavor of fruit snacks is out of stock at the store or the babysitter greeted the child at the bus instead of the parent or they grew out of the coat they wore the past two winters… In fact, it can be difficult to anticipate exactly what specific routine may be a trigger for your learner. This is precisely why building variability into the routine can be helpful.

Here are a few things to consider:

First, think about the routines that are the most likely to be interrupted. Make a list of these so you can begin thinking about how to address those issues.
Second, work with your team (whether that means family or practitioners that work with your learner) to select 2-3 routines to focus on first.
Discuss how those routines would most likely be interrupted. For instance, a favorite TV show may be interrupted during election season or you may have a family function when the TV show is aired. In teaching your learner to be flexible with changes in routine, you will contrive changes that are likely to occur to give your learner quality practice.
Plan to vary the routine. Essentially, you are setting up the change in routine, but you will be prepared in advance to help your learner behave appropriately. (You’re much more likely to experience some success in this scenario than you would be if a change in routine occurs unexpectedly and/or last minute.)
Give your learner a vocabulary for what is happening. I teach many of my students the term “flexible.” I might say, “I appreciate how you’re being flexible right now” or “Sometimes when plans change we have to be flexible. This means…”
Reinforce appropriate behaviors related to flexibility! You want to be clear when they’ve made an appropriate, flexible response. In the planning phase, you can discuss what appropriate reinforcers might be for the routines you are targeting.
If you build in variations in routine and teach your learner some strategies for being flexible, you and your learner are much more likely to be successful in navigating unexpected changes.

WRITTEN BY SAM BLANCO, PhD, LBA, BCBA

Sam is an ABA provider for students ages 3-15 in NYC. Working in education for twelve years with students with Autism Spectrum Disorders and other developmental delays, Sam utilizes strategies for achieving a multitude of academic, behavior, and social goals. She is also an assistant professor in the ABA program at The Sage Colleges.

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Go Play! The Importance of Symbolic Play in Early Childhood

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This week’s post comes to us from Stephanny Freeman, PhD and Kristen Hayashida, MEd, BCBA, and Dr. Tanya Paparella, our partners on the Play Idea Cards app. Play Idea Cards is a full curriculum on teaching play – right in the palm of your hand! Check it out on the Apple App Store! 

GoPlay.jpg.png

Most adults think of toy play as a natural part of childhood.  When my daughter was born, we were showered with plush animals, tea sets, and dress up clothes for her to use in play.  But what happens when the child does not find toy play to be natural?

Many children on the autism spectrum use toys non-functionally or repetitively.  When I ask parents of children with ASD to tell me about their child’s play they often say “he doesn’t know how to use toys appropriately!”  They then tell me about how the child may spin the wheels on the car while staring at the rotating objects.  They tell me about the specific scripts the child uses to carry out a routine with their toys and subsequent tantrums if the routine is disrupted.  Parents notice how this deficit in play impacts their ability to engage with peers or occupy their free time appropriately.

Symbolic play occurs when the child uses objects or actions to represent other objects or actions.  For example, a child using a doll as their baby and rocking the doll to sleep is an act of symbolic play.  The doll is not alive, but the child is representing a baby.  This skill is a core deficit in children with ASD.  This means that they do not “naturally” or “easily” acquire the ability to use toys to represent other things.  Development of symbolic play is crucial in early development and is tied to numerous subsequent skills:

Language: symbolic play is highly correlated to language development.  This means that the better the child’s ability to play representationally, the better the child’s language skills.  There is also emerging evidence to support symbolic play as having a causal relationship to language.  [Explanation].

Social Development: as neurotypical children continue their learning about symbolic play and through symbolic play, children with ASD often struggle to relate to their peers and understand their play schemes.  Some children with ASD may only engage peers in physical play (instead of symbolic play) or they may end up playing alone using their familiar play scripts.

Perspective-taking: symbolic play allows the child early opportunities to take on the perspective of another being.  If a child pretends to be a pirate, they being to talk and think of things a pirate might want/do.  This early practice with perspective-taking allows the child to use this skill when interacting with peers and adults.

Meta-cognition and Problem Solving Skills: meta-cognition is the ability to think about one’s own thinking.  This is an essential skill when solving problems and planning one’s time.  During play kids plan, organize and cognitively process through obstacles and mishaps with their toys.

Emotional Development: through symbolic play, children can practice expressing emotion through the scenes they create.  There is also some evidence suggesting that this early practice contributes to emotion understanding and empathy.

Clearly, children need play for growth and development.   However, for children with ASD the development of symbolic play may be difficult and, even thought of as WORK!

Given the numerous skills that come out of symbolic play, we urge parents of children with ASD to consider the importance of toy play.  Dedicate time and effort to engage your child in symbolic play.  It is usually not easy at first!  It might have been decades since you picked up an action figure and used him to fight off bad guys, but practice with your child.

Parents know that it is part of their job to help their child learn to read and do basic math.  They would not let their child escape those tasks because they are hard.  Please consider PLAY to be just as important and necessary for the child’s development.  Even if it is work at first, insist the child play with you and in time, improvements may come not only in toy play but also in so many other key areas of development.

Jarrold, C., Boucher, J., & Smith, P. (1993). Symbolic play in autism: A review. Journal of

Autism and Developmental Disorders, 23(2), 281-307.

Ungerer, J.A. & Sigman, M. (1981). Symbolic play and language comprehension in autistic

children. Journal of the American Academy of Child Psychiatry, 20, 318-337.

About The Authors

Dr. Stephanny Freeman is a clinical professor at UCLA, a licensed clinical psychologist, and Co-Directs the Early Childhood Partial Hospitalization Program (ECPHP).  For 20 years, she has educated children with ASD and other exceptionalities as a teacher, studied interventions for social emotional development, and designed curriculum and behavior plans in school and clinic settings.

Kristen Hayashida is a Board Certified Behavior Analyst at the UCLA Early Childhood Partial Hospitalization Program (ECPHP).  For the last 10 years she has served as a therapist, researcher and educator of children and families living with autism spectrum disorder through the treatment of problem behavior.

Dr. Tanya Paparella is a specialist in the field of autism having spent more than 20 years in intervention and research in autism. She is an Associate Clinical Professor in the Division of Child Psychiatry at UCLA, a licensed clinical psychologist, and Co-Director of UCLA’s Early Childhood Partial Hospitalization Program (ECPHP), an internationally recognized model treatment program for young children on the autism spectrum.

 

 

 

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Ethics Part One: Data Collection and The Right to Effective Treatment

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In the next few weeks I will be writing about ethics in the field of applied behavior analysis. This is the first part in a multi-part series.

Sometimes behavior analysts get a bad rap because we are so focused on the data. Somehow, there is a perception that writing down the numbers and graphing the information is “cold” or “unfeeling” towards the client. Over the course of my career, I’ve had more than one person say to me that I was more fun or more playful than they expected me to be as a behavior analyst. I’m not exactly sure where these misperceptions started, but today I want to get to the root of them.
As a BCBA, I am bound by the Professional and Ethical Compliance Code for Behavior Analysts. Within this code, it clearly states “Clients have a right to effective treatment.” This is something I take to heart every day in my work. And it’s the primary reason that I have my clipboard and am taking data. I want to ensure that the treatment I am introducing is actually effective. My data is what shows me when something is clearly not working, and allows me to be efficient with making changes the best benefit my client.
Clear, objective data allows me to be responsive to data and provide information in a responsible manner. Here are a few things to consider:
• When I graph data daily and look at that information, it’s very easy for me to see if a client’s performance has plateaued, is improving, or is actually getting worse. I can make adjustments based on the trend in the data.
• When all practitioners working with the client graph daily, I might (as the supervisor) see that the client is not performing as well with one practitioner. This might indicate that more training needs to occur. Or, I might see that one practitioner is getting far better results than the others. This might indicate that the practitioner is not recording data correctly or is doing something as part of the intervention that everyone should be doing.
• Data should be collected daily and the teaching programs should be clearly outlined. This way, if for some reason a practitioner abruptly stops working with the client or if the client moves, it is much easier for future practitioners to pick up where the last ones left off.
• Looking at data daily gives an idea of the individual client’s general trends in mastering new skills. For instance, last year I had a client who generally mastered new skills within one week, and his trend in the data was very consistent across all types of skills. So if we introduced a new program and he wasn’t mastering it for three weeks, it was an indication that we needed to re-evaluate what we were teaching or how we were teaching it. Being well-versed in your individual client’s learning patterns allows you to more clearly make individualized decisions!
We’d love to hear from you. What outcomes have you discovered in the relationship between being responsive to data and providing effective treatment for your clients?

WRITTEN BY SAM BLANCO, PhD, LBA, BCBA

Sam is an ABA provider for students ages 3-15 in NYC. Working in education for twelve years with students with Autism Spectrum Disorders and other developmental delays, Sam utilizes strategies for achieving a multitude of academic, behavior, and social goals. She is also an assistant professor in the ABA program at The Sage Colleges.

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Discussing Autism with Newly Diagnosed 9 Year Old

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This week’s blog comes to us from clinical psychologist Lauren Elder and was originally posted on Autism Speaks as part of their Got Questions? series.

“Our son, age 9, was recently diagnosed with autism. He knows something’s up, but we’re not sure how to explain. Advice?”

Yours is a difficult situation shared by many parents. Children need to understand what’s going on, but the discussion needs to be appropriate for their age and level of development. Your openness will help your child feel comfortable coming to you with questions.

I recommend a series of ongoing conversations rather than a one-time discussion. Here are some tips for starting the conversation and preparing some answers for questions that your son may ask:

Explain autism in terms of your child’s strengths and weaknesses
You may want to focus on what he’s good at, and then discuss what’s difficult for him. You can explain that his diagnostic evaluation provided important information on how to use his strengths to meet his challenges. Focus on how everyone has strengths as well as weaknesses. Give some examples for yourself, his siblings and other people he knows.

Provide basic information about autism 
Depending on your son’s maturity and understanding, you may want to continue by talking about what autism means. (See our “What Is Autism?” webpage.) You want to give your child a positive but realistic picture.

It may help your son to hear that autism is common and that there are many children like him. This can open a discussion about the strengths and challenges that many children with autism share. You might likewise discuss how individuals with autism tend to differ from other children.

For instance, you might explain that many children with autism are very good at remembering things. Some excel at building things or at math. Also explain that many children with autism have difficulty making friends and communicating with other people.

Don’t make everything about autism
It’s important to emphasize that your son’s autism-related strengths and challenges are just part of who he is and why you love him. Be sure to point out some of those special qualities that have nothing to do with his autism. This will help your child understand that autism is something that he has, not the sum total of who he is.

Assure your child of support 
Explain to your son why he’s receiving the services he’s getting. For instance, you could tell him that he sees a speech therapist to help him communicate more clearly, or that he’s seeing a behavioral therapist to improve how he makes friends. Help him understand how you, his therapists and his teachers all want to help him. You can point out that we all need some help to become the best we can be. Some children need extra help learning to read. Some get very sad and need help in that department, etc.

Expect to repeat these conversations!
All children – and especially those with autism – need to hear some information multiple times. This doesn’t mean he doesn’t understand. what you’ve told him. Rather, revisiting these topics can be an important part of his processing the information.

Find role models and peers
It’s important for children with autism to spend time with typically developing peers. However, for children your son’s age and older, it can be a wonderful experience to spend time with other children on the autism spectrum. Consider enrolling your son in a play group or social skills group specifically for children with autism.