Pick of the Week: Decisions ColorCards – Teach reasoning skills in problem situations

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Inspire rational decision-making with Decisions, a set of 30 beautifully clear images printed on large photo cards. This week only, you can take 15% off* your order of the Decisions ColorCards by entering in promo code DECIS6 at checkout!

Each card depicts an unexpected, unwelcome, or difficult situation to encourage logical thinking, using reasoning skills, and making prompt and rational decisions. Each scene presents a problem or requires specific decisions to be made, and varies from minor difficulties that upset daily life (e.g. missing a bus, waiting for a visitor) to elements of risk and danger (e.g. finding a pan on fire in the kitchen, stopping a water leak from the ceiling).

With the Decisions ColorCards, students will learn to:
  • make responsible choices
  • develop independent thought
  • keep safe
  • recognize consequences of intervening
  • understand the differences between minor difficulties and emergencies
  • find a balance between acting quickly and considering all aspects of a situation

Also included in this set is a CD-Rom that features printable versions of each card and graphic organizers that are useful for prompting meaning conversation.

Don’t forget—this week only, save 15%* on your purchase of the Decisions ColorCards by using or mentioning promo code DECIS6 when you check out online or over the phone with us!

*Offer is valid until 11:59pm EDT on June 24, 2014. Not compatible with any other offers. Be sure there are no spaces or dashes in your code at check out!

Different Roads iOS Apps Now Feature Family Sharing

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Apple has recently introduced a new Family Sharing feature, which allows up to 6 family members to browse and access each other’s iTunes, iBooks, and App Store purchases, as well as share photos, calendars, and locations with each other. We’re excited to announce that all of our Different Roads apps in the iTunes App Store have also begun to support this feature. Family Sharing also includes parental controls, enabling parents to approve purchases and downloads initiated by children first.

Different Roads to Learning Apps

Clean Up Cateogory Sorting AppClean-Up: Category Sorting  This highly-rated interactive program develops language, reasoning, and sorting and classifying skills in young learners. Players must “clean up” by putting 75 photographic images of toys, food, and clothing away in the correct shopping cart, refrigerator, or toy box. Each target is introduced by its label (“Where does the Apple go?”) in each round where players see 15 unique images. Correct responses receive visual and auditory reinforcement while incorrect answers are corrected by a visual prompt of the correct answer flashing. This app builds foundational sorting skills for students just developing their sorting and classifying skills. Available on iPhone and iPad.

Whats that Sound App

What’s that Sound? Learning to Listen and Identify Sounds  This interactive and easy-to-grasp game develops auditory discrimination and processing skills in young learners. Players will improve their skills by matching objects and their associated sounds. Simple auditory processing skills lay the foundation for learning how to read, speak and spell.
Available on iPhone and iPad.

 

What Goes Together App

What Goes Together?  This interactive program develops language, discrimination, and reasoning skills in young learners. Clear, colorful images of everyday objects promote an understanding of functions and the relationships between items that children encounter on a daily basis. With built-in reinforcement and error correction, this game provides a solid foundation in building critical expressive and receptive language skills. Available on iPhone and iPad.

Tell Me About It App

Tell Me About It!  Featured as Editor’s Choice on Best Apps for Kids, this universal app is specifically designed for children with autism and other speech and language delays. Based on the Applied Behavioral Analysis approach, this program mimics an actual one-on-one instructional session with a therapist. The app provides 15 categories of language targets, such as body parts, household items, clothing and food, and six levels of difficulty, which progressively become more difficult, from labelling to shared feature, function, and category. This app also features an easy-to-read report card, which provides tracking data for each child and an option to e-mail the report card results. Available on iPhone and iPad.

To discover all of our current apps and what Family Sharing can do for your family, visit our iTunes App Store page.

Tip of the Week: Teaching Money Skills to Students with Autism in Natural Social Situations

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Recently I took a thirteen-year-old boy with autism grocery shopping for the first time. We had practiced all of the steps for paying: looking at the total on the register, taking out the necessary bills or coins, waiting for change, making sure we had correct change, returning the money to the wallet, etc. While I thought he was ready to do this in a natural environment, I did not expect what actually happened.

Standing at the counter with a line of people impatiently waiting behind us, my student dumped all the change from his wallet on the counter and slowly began counting out the exact amount. I could hear other store patrons grumbling behind us when my student finally finished paying, then dropped coins all over the floor, and swept his remaining money back into his wallet.

The concern here is that some of the behaviors associated with autism can place an individual in danger if misunderstood by a cashier or store patron. My student appeared to be oblivious to the frustration of the people around him, offering no apology or explanation. There are many resources out there for teaching children with autism about identifying coins, counting out exact change, etc. But it’s essential that we think beyond the fundamentals of managing money to the more complex skills of managing the social situations that arise during money transactions on a daily basis.

Here are some social skills related to money to practice with your students:

  • Keep your wallet in your hand, do not lay it on the counter.
  • Look for the total on the register. If there is not a place to see the total, ask for it after all the items have been rung up.
  • Put the money in the cashier’s hand.
  • Put your hand out to receive change.
  • Once you have completed payment, make sure your wallet is securely back in your pocket or bag.
  • Understand how to respond if a cashier asks “Do you have exact change?” or “Do you have a smaller bill?” or any variation of those questions.
  • Pay with speed.
  • Understand how to ask to put an item back if you do not have enough money.
  • Know basic scripts for what to say in challenging situations, such as if you accidentally bump into someone with your shopping basket or you are taking a long time and another patron says something rude about it.

My takeaway from this experience was that I needed to provide practice in the natural environment much sooner than I had thought. I must consider the fact that we simply can’t contrive the broad range of possible interactions with strangers in a home or classroom setting. My students require dozens, if not hundreds, of opportunities to practice a skill before mastering it, and generalization is frequently challenging, so presenting them with a variety of natural environment experiences is important. I also must recognize that a student’s behavior will often vary from one environment to another, so the sooner I know what he or she is doing in the natural environment, the sooner I can implement meaningful instruction and intervention to address any problems. Finally, because ABA providers and teachers have more limited access to the natural environment than parents and caregivers, we should provide specific goals and teaching strategies to help them practice with the learner when we’re not present.

Data Sheets Now Available for Hooray for Play!

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I get pretty excited about pretend play and it isn’t unusual for me to engage colleagues at length in a conversation about how it can be incorporated into a learner’s home program using naturalistic behavioral methods. I can go on and on about all of the various play schemas that can be taught, my observations regarding which play schemas are of the greatest interest to the learner’s peer group at the moment, and regular items from around the house that can be incorporated as props.

The Hooray for Play! cards break down all of this information into a framework that is easy to reference and remember. Additionally, the simple illustrations provide visual stimuli to facilitate conversation about various schemas, to prime a student before play begins, or to help facilitate choice during pretend play. However, it isn’t long into our conversation when my colleagues ask, “What about the data?” Of course, this is where the conversation ends up because in an ABA program, all decisions are data-driven and based on observable and clearly defined target behaviors. However, with something as fluid as pretend play, it can sometimes feel a bit daunting to break the play down into smaller parts without scripting it completely.

The Hooray for Play! Data Sheets allow for the most salient elements of a play schema to be taught while still leaving room for variation and flexibility, which can be critical when generalizing to peers. Additionally, the targets are not predetermined so that they can be individualized for the learner. Below, you will find an example of the data sheet with some rows filled in to illustrate what it might look like. A blank version is also available in the set, so that it can be individualized for a specific learner.

HoorayForPlay_DataSheets_Example

There are a variety of techniques founded in the science of Applied Behavior Analysis that are effective in increasing and improving play skills. Research-based procedures can range from very structured to more naturalistic and should be chosen based on an approach best suited for the learner.

Some examples include:

  • Video Modeling
  • Play Scripts
  • Pivotal Response Training (PRT)
  • Peer Training

References:
Charlop-Christy, M. H., Le, L., & Freeman, K. A. (2000). A comparison of video modeling with in vivo modeling for teaching children with autism. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 30 (6), 537-552.

Goldstein, H. & Cisar, C.L. (1992). Promoting interaction during sociodramatic play: teaching scripts to typical preschoolers and classmates with disabilities. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 25, 265–80.

Koegel, L.K., Koegel, R.L., Harrower, J.K. & Carter, C.M. (1999). Pivotal response intervention. I: Overview of approach. Journal of the Association for Persons with Severe Handicaps, 25, 174-85.

Stahmer, A.C. (1999). Using pivotal response training to facilitate appropriate play in children with autistic spectrum disorders. Child Language Teaching and Therapy, 15, 29–40.

Pierce, K. & Schreibman, L. (1997). Using peer trainers to promote social behavior in autism: Are they effective at enhancing multiple social modalities? Focus on Autism and Other Developmental Disabilities, 12, 207–18.

Pick of the Week: Watch It! Elapsed Time Clock

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Teach elapsed time with this classroom tool featuring two analog wristwatches with correlating digital clocks. The Watch It! Elapsed Time Clock is a simple, non-electronic, and clear way to teach elapsed time. This week only, save 15%* on your order of the Watch It! Elapsed Time Clock by using promo code WATCHIT at check out!

To operate the clock, simply move the minute hand on the first watch to your desired start time and the minute hand on the second watch to your finish time—the digital clocks underneath will automatically adjust. Then, slide open the cover on the answer window to see the elapsed time or keep it closed to quiz students. You can also use it to teach reading analog time and for practice on adding time. No batteries are required.

The Watch It! Elapsed Time Clock comes with two large, analog-geared wristwatches, two correlating digital clocks, an elapsed time answer window with a push-button quiz door, and a Teacher Guide with multilingual instructions (i.e. English, Spanish, French, and German).

This week only, take 15% off* your purchase of the new Watch It! Elapsed Time Clock by mentioning or entering promo code WATCHIT when you check out by phone or online.

*Offer is valid until 11:59pm ET on June 17, 2014. Not compatible with any other offer. Be sure there are no spaces or dashes in your code at checkout!

The MotivAider is back in stock!

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DRT_382_MotivAiderOh, MotivAider, how we’ve missed you! Our favorite tool for providing a private prompt is back in stock after a long manufacturing delay. We wonder how we survived without it these past months!

We’re all breathing a collective sigh of relief that this versatile and invaluable resource is back and available to ship right away.

NYS Licensing Process for Behavior Analysts Announced

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The New York State Office of the Professions announced on Tuesday, June 3rd, 2014, the application process for licensed behavior analysts and certified behavior analyst assistants.  This process marks the first step in implementing the landmark ABA License Bill that was signed by New York State Governor Cuomo in January. This bill establishes a new state license for providers of applied behavior analysis (ABA) services to individuals with autism spectrum disorder. Now, individuals seeking to become licensed BCBA’s and BCaBA’s in New York will be able to register and become certified by the following requirements (subject to change in January 2016):

 

  1. Currently certified by the national Behavior Analyst Certification Board
  2. Submit a 4-page application
  3. Pay the required application fee
  4. At least 21 years of age
  5. Complete a 3-hour training in the identification and reporting of child abuse
  6. Be of good, moral character

Visit the NYS Office of the Professions’ website to view the detailed list of Licensure/Certification Requirements.

Special thanks to Eden II and ELIJA for sharing the news with us!

Tip of the Week: 5 Ways to Structure the Summer for Children with Autism

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As the school year comes to a close, it can be quite challenging to figure out how to fill all those summer hours for any child. But if your child has autism, the challenge to provide structure can prove especially difficult. Below are a few tips to assist you in that endeavor.

Create and communicate a new routine. Introducing a new routine can be valuable in easing the transition from full days at school to full days at home. You can set the new routine to be as flexible as necessary to meet the needs of the entire family. It may start very similarly to the school day routine: getting up, eating breakfast, brushing teeth, etc. You may then include specific times of the day for outdoor play, eating lunch, going with a babysitter, or playing on the computer. Think about the activities and toys that your learner enjoys the most and provide access to them as part of the routine. Providing visual cues such as activity schedules or to-do lists can also be beneficial.

Provide social opportunities whenever possible.  In the summer months, it’s quite possible that your learner will have much less interaction with peers. You can ask the school if there are any students who might be a good play date match for your learner. You can also look into day camps, summer sports activities, or board game nights. Think about what is highly motivating for your learner and consider possibilities for related activities that could involve peer interaction.

Look at potential camps.  There are many camps available for learners with special needs. If you’re unsure about camps in your area, ask the professionals who work with your child if they are aware of camps. You can also click here to see camps for children with autism.

Provide a summer calendar.  This calendar can be created based on your learner’s current skill level. For example, with some learners, you may just have pictures showing different activities (such as a picture of a nearby water park you’re visiting in July or a picture of your learner’s grandparents if they’re visiting one weekend). With other learners, you can have a written calendar, or even have them help create the summer calendar. Each day, the learner can refer to it and anticipate what activities and events are coming up.

Set one or two goals.  Summer may prove to be the perfect time to set goals around daily living skills that can be practiced without the rush of trying to meet the school bus. Chores such as making the bed or packing a school lunch can be taught with the goal of promoting independence and continuing those skills once the new school year begins.

Remember to consider what works best for your entire family as you plan for the summer. The goal is to create opportunities for a more relaxing home environment for everybody.

Going, Going…Gone! Shop now for big savings

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GoingGoingGoneWe’re bursting at the seams here and need to make room for all of the fabulous new items we’re going to be adding this summer. Visit the Going, Going, Gone section of our site for limited time savings. We’ve slashed prices by anywhere from 15-40% to make room for our new inventory. We have limited supply so once they’re gone, they’ll be gone forever so shop now and don’t miss out!

Meet Hannah Toale, Client Sales & Relationships Coordinator

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Hannah ToaleWe’re so pleased to introduce you to the newest member of our team, Hannah Toale.
Hannah joined us in October and has been brightening our days since. That warm and welcoming voice you hear when you call? That’s Hannah. She joins us out of Smith College with a degree in Physics and fresh off a stint as Onsite Sales Supervisor at the illustrious High Line here in NYC.

Hannah has been hard at work coordinating all of our conferences and events, presenting Different Roads from Philadelphia to Ohio, New York to North Carolina (we’re trying to make our way West!). If you have an upcoming event, be it a conference, support group meeting, or professional development day, shoot her an email at hannah@difflearn.com and she’ll find a way for us to participate.

In addition to planning all of our conferences and outreach, Hannah is also our primary customer service person. It’s Hannah’s lovely, helpful and kind voice you hear when you call. She’s a delight to have in the office with her can-do attitude and willingness to always go the extra mile for all our customers. We’re sure anyone who has talked with her will agree!

Natasha asked Hannah a few questions about how she’s settling in so far…

Tell us a bit about yourself. You were a physics major and worked at the world famous High Line. How is the transition to client sales and conference coordinator going?

I studied physics at Smith College with the end goal of being a teacher. I think that many people are so intimidated by math and science they find it difficult to even approach the subjects. I truly believe that people are much more capable then they believe themselves to be and that with patience and approaching a topic from different angles there is so much room to learn and grow. These ideas were what drew me so strongly to Different Roads to Learning. The people and products here help teachers, parents, and care givers work with young children to accomplish a great deal with conventional and unconventional tools. For example the MotivAider, which can be used to help form or break habits for children and adults. Or the Time Timers to help visualize the passing of time. All of the products that Different Roads to Learning has cultivated over the past 19 years are to make learning and developing less intimidating and more fun and attainable and I am very excited to be a part of it.

What part of your day do you most enjoy?

I have really enjoyed answering the phone, even if that sounds silly.  I love being able to help people in whatever way I can and to make the ordering process as easy as possible. I have been able to speak with people all over the U.S. and occasionally receive calls other countries. It is so amazing to me that there are people all over the world with the same goal -helping young learners and Different Roads to Learning seems to be a place they can all go for materials and guidance. Being the first person a customer will talk to and either helping them, or asking someone who can makes it so much fun to work here. Also… working in an office with all of these games and toys is indisputably awesome.