We’ve just wrapped up a successful event in celebration of BCBA Sam Blanco’s newly released ABA Curriculum for the Common Core for Kindergarten. We couldn’t be more grateful and proud of the work that Sam has accomplished in creating this robust and one-of-a-kind curriculum kit with us. We’d like to thank all of the educators, professionals, parents, and friends again who joined us this past Wednesday.
The ABA Curriculum for the Common Core Kit: Kindergarten and other raffle prizes. (Masao Katagami)
Guests had the opportunity to connect with each other over an autumnal arrangement of hors d’oeuvres, delicious sushi, baked sweets, and wine, while looking through all the materials and components of the ABA Curriculum for the Common Core Kit. A special raffle was also held, during which guests had the chance to try their luck at winning any of the 4 raffle prizes: one Language Builder set and the Curriculum Book for the ABA Curriculum for the Common Core, one Time Timer PLUS and the curriculum book, the What the Heck Does That Mean?! Idioms Game, and last but not least, the entire kit for the ABA Curriculum for the Common Core: Kindergarten. Congratulations to the raffle winners – Alicia, Meaghan, Linda – and of course, the big winner of the kit, Debbie!
Party attendees mingle over food and the ABA Curriculum for the Common Core Kit: Kindergarten. (Masao Katagami)
Sam Blanco, MSED, BCBA tells guests about the curriculum and kit. (Masao Katagami)
View all of the event photos on our Facebook page here.
For more information about the ABA Curriculum for the Common Core Kit: Kindergarten, please email info@difflearn.com. Requests to arrange a demonstration or training with the curriculum kit can be directed to Abigail at (212) 604-9637 or abigail@difflearn.com.
We’re thrilled to introduce this pioneering curriculum kit containing both the materials and programs to teach each Kindergarten Common Core standard for both English Language Arts and Math. Authored by Sam Blanco, MSEd, BCBA, the curriculum has been created exclusively for students in special education settings using the evidence-based principles of Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA).
We’re thrilled to announce that our very own app for auditory discrimination What’s That Sound? Learning to Listen and Identify Sounds is now available for Android devices*. Find it available now in the 
Do you know of any upcoming conference or workshops on Autism?! Please let us know of any ABA, Verbal Behavior or Speech-Language Therapy events and we will share it with our community. We strive to help our readers be informed about resources and events for parents and educators of children with autism or other developmental delays. No matter how big or how small – email info about your event to 
We’re extremely excited to announce that our very own sorting skills app Clean Up: Category Sorting is now available for Android devices*. Find it available now the 
Symbolic play refers to a child’s ability to use one object or action to represent a different object or action within imaginary play. The symbolic play skill that involves object substitution typically begins to emerge around 18 months. For example, you might observe a child using an empty box for a “hat” or an overturned bucket for a “drum.” Blocks are a mainstay in early childhood classrooms because the benefits are innumerable. Block play can help to facilitate cooperation, visuo-spatial skills, problem solving ability, social skills, and language development, and is a good predictor of future mathematical abilities.
One hallmark of the diagnostic criteria for autism spectrum disorder is a presence of “persistent deficits in social communication and social interaction across multiple contexts, as manifested by difficulties in sharing imaginative play or in making friends.” Additionally, rigid thinking patterns may make symbolic play difficult for children with autism as they might view objects in a limited way that makes it difficult to pretend a block is something other than a block. 
Since unit blocks are a huge component of early childhood classrooms everywhere one could imagine that exposure to them and some level of proficiency opens up huge social opportunities for learners with autism spectrum disorders with their mainstream peers in the classroom.
drawings of objects onto the blocks and then systematically fade them out. Once the learner begins to consistently use the blocks with the attached images you can use stimulus fading procedure to fade out the visual prompt. This can be done by photocopying the image and systematically changing the lightness until eventually the learner is presented with just the block.
