Tag Archives: special education

Pick of the Week: NEW! ABA Curriculum for the Common Core Kit: 1st Grade

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Following up on our ground-breaking Kindergarten kit for the ABA Curriculum for the Common Core, we’re thrilled to introduce the long-awaited ABA Curriculum for the Common Core: 1st Grade. This week, we’re also offering 15% off the normal retail price – just enter our promo code 1STGRADE at checkout to redeem your savings!

Utilizing the same accessible format, this new curriculum rooted in Applied Behavior Analysis addresses each and every Common Core State Standard for 1st grade students. Created by Sam Blanco, MSEd, BCBA, this curriculum has been devised exclusively for students in special education settings using the evidence-based principles of Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA).

Just like the Kindergarten version, the ABA Curriculum for the Common Core Kit: 1st Grade contains a curriculum book that drills down into each standard and breaks it into teachable steps. Programs are presented in a format that supports data collection and ease of use. Each Common Core standard is presented on its own page with clear instructions detailing the Teaching Procedure, Discriminative Stimulus (Sd), and Materials required for teaching. Each standard lists several targets that demonstrate the component steps and skills required for mastery. Additionally, every standard page references the correlating Kindergarten standard to drill down to for students who have not met the prerequisite skills for the first grade standard. A thorough “how-to” guide presents the main tenets of ABA, giving staff an accessible understanding of:

  • Motivation and Reinforcement
  • Pairing
  • Prompting
  • Generalization
  • Natural Environment Teaching
  • Preference Assessment
  • and Data Collection

In addition, comprehensive Data Sheets are included in the curriculum guide, along with samples of how to complete them. The goal of this curriculum kit is to make the Common Core standards accessible and relevant to students with autism and special needs.

Don’t forget to redeem your savings this week on the brand-new ABA Curriculum for the Common Core Kit: 1st Grade. Just mention or enter our promo code 1STGRADE when you check out with us online or over the phone!

Pick of the Week: Unstuck & On Target! – An Executive Function Curriculum to Improve Flexibility for Children with ASD

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For students with autism spectrum disorders, problems with flexibility and goal-directed behavior can be a major obstacle to success in school and in life. Unstuck & On Target! – a robust classroom-based curriculum book – will help educators and service providers teach these executive function skills to high-functioning students with autism through ready-to-use lessons that promote cognitive and behavioral flexibility. This week, you can save 15%* on Unstuck & On Target! by applying promo code UNSTUCK at check-out!

This curriculum gives clear instructions, materials lists, modifications for each lesson, and intervention tips to reinforce lessons throughout the school day. Topics include:

  • flexibility vocabulary
  • coping strategies
  • setting goals
  • flexibility in friendship
  • and more

…all introduced and reinforced with evidence-based lessons. Lessons will target specific skills, free up the instructor’s time, fit easily into any curriculum, ensure generalization to strengthen home-school connection, and best of all, make learning fun and engaging for students in the classroom. Unstuck & On Target! also comes with an accompanying CD-ROM that contains printable game cards, student worksheets, and other materials for each lesson. This curriculum is targeted for students with cognitive ability and language skills ages 8–11.

Written by Lynn Cannon, Lauren Kenworthy, Katie C. Alexander, Monica Adler Werner, and Laura Anthony. Software operating requirements: Windows 95+ and up, Mac OS 8.6 and up.

Don’t forget to use our promo code UNSTUCK at check-out this week to take 15%* off your order of this new curriculum!

*Offer is valid until 11:59pm EST on October 6th, 2015. Not compatible with any other offers. Be sure there are no spaces or dashes in your code at checkout!

Tip of the Week: Differential Reinforcement of Incompatible Behavior

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In a recent post, I talked about Skinner’s emphasis on differential reinforcement. Today, we are going to take a closer look at Differential Reinforcement of Incompatible behavior (DRI). DRI is defined as “a procedure for decreasing problem behavior in which reinforcement is delivered for a behavior that is topographically incompatible with the behavior targeted for reduction and withheld following instances of the problem behavior (e.g., sitting in seat is incompatible with walking around the room) (Cooper, Heron, & Heward, 2007).

Let’s look at a few examples of DRI in action:

  • Mrs. Clark is teaching a classroom with six students with autism. One of her students has recently begun to pinch his arms. She takes data on the behavior and discovers that it functions for attention. (When he pinches his arms, she or a teacher’s aid comes over and tells him “no pinching.”) She decided to implement an intervention that utilizes DRI. She teaches him how to sit with his hands intertwined on his desk. This is an incompatible behavior with pinching because he is not able to pinch while his hands are intertwined. She and the teacher’s aid reinforce him for intertwining his hands (come over and tell him, “great job” or “I like how you’re sitting”) and do not provide attention when he engages in arm pinching.
  • Carly has a 9-year-old daughter. When her daughter wants a break from doing homework, she reaches over and hits Carly’s arm. Carly typically says, “Do you need a break now?” Then, she allows her to take a five-minute break. Carly recognized that her daughter’s intensity with hitting seemed to be increasing, and she was worried she might get hurt. She decided to implement an intervention that utilized DRI. She put a timer on the table within her daughter’s reach, and taught her daughter to touch the timer when she wanted a break. This is an incompatible behavior because her daughter cannot simultaneously touch the timer and hit Carly. When Carly’s daughter touched the timer, she immediately received a break. When she hit Carly, she did not receive a break. This was an especially useful intervention because, over time, Carly taught her daughter to set the timer on her own and become more independent with managing break times.
  • Mr. Holley teaches a preschool class. During circle time, many of his students become very excited and can be quite loud. Sometimes it seems as though all of his students are yelling at the same time. Once they become too loud, it is very challenging to regain their attention. He decides to implement an intervention utilizing DRI. He uses a decibel meter on his tablet (such as the app Too Noisy). He teaches the students that when the noise level is below a certain number or threshold they all earn stickers. This is differential reinforcement of an incompatible behavior because the children cannot possibly speak loudly and softly simultaneously.

DRI is not always the best option. For example, it may be very challenging to come up with an incompatible behavior. Or, in the case of self-injurious or aggressive behavior, it may be dangerous to use such an intervention.

If you do use DRI, you may consider explicitly telling your learner(s) that you are implementing this new plan, such as Mr. Holley did in the third example above. And remember, this is only one form of differential reinforcement. If DRI is not appropriate for your situation, there are definitely still options for reinforcing appropriate behavior in an effective and efficient manner.

References

Cooper, J.O., Heron, T.E., & Heward, W.L. (2007). Applied Behavior Analysis – 2nd ed. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall.

WRITTEN BY SAM BLANCO, MSED, BCBA

Sam is an ABA provider for students ages 3-12 in NYC. Working in education for ten years with students with Autism Spectrum Disorders and other developmental delays, Sam has developed strategies for achieving a multitude of academic, behavior, and social goals. Sam is currently pursuing her PhD in Applied Behavior Analysis at Endicott College.

Pick of the Week: Save on the VB-MAPP Guide and Protocol

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The Verbal Behavior Milestones Assessment and Placement Program (VB-MAPP) offers a new generation of the application of B.F. Skinner’s analysis of verbal behavior to language assessment for children with autism or other developmental disabilities. Developed by Mark Sundberg, PhD, BCBA, the VB-MAPP is an assessment tool, curriculum guide, and skill tracking system that is also based on established developmental milestones, and research from the field of behavior analysis. This week, to help you gear up for the start of the schoolyear, we’re offering 15%* off all orders of the VB-MAPP Set. Just use our promo code VBMAPP at check-out to redeem these savings!

The VB-MAPP has been field-tested with children with autism, children with other developmental disabilities, and typically developing children.

The VB-MAPP provides a clear and accurate picture of an individual child’s abilities, as well as potential language and learning barriers that may be hindering progress. The overall program contains:

  • The Skills Assessment – Assesses 170 language and social milestones across 3 developmental levels. The milestones are quantifiable and measurable and can be used to document learning, or used for outcome research.
  • The Barriers Assessment – An assessment of 24 language and learning barriers that may prevent a child from making progress. The Barriers Assessment can be used for intervention planning and to track progress.
  • The Skills Task Analysis and Tracking System – Contains over 1000 skills that support the milestones, and can be used to record and track progress.
  • The Placement and IEP Guide – Suggests direction for the intervention program based on the child’s profiled strengths and weaknesses.
  • The Transition Assessment – Identifies the skills needed for successful transition to less restrictive learning environments.

This set contains 1 Protocol to score the student’s progress and 1 Instructor’s Manual and Placement Guide.

Don’t forget to use promo code VBMAPP at check-out this week to take 15%* off your order of the VB-MAPP Set!

*Offer is valid until 11:59pm EST on September 15th, 2015. Not compatible with any other offers. Be sure there are no spaces or dashes in your code at checkout!

Tip of the Week: Why Differential Reinforcement is Preferred to Punishment

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In B.F. Skinner’s phenomenal book The Technology of Teaching, he briefly discusses problems with punishment. He explains that the use of punishment (defined as adding or subtracting something from the environment in order to reduce the occurrence of a behavior), is not as clear-cut as we might imagine.  When we attempt to punish a behavior, it’s quite likely that we will unintentionally suppress a broader range of behaviors than we intended.

Skinner gives the example of a child who has touched a candle flame and been burned. The child has probably been taught not to touch the flame, but Skinner argues that it’s quite possible that “in the presence of a candle flame he will not be likely to explore any part of the environment, to reach for or grasp objects of any kind” (Skinner, 1968, p. 186). This is an important consideration, especially when we consider the classroom.  We have to ask ourselves, when we punish certain behaviors, are we unintentionally suppressing other, desirable behaviors?  And in punishing the undesirable behavior, are we clearly communicating to the child what the desirable behavior is?

Skinner then moves on to discuss alternatives to punishment. What he describes is known today as differential reinforcement.  Since Skinner wrote The Technology of Teaching, a great deal of research has been completed on differential reinforcement, which “consists of reinforcing particular behavior(s) of a given class (or form, pattern or topography) while placing those same behaviors on extinction and/or punishing them when they fail to match performance standards or when they occur under inappropriate stimulus conditions” (Mayer, Sulzer-Azaroff, & Wallace, 2014).  Put simply, we reinforce the desired behavior and do not reinforce the undesired behavior.

Today we have categories for many different types of differential reinforcement to better describe strategies for implementation.

Types of differential reinforcement include:

  • Differential Reinforcement of Alternative Behavior (DRA)
  • Differential Reinforcement of Other Behavior (DRO)
  • Differential Reinforcement of Incompatible Behavior (DRI)
  • Differential Reinforcement of High Rates of Behavior (DRH)
  • Differential Reinforcement of Low Rates of Behavior (DRL)

Differential reinforcement is an incredibly useful tool for teachers and parents.  So we will devote several Tips of the Week over the upcoming months to how to use it effectively, taking a closer look at each of the types listed above.

References

Mayer, G. Roy, Sulzer-Azaroff-B. & Wallace, M. (2013). Behavior analysis for lasting change (3rd ed.). Cornwall-on-Hudson, NY: Sloan Publishing.

Skinner, B. F. (1968). The technology of teaching. New York: Appleton-Century-Crofts.

WRITTEN BY SAM BLANCO, MSED, BCBA

Sam is an ABA provider for students ages 3-12 in NYC. Working in education for ten years with students with Autism Spectrum Disorders and other developmental delays, Sam has developed strategies for achieving a multitude of academic, behavior, and social goals. Sam is currently pursuing her PhD in Applied Behavior Analysis at Endicott College.

Pick of the Week: Special Savings on Hooray for Play! Activity Cards

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Pretend play offers children an opportunity for perspective taking, problem solving, cooperation, social emotional skill acquisition and language development. Children learn through their experiences and what better way to engage in the largest possible array of activities than through pretend play? For a special price of $12.95 only $4.95, you can get your set of Hooray for Play! and start off the school year with endless learning opportunities through play.

Hooray for Play! is a multi-use deck of 31 beautifully hand-drawn cards that can be implemented initially by parents and educators as an instructional tool and later used by learners independently. This week, we’re offering Hooray for Play! at a special price of only $4.95. No promo code necessary. Get your set of Hooray for Play! at a discounted price while stock lasts!

Hooray for Play! breaks down the components of the 31 individual play schema cards into the three organized sections that provide a memorable framework for sociodramatic play. The Do! Section explains the various roles, Say!! outlines possible scripted statements by the involved actors and Play!!! offers suggestions for props and set-up. An additional card in the set offers suggestions for use that guides users through creative steps in reinforcing learning and play skills.

Get your deck of Hooray for Play! at only $4.95 this week and start making playtime a rewarding and educational experience for your students! Have fun!

Tip of the Week: Clearing Up the Misconceptions About Reinforcement

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ABA often gets a bad rap due to misunderstandings about reinforcement. In my career alone, I’ve had people tell me that people are not like rats and pigeons, that reinforcement harms intrinsic motivation, and that when I do produce behavior change, it has nothing to do with ABA but with my abilities as a teacher. Today, I’d like to clear up some misconceptions about reinforcement.

Reinforcement is not equivalent to rewards. Reinforcement is anything that occurs immediately following a behavior that increases the future likelihood of that behavior. For instance, I am more likely to say hello to my neighbor down the street because in the past he has responded by saying “hello” back to me. However, I do not say hello to my next door neighbor because she has never responded to my greeting. My history of reinforcement with the neighbor down the street increases the likelihood that I will greet him upon seeing him.

Flowers GrassReinforcement occurs in the natural environment all the time, whether we are conscious of it or not. We are reinforced by paychecks for going to work, by our favorite dessert for visiting a restaurant 30 minutes out of our way, by compliments when we get a new haircut, and more. ABA utilizes reinforcement when an individual is not acquiring skills in order to help them learn. And when ABA is implemented correctly, reinforcement should be as close to naturally occurring reinforcers as possible and should be reduced systematically over time to levels that would naturally occur in their environment.

Reinforcement works for dogs and for humans. The previous two points illustrate that humans do respond to reinforcement, and decades of scientific research back that up. Comparing the work behavior analysts do with humans to the work behavior analysts do with other animals is not far off base. What is off base is using such a comparison to imply that behavior analysts treat people with disabilities like dogs. As with other professionals who work with individuals with disabilities, (such as speech therapists, physical therapists, nurses, etc.) most behavior analysts are professionals who put a lot of time, care, and love into their work.

Child Blowing BubblesReinforcement is individualized. Everything we do in ABA is individualized, because human beings are wonderfully complex creatures that cannot be characterized by statistics, averages, or norms. One of my students may find stickers reinforcing; another may show no interest. One student may find listening to music reinforcing; another may cover his ears and ask me to turn it off. In ABA, we seek to find the items and activities that are motivating for individuals; then use those as tools not only for reinforcement, but for increasing skills and broadening interests and opportunities. In an ideal ABA session, my students spend a lot of time engaging with items and activities that they enjoy while also learning and growing.

It’s easy to fall prey to misconceptions about reinforcement, but such misconceptions can make it impossible for us to understand how to alter the environment in order to provide the best possible outcomes for our students. As Skinner put it, “The ideal of behaviorism is to eliminate coercion: to apply controls by changing the environment in such a way as to reinforce the kind of behavior that benefits everyone.”

Over the next few weeks, we will be publishing a series on Differential Reinforcement procedures that will help you become more skilled in using reinforcement to affect behavior change.

WRITTEN BY SAM BLANCO, MSED, BCBA

Sam is an ABA provider for students ages 3-12 in NYC. Working in education for ten years with students with Autism Spectrum Disorders and other developmental delays, Sam has developed strategies for achieving a multitude of academic, behavior, and social goals. Sam is currently pursuing her PhD in Applied Behavior Analysis at Endicott College.

Pick of the Week: NEW! SchKIDules Visual Schedules for Kids in the Home and Classroom

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Brand-new and just added, these SchKIDules Visual Schedules for Kids are a great and easy way to create visual schedules in the home and classroom. This week only, we’re offering 15% off* the SchKIDules Home Collection and the SchKIDules School Collection! Just use promo code SCHKIDULE when you place your order online or over the phone with us!

This 70-piece Home Collection depicts home essentials, chores, and outings, and is a great tool for easily creating visual schedules in the home. It helps manage communication, expectations, predictability, independence, improving memory, and more.

The Home Collection contains one 14″ x 12″ magnet board; 19 Headings magnets for structuring your schedule including: Days of the Week, Morning/Afternoon/Evening, Numbers 1 to 5, To Do/Done, and First/Then.

Seventy 2″ x 2″ magnets display daily activities such as:

  • bike riding
  • dentist
  • playground
  • music
  • out to eat
  • party
  • shopping
  • play date
    and so many more.

The School Collection contains 30 pieces that depict typical school day activities to support the easy creation of a visual schedule for the day. The School Collection contains one 14″ x 12″ magnet board; 19 Headings magnets for structuring your schedule including: Days of the Week; Numbers 1 to 5; To Do/Done; First/Then; and Morning/Afternoon/Evening. Thirty 2″ x 2″ magnets depict school activities and objects such as:

  • assembly
  • calendar
  • centers
  • circle time
  • dismissal
  • field trip
  • line up
  • math
  • story time
  • science
  • group work
    … and more!

Don’t forget to use our promo code SCHKIDULE to save 15%* on either or both of the SchKIDule Home Collection and the SchKIDule School Collection this week only!

The Countdown to “ABA Tools of the Trade” Begins

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We’re incredibly excited to let you know about a new collaboration between Sam Blanco, MSEd, BCBA and Val Demiri, PhD that will focus on data collection and effective behavior change in the classroom while utilizing the most effective tools in ABA. Different Roads to Learning is proud to have this excellent resource scheduled for publication in early 2016. The partnership between these two powerhouses is sure to make ABA Tools of the Trade: A Resource for Data Collection and Effective Behavior Change a must-have for your library.

The book bridges the gap between applied research and real-world settings, including the classroom, home, and community environments. It provides information about efficient tools available for effective data collection and meaningful behavior change. Beyond exploring a wide range of tools available for your use, it offers a comprehensive analysis of the decision-making process for increasing desirable behaviors, decreasing maladaptive behaviors, and examining your own behavior.

We’ll be sharing a tip from Sam and Val’s excellent Facebook page – ABA Tools of the Trade – with you every week so be sure to stay tuned.

Pick of the Week: Occupational Octaves Piano Curriculum for Students with Special Needs

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Occupational Octaves Piano is the first of its kind curriculum written in the special-needs-user-friendly language of music. Named Lee Stockner’s Music Box Method, this unique piano program has been enriching the lives of students with Autism through music since 2009. This week only, we’re offering 15%* off any or all 3 of the Occupational Octaves Piano Books within the curriculum. Just use our promo code OCTAVES at check-out!

The original language of music can be a confusing symbolic language that should perfectly instruct a student as to which notes, fingers and beats to play. Occupational Octaves Piano students read the same instructions, not through the traditional presentation of confusing musical symbols, but through colored letters in rhythmically designed boxes. This means that students on the autism spectrum, including those with severe disabilities, can play the same songs as a traditional player with the same notes, fingers and beats as a mainstream student would. Each curriculum music book comes with a set of rings that are placed on the player’s fingers to help them match their hands to the notes they’re seeing.

Hundreds of students with autism have successfully learned to play the piano using this method. Give your students the gift of music with the Occupational Octaves Piano curriculum series. This program is a revolutionary approach that develops cognitive, physical and emotional gains to a wide variety of soon-to-be musicians!

Don’t forget to take 15% off* your order of any or all 3 of the Occupational Octaves Piano Books this week only by using promo code OCTAVES at check-out!

*Offer is valid until 11:59pm EST on August 18th, 2015. Not compatible with any other offers. Be sure there are no spaces or dashes in your code at checkout!