Scientific studies have proven that developmentally delayed children who lack training in social skills and social communication will likely continue to be deficient in these skills throughout adolescence and adulthood.  Furthermore, many high-functioning individuals with PDD will be unable to find employment that match their intellectual abilities or maintain a job due to impaired social skills (Rumsey & Hamburger, 1988).

Lack of social skills in adolescence can lead to problems such as fewer friends, lonelier than typical peers and less satisfying relations (Bauminger & Kasari, 2000).  Other issues include bullying, lack of self confidence, lack of self esteem, depression, activity exclusion, drug abuse and more.  Adults lacking social skills may likely experience similar emotional issues.  These problems can include fear or anxiety of relationships, lack of friends and loneliness, lack of a support network……  ultimately leading to depression and other emotional problems.  Emotional problems steer these individuals down a path that is ultimately self-destructive.  When this happens, these individuals are no longer ABLE to contribute to society and then become a burden to society via unemployment, substance abuse, etc…

Addressing the issue of social skill teaching in schools through a pervasive program will teach ALL children social skills.  This requires a program to be implemented throughout the school environment, not take place in one self-contained classroom. 

Students receiving social skills programming in their usual classrooms had substantially more favorable outcomes than students who received services in a pull-out setting (The study, “A Meta-Analysis of School-Based Social Skills Interventions for Children With Autism Spectrum Disorders,” was published in this month’s Journal of Remedial and Special Education. Coauthors are Jessica Peters, Lauren Benner, and Andrea Hopf). 

Source:  http://www.dancexm.com/kelli/index.php?c=viral&m=index&id=8fbf968b111556800e09c90494efcdc7

Children with developmental delays usually lack social skills and need to be taught appropriate behaviors, interpretation of social cues and environments, appropriate response to these cues and ultimately an understanding of the social world they live in.  Typical children need to develop an understanding of others, develop an acceptance of their differences and ultimately acquire the skills necessary for them to appropriately deal with such social differences in a non-abusive and non-threatening manner.  This requires changing behaviors.

For behavior modification to be effective, it needs to be embedded in the child’s day – this requires it to be part of the curriculum at school where a child spends the majority of his day.   The problems that society face as a result of social deficits are not going to go away.  They are actually much more likely to increase exponentially based on the rise in the incidence of autism and developmental delays.  This is a big RED flag to teachers, parents and society…  as today’s problems will grow to be tomorrow’s bigger problems.  Just look at the deficit.

The choice is ours – do we foster social growth in children today by providing the tools necessary for the children to be confident, happy adults?  Or do we sweep the problem under the rug, ignore it now and hope it goes away?  Ignoring this problem will cost society dearly….  Think about it.

And one more thought….. The Stimulus ARRA 2009 funds were provided to:

Provide intensive district-wide professional development for special education and regular education teachers that focuses on scaling-up, through replication, proven and innovative evidence-based school-wide strategies in reading, math, writing and science, and positive behavioral supports to improve outcomes for students with disabilities.

Source: http://www.ed.gov/policy/gen/leg/recovery/factsheet/idea.html

American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009: IDEA Recovery Funds for Services to Children and Youths with Disabilities
April 1, 2009

1.    Maybe a good source for funding an effective social skills program through the professional development of special education and regular education teachers….

Just a thought to hopefully provoke more thoughts…. and hopefully positive actions on behalf of the children…

The public school districts are receiving record amounts of money to spend on special education right NOW under President Obama’s ARRA(American Recovery and Reinvestment Act) -   Do you know what they are spending it on?  Who is tracking the spending - is this information available to you?

I am amazed at how few people actually know how much money their district is receiving and what the district intends to do with it.  I think that people need to know… 

So - here are some sites that you can look at to determine how much money your school is getting, what the funds are intended for, etc…

Then I hope that you will start asking questions …  after all - it is your money…  don’t you think you should have some say on how it is spent or at the very least - how it is accounted for?

http://www.ed.gov/policy/gen/leg/recovery/implementation.html

http://www.cec.sped.org/Content/NavigationMenu/PolicyAdvocacy/CECPolicyResources/EconomicStimulus/Stimulus_Q_A.htm

Here is an excerpt from the ED.gov fact sheet on the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009:

The IDEA recovery funds constitute a large one-time increment in IDEA, Part B funding that offers states and local education agencies a unique opportunity to improve teaching and learning and results for children with disabilities. Generally funds should be used for short-term investments that have the potential for long-term benefits.

Some possible uses for the funds that therapists should be aware of:
1. Obtain state-of the art assistive technology devices and provide training in their use to enhance access to the general curriculum for students with disabilities.

2. Provide intensive district-wide professional development for special education and regular education teachers that focuses on scaling-up, through replication, proven and innovative evidence based school wide strategies

an excerpt from the CEC site mentioned above

$12.2 billion for Special Education (IDEA) which includes:

• $11.3 billion for Part B Grants to States for school aged students
• $400 million for Part B Section 619 for preschool children
• $500 million for Part C Infants and Toddlers with Disabilities Program

Happy Thinking!

Behavior modification is a scary term….  But it really should not be – as it is something that we do EVERY day…  just without realizing it!  When a typical child is not keeping their room clean, we may encourage them to keep it clean by offering a reward at the end of the week.  This is behavior modification!  When a typical child goes to an appointment with us and has previously acted inappropriately, we offer them rewards to act appropriately at the next appointment.  This is behavior modification.  When a spouse neglects to clean up after themselves, we may ask them nicely to clean up the next time and reward them with a simple “thank you, that was a big help to me.”  We inherently modify behaviors all the time, we just don’t know we are doing it!

Definition: psychotherapy that is concerned with the treatment (as by desensitization or aversion therapy) of observable behaviors rather than underlying psychological processes and that applies principles of learning to substitute desirable responses for undesirable ones (as phobias or obsessions) —called also behavioral therapy behavior therapy

SOURCE:

http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/behavior+modification

NOTE:  this definition states that behavior modification is not concerned with the treatment of the underlying psychological process.  In simple terms, behavior modification uses principles of learning to change the behavior itself ONLY – it does not take into account underlying psychological process that may be causing the behavior.  If a behavior is caused by a physical problem, behavior modification may not work to change the behavior.  This is important because developmentally delayed children often are physically ill and illnesses may actually be the cause of the behaviors.  This is the reason that behavior modification is not always successful – as it is not always addressing the actual cause of the problem behavior.

Behavior Modification is a term that is used by professionals – so then it becomes more serious to the average person.  But truth be told – it is not all that complex and it is something that we can all do with success as long as physical impairments do not impede the benefit of modification.  It is certainly helpful and recommended to get training from a professional behaviorist along with advice from a medical professional before proceeding with an intensive behavior modification program.

Lay-man’s definition of behavior modification: observing behaviors and substituting desirable responses for less desirable responses without the consideration or treatment of underlying causes due to psychological issues.

Examples of inappropriate behaviors:

1.      A child starts inappropriate making noises when he is in a noisy environment like a playground

            Modification:  substitute the inappropriate noises with something appropriate - like         appropriate commenting, playing on equipment, playing in sand, etc….

2.      A child is constantly shaking or waving his hands while in public environments.  Modification:  decrease the hand shaking by substituting different uses of hands with the eventual goal of having child be able to completely control hand shaking and not depend on different uses.  i.e. holding a squeeze ball, putting hands in pocket, etc…

3.      Child is fearful of a birthday party and puts his hands over his ears during song.  Modification:  decrease the child’s auditory sensitivity and replace this behavior with child being able to sit at party and quietly listen to song and possibly participate.

How do we attain these modifications?  The answer is with patience, work and love!

Behavior modification is generally accomplished as follows:

1.       Identify inappropriate behavior

2.      Identify the cause or “antecedent” of behavior – what is happening to cause the behavior

(this could be excessive noise, anxiety, excess energy, upsetting incidence, lack of understanding of situation, tasks, expectations, social setting, etc….

3.      Develop a plan to address the behavior and ultimately modify/eliminate inappropriate behavior.

This can be a VERY slow process, but if positive results are seen relatively early on in the intervention process, continuing the modification is recommended and with patience should result in success.

You have identified the behavior.  Now, look at what is causing the behavior.  This is where the education process takes place. 

As an example, you see a behavior that you have determined is being caused by a child’s anxiety with a certain situation.  If the child is verbal, the obvious task is to ask the child what about that situation is causing discomfort to him.  If the child is unable to tell you, use common sense to determine cause – by watching the child, you can usually determine what it is that is bothering him.  Hopefully you will be able to determine the cause or “antecedent” that is displayed prior to inappropriate behavior.

If it is the commotion of the situation – like at a playground.  Prior to having success with modifying behaviors at the playground, you need to get a child used to a playground, familiarize him with the environment, activities and commotion of the playground environment.

You can do this in many ways.

             Following is a list of ideas to familiarize a child with cause of behavior:

·         Show photos of the playground

·         Read stories about playing at the playground

·         Show videos about playing at the playground

·         Talk about the playground

·         Listen to stories about the playground

·         Listen to a recording of noise at the playground (record your own or search online for sound downloads)

Teach the child about the environment as follows:

·         Teach the child the items he will see at the playground – what they are called, what they are used for, why they are fun, etc…

·         Teach the child about the people at the playground – who the children are, what they are doing, why they are having fun, what they are playing, etc…

·         Teach the child about the activities at the playground – how to participate, what to do, what to say, how to share, etc…  You may start this in the backyard, at a quiet playground during off hours or in a controlled environment where this equipment is available.

·         Use similar tactics in teaching as in familiarizing – utilize the 5 senses – let the child see the environment (many media options available), let the child touch the items in environment, let the child listen to the environment, and if appropriate, let the child taste and smell the environment or items in the environment.

During this period of familiarization and teaching, begin the modification process.

Take small steps as inappropriate behaviors are a display of discomfort to the child.  To relieve discomfort in this type of situation, you must take a slow and steady course to be successful. 

IMPORTANT:  Always remember to REWARD even the smallest step in the right direction!

Modification:

·         After and during the familiarization process, start with a walk by the playground.

·         Walk by the playground and stop to watch

·         Watch the children for longer periods of time and discuss what they are doing and how much fund the are having

·         Make a very short visit to the playground to accomplish one objective – it may be as small as entering the playground and then leaving. 

·         Make more frequent visits to the playground and gradually increase the visit time

·         Expand the activities at the playground child participates in

·         Expand the objectives at the playground – add a new objective of child having a social interaction with another child.

This is only one example.  The same principles can be used and tailored to modify any behaviors as long as the root of the behavior is not interfering with modification.

REWARDS – as in all behavior modification, rewards must be faded if you want the child to be able to independently perform the “new” behavior.  This is done by gradually decreasing the amount of rewards and the size of rewards.  Basically, reward heavily in the beginning and then begin to decrease the availability of rewards as long as child is still responding and acting appropriately.

This article is written based on personal experience.  I am not a doctor or certified behaviorist, but have had nine years experience in working on behavior modification with my son.  This is in no way meant to be taken as professional medical advice, certified behaviorist advice or psychological advice.  It is advice from one parent to another parent!

2.   SKILL:   Gain Attention from child and child responds with verbal response or                                    communication device. (When you call child’s name, child looks at you and responds)

 1.      Model skill for child - show video portion to child (multiple scenarios available)

2.       Call child by name (expecting child to turn attention to you and respond with a verbal response)

a.      If child looks at you, but does not verbalize, prompt them to respond verbally.

List of possible Prompts from most invasive to least invasive

o   Say “Say what”

o   Say “what”

o   Make “wh” sound

o   Make “wh” sound formation with your mouth

o   Hold up visual prompt such as an index card with the word “what” written on it (hold close to your face so as to maintain eye contact)

b.      If child tries to imitate any of the above prompts, immediately reward them.    Always use the lease invasive prompt to obtain a response from the child.  If the prompt does not work, use a more invasive prompt until child responds.  Once child starts responding to your prompts, begin using less invasive prompts and continue fading prompts (use less prompts as you gain success).

c.       If child looks at you, and says “what”, reward!  Skill has been executed!

d.      Continue teaching and practicing skill

o   Vary environment in which you are calling the child

o   Vary the reward

o   Vary person calling child for attention and response

e.      As child gains success with this skill, the next progression is to begin fading the rewards so that the skill is not ALWAYS paired with a reward.  The goal is for the child to generalize this skill (use the skill in any environment without prompt reliance)

o   Reward every other time

o   Reward every third time

o   Reward every fourth time

o   Fade reward completely

      TIP:  ALWAYS make the activity FUN! And to do at an appropriate time (e.g. when you want the child to look at you or have something of interest for them to attend to, you know the child needs something or needs your attention)

      TIMING

·         Be eating a favorite food of the child’s and have some available for child as a reward

·         Be playing with a child’s favorite toy and prepare to share or give toy to child as reward

·         Be prepared to go out to a place of interest to the child like the park, pool or playground

 REWARD

      When beginning to teach this skill, as the reward, use the MOST motivating reward you know of and most importantly make it FUN for the child.

  Reward or Reinforce:  be prepared to reward the child with one of their favorite items such as food, toy, stuffed animal, activity, interaction, etc…  Have that item in sight of child before attempting to gain their attention and obtain verbal response

Teaching ideas and activities – Gaining Attention

As the founder of Watch Me Learn, I am constantly asked for information on how to teach skills or to provide ideas on how to reinforce the video teaching.

While our new products have a curriculum available, when I made the first 4 videos, there were no requests for this.  Times have changed so I have decided to provide activity ideas on this Blog that will help generalize the lessons taught/modeled in the video.

The First topic is “Gaining Attention”

Yes – many books provide information, programming ideas on how to teach this skill, but I have found that many of them lack the friendly, every-day tactics that worked so well for my son.  In these activities, I will include as much of that silly stuff that I know works!

These lesson plans were written as a TOOL to accompany video.  Whether you use WML video or another video, that is entirely up to you – but if you have a visual learner, showing a demonstration of a skill is strongly suggested.  Children on the autism spectrum seem to be very strong visual learners and from what I have seen over the last 9 years, it is a tool that works VERY quickly.

1.       Gain Attention from Child.

Show video portion to child

 Call child by name or say “Mary, look…”   If child does not look, call again and if necessary, gently turn their fact to look at you.  Immediately reward them with something appropriate that he or she WANTS!

       TIP:  ALWAYS make the activity FUN! And to do at an appropriate time (e.g. when you want the child to look at you or have something of interest for them to attend to, you know the child needs something or needs your attention)

       When beginning to teach this skill, as the reward, use the MOST motivating reward you know of and most importantly make it FUN for the child.

   Reward:  be prepared to reward the child with one of their favorite items such as food, toy, stuffed animal, etc…)  Have that item in sight of child before attempting to gain their attention.

o   Be eating a favorite food of the child’s and have some available for child as a reward

o   Be playing with a child’s favorite toy and prepare to share or give toy to child as reward

o   Be prepared to go out to a place of interest to the child like the park, pool or playground

FUN:  Children love fun….  And fun is EASY…  ideas to make it fun and appealing – before attempting to gain child’s attention:

·         put on a funny hate, wear the wrong clothing (child’s hat or clothing item)

·         Get in the bathtub with your clothes on

·         Prepare to go outside in winter with a bathing suit on

·         Prepare to wash your hands with toothpaste

·         Comb your hair with a spoon

·         In general, do things that are obviously wrong and silly

On Wednesday, Look for the next steps to this program – and for regular additions to this series.

In today’s society, we generally rely on professionals for answers and for guidance on how to teach a child.  We receive medical reports, educational assessments and scientific data to answer this question.  Then a method of treatment and teaching is formulated.

The problems are:

1. Reliance on data that may or may not be accurate.  Test/assessment results are only as reliable as the methods used to administer the test. In other words, the test results are only as good as the test delivery method.   As an example, if you assess a deaf child by asking auditory questions, your results will indicate a very low functioning cognitive ability.  If you assess the same child by using a method of communication the child can comprehend, you will get VERY different results.
2. Scientific information used may not be current with today’s science and the data are only as good as the knowledge, experience and skills of the person doing the interpretation.  Medicine is a science that relies on scientific proof, history and independently verified results.

            When making a decision about how to educate a child, do we analyze the brain     connections being built when a child is provided with a sensory stimulation?  No!

            Do we base our selection of materials to provide to a child based on brain wave     activity? No!

            We don’t have either of these available. So, basing our education decisions on       what we do know is obviously insufficient.

1. Treatment/teaching methods are usually formulated based on what we have available to us or what we know is available. Educational placements are usually based on what is available, not what is needed.  More insufficiency.
2. Grouping children by learning disabilities does not provide all children the opportunity to learn: yet one more insufficient element in our decision.

In summary, when determining whether a child can learn and how the child learns, we are relying on data that may not be accurate or up-to-date, and educational opportunities that are insufficient or inappropriate for the learner. The result is bad decisions.

It sounds so complicated…  In many ways, it is complicated but it doesn’t have to be and it shouldn’t be.  Society and time have created pathways we use when deciding whether a child can learn.   But as we all know, existing pathways may not be the fastest or most efficient ways to get to a designated place.  Often they will not allow us to get there at all. 

Many children are able to follow existing paths and learn effectively.  For these children, the established paths are sufficient.  For many other children, however, the paths are not sufficient nor will they reach the destination.  Learning and the complex job of teaching requires us to get off the path and figure out another route to reach the destination.

What does this mean?  It means we have to look past the test results, the assessment results and the inventory of teaching tools available to us, and look at the individual child and how that child learns.  Next, we need to determine what means are needed to teach this child.  What we find will allow us to create a new individual path for learning. It will create new experiences and learning opportunities for EVERY child.  These new pathways will benefit all children, not just the children in need.  Every child will experience new things and maybe even learn about how people are different and learn and experience differently.

The child who can’t understand what you are saying will understand if you show him. The child who can’t understand what you are showing him will understand what you are saying.  The child who can’t understand what you are saying or showing will understand what you are doing. The child who can understand what you are saying, showing and doing will gain a much more comprehensive understanding when saying, showing and doing are combined.

We must provide each child with the best available means and delivery to maximize his learning.  Use the information and tools you have but realize that they may not be sufficient to make an accurate decision about a child’s ability to learn.  Look past the assessments, tests and resources and determine what the individual child needs and then provide the tools to the caregivers, the parents and the teachers.

Can this child learn?  The answer to this question is YES.  What a child learns, how a child learns and how much a child learns depends on YOU!  YOU are every member of society. At some time, in some manner, YOU influence decisions about a child’s life, about education, about science and about opportunities.  The opportunity to learn is a right.  It is your duty and my duty to provide this opportunity.

I’ve had moments over the past few years when I’ve been VERY frustrated with school personnel over various issues to do with my daughter’s IEP.  More recently, perhaps as a result of my own progress as a parent advocate, these moments are less frequent.  It is still never easy to approach a PPT meeting without a me versus them attitude.

I have a friend who is known to be an outstanding educator in her district–one of the best.  She is a 2nd grade, general education teacher.  She also has 2 autistic children in her class this year.  I know first hand how dedicated she is to her profession, but she is frustrated.  And, I can’t blame her.  She said these two students were placed in her classroom because of the administration’s belief that she would be the most capable of the 2nd grade team of teachers in her school to ‘handle’ autism.  Hmmmmm….handle autism……? Obviously, the principal doesn’t know what she doesn’t know. Too late.  Too late for the kids.  Too late for my friend.

Through tears, she told me about how excited she was at the beginning of the year.  She spent hours on the internet, searching behavior strategies for autism, teaching students with aspergers, teaching social skills in school ….and more. She came to school each day, armed with an all new strategy to teach these kids with autism.  No aide.  No curriculum.  No help.  Just…..handle.

Last week, the principal decided to send a special ed aide from another class (assigned to a child with Down’s syndrome) to ‘handle’ the situation.  When I asked my friend what the aide might know about autism, she said, ‘nothing.’  So, it won’t surprise you to know that her ’strategy’ was to put one of the autistic students, a boy, into the teacher’s supply closet when he became agitated.

To my friend’s credit, she refused to allow this and has determined that she, and these two boys she so desperately wants to help, are better off in her classroom without the help of anyone else.

My question…..where are these boys parents?  Where is the principal?  Where is the legislation?  What must this come to?  How many more teachers will be left with no training, no budget, no solutions?  How many more children will pay a life long price for senseless irresponsibility?

I know there are some success stories out there.  Hat’s off to cutting-edged administrators whose vision, common sense, and denial of the status quo have won out.  We need more of you!

I was just reminded of how critical parent advocates are for kids with autism in schools.  I was able to get my daughter’s school to provide an AT evaluation for her.  I received the completed report just recently.  Then, last night, a friend of mine called.  Her son is a pupil in the same district, same school, and a child with more significant needs than my own.  Anyone would agree.

She’d asked for the same thing, but with much less determination than I.  She didn’t get it.

Unfair?  Yes, it is.  In fact, it sickens me, but it is just the way the world works.

I know how hard it is.  Especially for working parents or parents with other children.   There simply is not enough time in the day, or energy in our bodies to have to beg for something so obviously necessary.

I’d never make it sound easy.  But, it is worth it when you are able to successfully obtain even a fraction of the help your child needs.

The other day, it was my pleasure to meet with a man named, Vincent.  He is a teacher in a District 75 school in NYC.  He works with kids who have autism.  Though I’ve never been in his classroom, I can tell that he is an outstanding teacher.  Why?  Because he gets ‘it.’

I had the chance to ask him a lot of questions about the strategies he uses in his classroom to ‘get through’ to the kids he teaches.  This is something I think I know quite a bit about, but Vinnie taught me things I didn’t know.  He tries a lot of strategies to help his kids.  He does a lot of searching on the internet.  He’s looking for help to teach his students.  Ideas.  Activities.  Behavior strategies for kids with autism.

The thing I liked most about Vinnie was that he doesn’t just try to meet the requirements of an IEP.  No.  He’s not going to be happy unless he actually gets through to a kid.  He wants to unlock the door to learning for each of his students.  He used one of the most poignant metaphors I think I’ve heard on this subject.  He said, “I think of myself as a guy with two GIGANTIC rings full of keys….and I….well, I have to try every last one of them with every single student until I find the one that opens the door for them.”

I’m just saying that if your child is in a District 75 school somewhere in the Bronx and there’s a teacher by the name of Vinnie, consider yourself and your child lucky!

I just opened the e-mail from my web designer saying that our blog was ready to post to!  Initially, I thought I would put my first new post up in the morning since it is getting late and I have children to tuck into bed.  But just as I stood to walk away, the excitement got to me.  You see, this blog is an opportunity for me to share a very personal journey that I’ve been on for the past 2 1/2 years.  I will share as much as I can in the coming days, but tonight it is important for me to say just one thing to the parents of children with autism spectrum disorders, including aspergers.  It is this:   Mary Beth Palo and I are humbled and proud to announce that our video based, social skills teaching program meets the goals that we set for it when first forming our association 2 1/2 years ago!

Our goals at the time were to build on the foundation that Mary Beth so expertly formed.  She’d successfully gotten through to her own son using homemade video. As word spread about his remarkable progress, parents, therapists and teachers began asking for the videos.  She formed Watch Me Learn and released videos when she could manage it between her family, Brett’s intense needs and her own sanity.

When she and I met, I knew she’d done something very special.  We both knew how badly children with autism and aspergers needed an effective learning tool—especially in school where our own IEP experiences left educators and us frustrated.

Today, I get to be the first one to say that WE DID IT! Our brand new social skills videos now come with lesson plans, student worksheets, games, songs and lyrics and more.  The teaching is based on ABA and VB.  It is also based on PLAY—as parents we insist on that.  ABA is NOT fun–let’s face it.  Somewhere, good science forgot that children learn about the world through play.  Problem is that some children never learn to play–so we are here to teach them that first.

Lesson plans cross reference skills that are measured by the ABLLS-R assessment. Don’t let that acronym scare you!

If you don’t know what ABLLS-R is, I’m going to tell you now.  The ABLLS-R is an assessment (or test) that children with an autism spectrum disorder should be given.  If your child has an autism diagnosis, you should request that your school administer the assessment to your child.  Currently, it is the most widely used test of its kind (though there are a couple others in the works).  Board Certified Behavior Analysts (BCBA) in private practice also use it.

There hasn’t been any other teaching program created for students and children that ties into a specific measurement like ABLLS-R.  Not until we did this—which is one reason that I am so excited to be at this point.  If your child has been given this assessment (as they SHOULD have been) at school then when you put together their IEP, you can match the goals with a treatment program specifically designed for them.

What’s more–Dr. Partington, the author of the ABLLS-R was so impressed with the Watch Me Learn teaching method that he endorsed it and will be selling it alongside the ABLLS-R assessment on his website in the very near future!

I have a lot more to say, but now I really must get my kids settled and tucked in for the night.  Tomorrow is a school day after all.