Visual thinkers – we need to provide the tools to teach them!

I haven’t seen the movie yet – as I don’t think I want to have anything interfere with my impression of Temple Grandin.

I saw Temple speak years ago….  before she became a star…..  and what sticks in my mind the most was her discussion of how she thinks….  in pictures….  hence her book “thinking in pictures”

She refers to her thought process as going back in her mind, retrieving a video tape from her mind’s library and then playing the proper video to think….  This hit me like a 2×4 across the head…. 

I am mostly an auditory thinker….. so I guess it didn’t dawn on me that this could be so impactful on educating,  Now, when I teach my son, I always have visuals.  Of course, he was most successful with video, but after years of strictly video, we have been able to branch out into many other inputs including auditory.  But the learning is always faster with visual inputs ….. 

What we need to realize is that not all people think alike – and we need to find each child’s talent and teach to that talent…..  and in my son’s case, visual is the way to go…

If you have a chance and you think you may know someone who requires visual teaching, watch this clip and read her book.   It really is very moving.

http://www.ted.com/talks/temple_grandin_the_world_needs_all_kinds_of_minds.html

Special Education Teacher in Meetings – illegal…

it is that time of the year when all of our special education teachers are sent to meeting after meeting…

Well, here in NY, if the teacher is in meetings, then she isn’t teaching…..   and if the school doesn’t hire a substitute teacher, then they are breaking the law!

So, document when the teacher isn’t there…..  hold on to this information and use it when necessary, like when they are trying to decide on services for your child and are arguing with you….

 

 

I invite you to chime in here and tell me what you think about private “chartered” schools -

Why are they good, why are they  bad?    And what exactly is soooooo great about inclusions when every year you have a huge fight and the bottom line is….  there is not enough help in these classrooms and it is only going to get worse.  The economy is pushing everyone out of their homes, a possible spending freeze on education from fed…..  and in NY state – we are just about bankrupt?

So – where is the hope for inclusion – and why not go private “chartered”?

please send in your comments..

Sorry to be the bearer of bad news!!!!

If any of you are in the NY area – this is one of my favorites….  they have a special needs program called REACH … one that I don’t think you can beat…. My personal opinion of the staff is rather high – and for anyone who knows me – they know that is no easy achievement!http://hofstra.edu/Academics/CCEPA/SC/spec/spec_reach.html

Call them at 516-463-CAMP – honestly you will love them

This morning presented yet another dilemna…. due to Brett being sooooooo very literal. Every day we have a “literal” dilemna- something that was said or done that Brett does not understand.
Yesterday Brett ran out of lunch tickets and this morning asked me to write a check to buy more. Unfortunately I ran out of checks and gave him cash instead. He said it wouldn’t work, that he needed to have a check…. and proceeded to look for one in my Office ….
Beyond stubborn, he threw the money on the counter and said “its not worth it”…. well I tended to agree with him – knowing how yummy school food is! The episode went on and on and Brett was just determined that the cash would not work and that he HAD to have a check.
So – for the next 20 minutes or so, I tried to explain how you get money, put it in the bank, write a check, etc….
Of course the most effective way to teach this would be to have Brett earn money, put it in the bank and then write out a check for it…. so – this weekend he has decided to make up fliers to get a job for money – he will empty trash, fold clothes, vacuum….

I’ll keep you posted on our progress teaching about the gray area- I’m sure there will be another literal dilemna in this series of events….. but I’m going to let him do it – and maybe someday he will take everything a little less literally….

Does your public school district have a plan or procedure in place for spending the federal money that is being distributed under the umbrella of the 2009 stimulus package?

After having asked many people this question, I have come to the conclusion that developing a plan and/or procedures to utilize this money effectively is not exactly happening.  The responses to this question that I have received have led me in many different circles.  No one is sure who is making the appropriation decisions, who is approving the proposed use of funds and ultimately what is happening with the money and when….

The final approval seems to be with the Board of Education in most districts.  Who exactly is providing the recommendation to the district seems to vary by district and state.  

Working with administrators, special education teachers, general education teachers, therapists and other school personnel, I have listened to their needs and have reached the conclusion that procedural guidelines and a plan are desperately needed in every school district NOW!  

As a mother of a special needs child, I am sharing this thought with you in the hope that you will reach out to your district personnel and work together to see that this desperately needed money will be utilized for its intended use – to help the special needs children learn …. NOW!  

Without input from a child’s best advocate…  the parent….  these funds may go unspent or misappropriated due to the parameters attached to the funding.  Please advocate for your child and assist the schools and teachers to put into place the programs that our very special children deserve!

Don’t let this opportunity go…..  start asking questions.  What’s the worst thing that can happen – someone tells you no or that they don’t know the answer….   so ask someone else.

After all…  they are our children and they are the future of this country.

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.