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I am a BCBA working in an ABA Teaching Home. I am adept with teaching play skills to younger children but would like some guidance on assessing interests and helping young adults develop hobbies that they can pursue in an independent and meaningful manner. Answered By Megan McCarron, MS, BCBA Milestones Behavioral Services This is…
I have an adolescent with autism in my class who responds negatively when people say certain words. He seems to have a sensitivity to them and may respond with a behavioral outburst. Have you heard of this happening with other students with autism and do you have any thoughts on intervention? Answered by Mary E.…
Question: I have a daughter with autism who is showing signs of puberty. I want her to continue to be as independent as possible and to be prepared for all aspects of her own feminine hygiene, but don’t know where to begin with teaching her how to care for her menses. What is the best…
A response to “Applied Behavior Analysis, autism, and occupational therapy: a search for understanding,” as published in the American Journal of Occupational Therapy by Welch and Polatajko By Amy Stango MS, OTR/L, MS, BCBA In their (2016) article, “Applied Behavior Analysis, Autism, and Occupational Therapy: A Search for Understanding,” Welch and Polatajko present a literature-based…
Janine Shapiro, CCC-SLP, BCBA Access Behavior Analysis As the first dually certified speech-language pathologist (SLP) and behavior analyst in Indiana, I fully believe in the power of fusing speech, language, social, and applied behavior analysis (ABA) sciences together to deliver more effective treatment. But I have not always been a proponent of ABA. Early on…
Denys Brand, PhD University of Kansas In 1988, Van Houten and colleagues published an article in the Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis outlining six fundamental rights of individuals receiving services based on the principles of behavior analysis. One of these included the right to receive the most effective procedures available. There are several methods to…
Reviewed by Jen Cote, BA, Extern David Celiberti, PhD, BCBA-D Association for Science in Autism Treatment The Function Wheels Individuals with autism often demonstrate challenging behaviors in home, school, and community settings and, as a result, their service providers develop behavioral interventions to address these challenges. The effectiveness of behavioral interventions is predicated, in part,…
I am the parent of a 10 year-old boy with autism who has a very limited diet, not due to any food restrictions or allergies; he just refuses to try different types of foods. This makes for really challenging meal times and I worry about the lack of nutrition in his diet. I heard this…
We have a teenage son with autism, and as he continues into adulthood we are concerned about being prepared to address specific issues related to sexuality and safety. What are the most important issues for us to consider and what skills should we target to maximize his safety and healthy development? Answered by Frank Cicero,…
Question: I am a newly-minted BCBA, working in a public school. I really love my job and the students with whom I work. A concern I have is how to help parents and others understand what it is that I do, especially as it relates to some of the more fundamental principles that underlie our…
My child is doing well with many of his ABA programs, even the ones that focus on the development of play skills. Unfortunately, he doesn’t play with most of the toys that we give him, and he has worked for the same five things since our program began a year ago (marshmallow peeps, Thomas trains,…