Increasing attending skills.

We're going to do our next few blogs slightly differently, as we're going to do a multipart series. We'll focus on what people want to talk about most: COMMUNICATION!!! The truth is that communication is what sets humans apart, as we have the ability to describe internal events (hunger, happiness), future events, and past events. We are going to look at all the concepts needed for fluent communication. Notice when I say communication, I did not say verbal communication. You can be a fluent communicator with PECS or with signs, although verbal is our first goal.

The first subject we'll discuss is ATTENDING SKILLS:

Attending skills – The ability to pay attention to people, as well as auditory and visual stimuli in the environment, without getting easily distracted. This skill is the basis for ALL other programs. If a kid does not pay attention, then he or she will have difficulty grasping any material. Lack of attending in early development will mean that the child did not pay attention to early imitation skills and reinforcements from other people. THIS ALONE CAN BE A CHIEF COMPONENT IN AUTISM!!! Self stimulatory behavior greatly interferes with attending skills. Kids can still learn at a rapid rate, but they need more repetition due to lack of attending.

How to work on attending skills:

Steady reinforcement for proper eye contact. (When they look at you without you calling their name or trying to get their attention)

Example – Sit across from them at eye level, when they look at you, name and give preferred reinforcer. 5-10 minutes a couple of times a day.

Make eye contact a requirement to gain access to items. (No look, No get)

Example – When a child wants to get a cookie, he/she will grab for it. When they look at you, name the item and then they can have it. DO NOT REINFORCE CRYING TO GET ITEM. They have to stop crying before they can have it.

A good way to lessen frustration is to prompt the first one and give a little, but not as much as they want. Then require eye contact.

Reinforcement for scanning the environment.

Example – Bring in books or objects that are new to the child. Point to them and name them. You can also ask them to touch the item. (Receptive books work well for this also.)

Reinforce the child for doing things that are appropriate that don’t involve self stimulatory behavior. (DRI)

Example – Play games that encourage eye contact and pairing people as reinforcement. (Peek-a-boo, Airplane rides, etc.) Be creative!

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General Notes:

• Eye contact does not have to be given 100% of the time, but if your child is particularly distracted, then require it more.

• Do not give a child a reinforcer if he/she is crying.

• The better the attention, the bigger amount of reinforcer they get.