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  1. How effective is Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) Therapy?

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    Just how effective is Applied Behavioural Analysis  (ABA) Therapy?. Several studies have been conducted on the effectiveness of this therapy since it gained popularity via the Lovaas method. The great thing about this therapy is it is so comprehensively tested most insurances cover it for children with Autism. ABA is proven to be extremely beneficial. Here are several sources that state just how crucial ABA is for children with autism: Current Opinion in Pediatrics, 2011; Vol 23: pp 616–620: Found that behavioral interventions are effective for cognitive abilities, language, adaptive behaviors, social skills and reduced anxiety/aggression. American Journal on Mental Retardation, 1993; Vol. 97, No. 4: pp 359-372: Children who received ABA were tested again at an older age and were found …Read More

  2. Applied Behavioral Analysis therapy (ABA) is amazing because it isn’t designed to tackle autism by itself.

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    Sometimes Autism isn’t the only diagnoses that a child on the spectrum is diagnosed with. A child who has autism may also be diagnosed with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, Oppositional Defiance Disorder, Anxiety, Depression and more. There is a 30% chance your child may also have a specific phobia, and a significant number have intellectual disabilities. Autism isn’t as straightforward as some may believe which is why it’s difficult to tackle it with most conventional therapies. Applied Behavioral Analysis therapy (ABA) is amazing because it isn’t designed to tackle autism by itself. It is a therapy used in all areas of life, from career to sports, to businesses and other disorders. When you put your child into an ABA programme, you’re not only providing help with life …Read More

  3. What kind of therapist will be a good fit for your child?

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    Not all therapists will have the same style of implementing common ABA therapy techniques. Some may be very gentle, others firm, where some may want to explain situations to a child who works well with logic, and others may want to make simple demands instead. Applied Behavioural Analysis (ABA) is a therapy that is implemented in a way that molds to your child's unique personality and needs. Because of this, not all Applied Behavioral Analysis (ABA) therapist will be the right fit for your child. When you decide to terminate services, you may consider if you want somebody else. If this is the case, think about what it was about the last analyst that caused issues for you. Understanding what you disliked about the therapist style of teaching, and communicating it to the company, can help th…Read More

  4. Applied Behavioral Analysis (ABA) Therapy has techniques to help teach an Autistic child empathy

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    People with autism often struggle with empathy; as a parent of a child who shows little empathy, it may be pretty terrifying to wonder what might happen to your child in relationships or how their morals might develop. A child with little empathy may laugh when another is upset, or take a toy from another child and not understand why they should share, or even be violent with little remorse. The good news is Applied Behavioral Analysis (ABA) Therapy has techniques to help teach a child empathy and how to respond to situations appropriately. Which is a huge relief when you’re the parent or even child. The other great news is lack of empathy does NOT make someone with autism an awful person who’s choosing not to care. The issue doesn’t lie in choice (typically seen with people who have…Read More

  5. Emotions for an ASD child

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    Almost all children struggle with recognizing emotions in others, but for a child with autism, this skill is even more complex. Their inability to read body language or facial expression well lends to even more complications throughout their life, which is why it’s important to teach this skill early. Learning how to recognize emotions impacts all areas of a person's life, from school, to work, to making friends and strengthening family bonds. One great thing about teaching a child emotions is that they have to look at faces to achieve it. Something that people with autism struggle to do. An applied behavioral analysis (ABA) therapist can teach this in a variety of ways, one way is to show pictures faces that are sad, happy, worried, angry, etc. They ask the child which face is which and…Read More

  6. Researching the Therapy

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    As a parent new to the diagnoses of Autism or with little knowledge of Applied Behavioral Analyses (ABA) therapy, the whole process of researching the therapy and life your child could face is overwhelming. But reading about the nuts and bolts of the therapy and what kids with autism go through, in clinical dry ways, only gives us so much information. Researching the step by steps, understanding the language, and talking to a therapist about your concerns are all legitimate ways to discover what you’re getting into—but it can’t prepare you for how it feels or even looks like living it. There is however a book When Everybody Cares: Case Studies of ABA with People with Autism by Bobby Newman which is a first-person account of ABA. It can show you in a very real way how this therapy aff…Read More

  7. Echolalia in Autistic children

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    A lot of children who have autism will start their speech journey with something called echolalia. Echolalia is when a child repeats what you have just said back to you. It is done for many purposes, but the main reason a child does this is because they have a hard time with fluent or creative spoken language. Some good news about echolalia is it can be a sign your child is trying to speak and they may grow out of it. In some cases however, the child never fully overcomes echolalia. There are some classic examples of this, as some children began with echolalic speech which slowly filters out as they speak more fluently, but rears its head again when they are under stress. Some parents are told their child would always use echolalia and never speak but through ABA they can form fluent sente…Read More

  8. 7 dimensions of ABA

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    Applied Behavioral Analyses (ABA) is based on 7 core dimensions. Any interventions your therapist uses with your child will fall within or be defined by these 7 categories. Therapists use the anagram GET A CAB to remember each part of the therapy. G is for Generalization: This is moving skills from one situation to another. Sometimes your child with autism may perform certain skills like using the potty in one location but not in another. Generalization is the process of moving this skill from one place to another. E is for Effective interventions: All interventions are monitored to ensure effectiveness and to see how they impact the behavior you are trying to change. They must be strong changes that affect something for the better. T is for Technological: Where interventions and procedure…Read More

  9. Reinforces: How to make them effective

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    We talked about token boards and how they help reinforce good behavior during Applied Behavioral Analysis (ABA) therapy sessions. But there is a way you can improve on the token boards and other reinforces to make them as effective as possible. Your therapist should use some of the following methods to help your child move forward through their skills quickly. When offering a token or sticker for each completed task, your therapist will ensure it is given as soon as the child completes the task. It is here reinforcement will be the most powerful, mostly due to instant gratification. If you promise a treat later for doing something they were asked to do, the behavior change will not be as rapid. This is why stickers and tokens on hand are such an amazing tool, there’s no wait period. The …Read More

  10. How prompting can help during ABA

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    Prompting is a wonderful tool in applied behavioral analyses therapy (ABA) and probably the reason some children learn to communicate at all. This simple way of moving a child through the motions of an action/response so he/she can see the consequence is so powerful yet so simple. It really answers the question, how do you teach a child that can’t understand language intuitively, what you are asking of them? My son was completely non-verbal until his speech therapist used hand-over-hand prompting to show signs and slowly weaned him through the process of prompting until he could mand (request things) for himself. Here is a list showing some most invasive to the least invasive prompting. Most invasive: Full Physical Prompting This is when your therapist will essentially use your child’s…Read More