Applied behavior analysis (ABA) techniques can be combined to help children replace aberrant behavior with functional communication skills.
The purpose of this study was to see if two therapies (milieu therapy and functional communication training) could be combined to help children replace bad behavior with language. The authors measured increased communication skills, decreased use of prompts, and decreased bad behavior in three young children with autism at home and in the classroom. They found that prompts decreased with the therapy. Communication increased and bad behavior decreased to almost zero with therapy. All of these skills were generalized to untrained settings and persons.
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Please comment on this autism topic.
Corrections from the author of Following Ezra
Feb 8, 2012 by AnonymousThanks for featuring my book Following Ezra on your site. However, I need to correct some inaccuracies in the post.
1. Ezra was never nonverbal. LIke a lot of children on the autism spectrum, he was remote and difficult to connect with when he was 3 or 4 years old.But he always had language and never lost it.
2. It wasn't a therapist who suggested that we celebrate our son. At a difficult moment when he was 3 and my wife and I were having difficulty connecting with him, a therapist suggested we might need to "grieve for the child he didn't turn out to be." I realized I did not have the instinct to mourn -- nor did I think that would be the most helpful response to having such a child. Instead, I was committed to celebrating and loving the child I had. While of course we have made great efforts to help Ezra live the most complete and fulfilling life possible, the approach I describe in my book was never to try to fix or change my son, but rather to support and celebrate him
3. Ezra did not "recently" complete his first film, as you write. He created "Alphabet House" at age 12 after he had already made a few other films. He's now 16 and has made many more animated shorts since then. "Alphabet House" house was recently adapted as a children's book, published in October 2011. It's called "E-mergency!" and is coauthored by Tom Lichtenheld and Ezra. The Boston Globe named it one of the 10 best children's books of 2011.
4.Ezra's comments about autism and Judaism were not a response to a question. They were observations he made in the speech at his bar mitzvah, when he turned 13.
I would appreciate it if you'd fix these errors in the post. Many thanks,
Tom Fields-Meyer,
author,
"Following Ezra"
Responding to relationship development intervention (RDI)
Jan 6, 2012 by AnonymousI am a parent of an 18 yr. old young man with ASD who we have been doing RDI with for the past 3 years. Once we began the program his life and ours changed. He now initiates conversation with us - true conversation, with give and take, perspective sharing, observations are related and my interests considered. He is much more other-focused and considerate. Outbursts and anti-social behaviors have been significantly decreased. Our household is so much more calm and life normalized. His ability to make study us during communication (total body language - faces, posture, tone - not just the words said) and approrpriately respond and interpret this non-verbal aspect of language is really imporved and remarked upon by family/friends and teachers. He is able to do this on his own, no prompting, no scripting - it is becoming "normal" and happening as expected. We are completely satisfied with this program and while costly, it has delivered the results where others haven't. It really changed his life. I work in Special Olympics and have a control group to compare him and this intervention against as a result. His progress compared against his peers (same age/ school experiences/ but different interventions) is significantly better. We very much look forward to how far he can go.
Responding to insurance
Sep 13, 2011 by AnonymousWe have private insurance for which we pay a premium and deductible. It covers occupational therapy, language therapy, physical therapy and psychological therapy but at a combined 75 visits for calendar year. This is not for each therapy but rather 75 total for all together. Thus, even with illness or vacation times taken, we do not have enough alotted time slots covered to continue therapy for a full year. Once we run out of the 75 covered slots, we must pay out of pocket. We pay a copay of $20 per visit. So, for example, if my child sees a language/speech therapist and the ot once per week it is $40 out of pocket until we hit the magic 75 allowed under the insurance. Then we woud have to pay $150 for one therapy and $160 for the other per week. The psychology/psychiatrist appointments are monthly. All of these therapies would be available more frequently and I am told by the therapists very helpful if we could do more than once a week for 1/2 a session but we cannot afford to do this. The children on the autism spectrum benefit greatly from these therapies and it is something that should be covered under the insurance policies, just as any health or mental health issue should be.
Responding to aquatic
Sep 4, 2011 by AnonymousI have been a private swim instructor, specializing in teaching children with disabilities for over 10 years in Los Angeles. Most of my swimmers are children, ages 2- 12, who are on the Autism spectrum. When these children are in the water, they all have shown a sense of comfort, mind and body relaxation. With certain cues, such as the word "focus," I am able to receive quick eye contact and immediate response to my action requested by them. Positive reinforcement and encouraging words, whether the task was perform correctly or not, increases their consistency of performance in the water. Their sense of body movement in the water becomes hightened because they have control over the water and therefore they feel the need and comfort to be in the water and be active.