I know it has been a while since I posted last. I'm practically starting a new blog now! No, I know, I was fairly unreliable before so even I am wondering if I'll be able to keep this up. It's worth a shot though!
This summer I am staying home with my children. We now have 3, as we adopted another child a little over a year ago. She's the oldest, 10 years old. We also have a 9 year old girl and 7 year old boy. :) People told us that going from 2 children to 3 would be huge but I'm not sure we realized how much. It's been interesting folks!
I think I'll have a lot to write about this summer as I'm tackling some target behaviors with each of the 3 and planning on working on academics with them each day. Shoot, I'll probably even work in some new chores!
I'm still (and always will be) a behavior analyst, specializing in *my own* children and children with Autism. I've worked in the field for nearly 17 years and it would be impossible for me to leave the field completely. I'll throw in some resources and program ideas for those little guys (and for MY little guys) throughout the summer. These programs will have steps of instruction but, as always, feel free to tailor them to your needs (or consult with a behavior analyst!).
The goal of today's program is to teach children to "come in or out". You see, when you have 3 kids coming in and out of the house all summer and the air conditioning is running, it can be pretty annoying to have the door open all of the time. Yes, I'm speaking from experience. My kids either come in or out without closing the door completely or they stand in the open doorway to talk to someone inside or outside. Sigh. Here's my plan to take care of this...
I've already made it clear that I would like for them to close the doors when they come in or go out... that is, if you count me just "telling" them to do it as making it clear. This doesn't usually work, unless I tell them EVERY time they come in or out. So, I'm going to implement some positive reinforcement in the form of descriptive verbal praise ("Thanks for closing the door!") and occasionally a tattoo, sticker, popsicle, or whatever treat I've made that day (homemade cookies, granola bars, energy bites, etc.). My kids have a pretty long history of responding in the presence of reinforcement so I think this will work pretty well, as long as I fade the schedule of reinforcement pretty gradually and make efforts to maintain the skill.
Fading reinforcement: As they get pretty reliable at closing the door, I'll fade how often I am reinforcing them. First I'll fade out the little treats, then I'll fade out the verbal praise. I've just started using this same procedure with having them take off their shoes when they come in the house and I have every confidence it will work, too. ;)
Of course, there will be times that they come in or out without closing the door. I find that physical or gesture prompts are WAAAAY easier to fade than verbal prompts, meaning that I can STOP reminding them to do what I want them to do WAAAAAY sooner when I've taught them using physical prompts (moving them) or gesture prompts (pointing things out, facial expressions) rather than when I'm telling them everything I want them to do. So, when they come in or out without closing the door, I will direct them back to the door by pointing towards the door and turning them in the right direction (if necessary) to make sure that they go back and "fix" the problem. If I don't catch it right away and they are already in the basement or upstairs, I'll call them down (or up) and point to the door. I'm sure they would much rather close it when they come in or out than have to come back to the door from whatever they are doing. If they are outside, they will be called back to shut the door. Gradually I'll fade the level of prompt when correcting them (maybe from a physical prompt, to a gesture to "the look" to nothing).
Normally, I like to prompt BEFORE the mistake happens, meaning I will "remind" them with a prompt of some kind before they "practice" doing the wrong thing. However, in this case it's a little tricky as verbal reminders to close the door haven't taught them to do it (unless I remind them every time) and their backs are usually turned so I can't use other prompts (like gestures).
What do you think? Are there things you'd like to know how to teach? I have thoughts for future posts but I'm open for suggestions!
Showing posts with label reinforcement. Show all posts
Showing posts with label reinforcement. Show all posts
Saturday, May 25, 2013
Wednesday, April 29, 2009
Data, data, data! And I've Identified Some NEW Targets!
In my first blog post, I detailed the intervention my husband and I are using to decrease the whining in our house. We have no reliable baseline data accounting for the number of whines we were experiencing during a given time in our home. I know, the best way to determine whether or not a behavior is changing (according to plan) is to take data on the target behavior before an intervention is introduced and take data during the intervention. As parents, it is often difficult to wait on baseline data before starting an intervention because... well, we get impatient!
Unfortunately, impatience typically has no reward. Even if the whining is decreasing, we have no definitive way of knowing "for sure". We are left with "feeling" like the behavior is decreasing when we've had "a good day" and being frustrated, thinking that there has been no change (or it's gotten worse) when we've had a "rough" day. It's a
guess, at best. Our perception of everything around us changes depending on the variables present. Maybe it seemed the whining was practically non-existent today because we attended to other things and just didn't notice it or maybe it really did change. So data is a "MUST".
I've been looking around to try to determine what our next "target behavior" will be. Honestly, choosing one was a bit difficult! I realized that if I feel we have quite a bit to work on, I know there is one thing I should work on first: improving the ratio of "positive" interactions to one-sided, negative interactions. I read once in "Parenting with Love" by Dr. Glenn I. Latham, that parents should have no more than 1 negative interaction for every 8 positive interacti
ons with each child in their family. In "The Power of Positive Parenting", written by the same author, he noted that he often recommended to families that they should strive for at least 20 positive interactions with their children every hour (when the children were exhibiting appropriate behavior). Of course, the interactions need to be short to fit them all in... usually around 10 words long (or less), or even just a wink or pat on the back letting them know that they are doing something right and you'd like to see more of it! Even better, be descriptive and precise about what you like. I know that my world is happier when I receive valid compliments and praise! AND I know how grumpy my world feels when I feel I am criticized and corrected in an unbalanced way. Can you imagine how kids would feel in the same situation? (Another way to insure to fit all of the positive interactions in is to IGNORE inconsequential behaviors that would typically elicit negative attention... but that post is for another day!)
Definitions of the behaviors. In order for us to track (data, data, data!) our interactions effectively, first we need to define what a "positive interaction" is and what a "negative interaction" is.
In our home, this is our working definition for a "Positive interaction": Verbal, gestural, or physical contact with child that is used to compliment, praise, or acknowledge the behavior they are currently exhibiting. It can also be the initiation or continuance of conversation that is not meant to redirect or address negative behaviors.
"Negative Interaction": Verbal, gestural, or physical contact in order to decrease or redirect an unappealing behavior.
About a year ago I made up a data sheet to keep track of such interactions. We can either write a brief n
ote to describe the interactions or simply tally them. (Write a note in the comments section if you'd like me to email a version to you!) For now, we'll attempt to remind ourselves about "The Ratio" goal by keeping data sheets close by and with a few physical reminders in the house... a rubber band around my wrist, a special item in my pocket... maybe even a sticky note or two up on the wall (in strategic places). If I can, I'll figure out how to post a graph of our daily data soon. If not, you'll have to be satisfied with table (if I can get THAT to work:) ).
Unfortunately we won't have baseline data for the ratio of positive to negative interactions. However, we will have intervention data! While we are working on improving "The Ratio", I will begin baseline data on other behaviors that either we or their terrific babysitter have noted. They include, but are not limited to: physical fighting and/or aggression between the children, going outside without permission, and screaming/tantrumming. These behaviors have occurred enough for us to note them, but do not appear "dire". I'd like to take a little data to determine if they are isolated issues or if they need to be addressed. I'll be taking "ABC" data to help in determining the function of each of the behaviors, as well.
Unfortunately, impatience typically has no reward. Even if the whining is decreasing, we have no definitive way of knowing "for sure". We are left with "feeling" like the behavior is decreasing when we've had "a good day" and being frustrated, thinking that there has been no change (or it's gotten worse) when we've had a "rough" day. It's a
guess, at best. Our perception of everything around us changes depending on the variables present. Maybe it seemed the whining was practically non-existent today because we attended to other things and just didn't notice it or maybe it really did change. So data is a "MUST".I've been looking around to try to determine what our next "target behavior" will be. Honestly, choosing one was a bit difficult! I realized that if I feel we have quite a bit to work on, I know there is one thing I should work on first: improving the ratio of "positive" interactions to one-sided, negative interactions. I read once in "Parenting with Love" by Dr. Glenn I. Latham, that parents should have no more than 1 negative interaction for every 8 positive interacti
ons with each child in their family. In "The Power of Positive Parenting", written by the same author, he noted that he often recommended to families that they should strive for at least 20 positive interactions with their children every hour (when the children were exhibiting appropriate behavior). Of course, the interactions need to be short to fit them all in... usually around 10 words long (or less), or even just a wink or pat on the back letting them know that they are doing something right and you'd like to see more of it! Even better, be descriptive and precise about what you like. I know that my world is happier when I receive valid compliments and praise! AND I know how grumpy my world feels when I feel I am criticized and corrected in an unbalanced way. Can you imagine how kids would feel in the same situation? (Another way to insure to fit all of the positive interactions in is to IGNORE inconsequential behaviors that would typically elicit negative attention... but that post is for another day!)Definitions of the behaviors. In order for us to track (data, data, data!) our interactions effectively, first we need to define what a "positive interaction" is and what a "negative interaction" is.
In our home, this is our working definition for a "Positive interaction": Verbal, gestural, or physical contact with child that is used to compliment, praise, or acknowledge the behavior they are currently exhibiting. It can also be the initiation or continuance of conversation that is not meant to redirect or address negative behaviors.
"Negative Interaction": Verbal, gestural, or physical contact in order to decrease or redirect an unappealing behavior.
About a year ago I made up a data sheet to keep track of such interactions. We can either write a brief n
ote to describe the interactions or simply tally them. (Write a note in the comments section if you'd like me to email a version to you!) For now, we'll attempt to remind ourselves about "The Ratio" goal by keeping data sheets close by and with a few physical reminders in the house... a rubber band around my wrist, a special item in my pocket... maybe even a sticky note or two up on the wall (in strategic places). If I can, I'll figure out how to post a graph of our daily data soon. If not, you'll have to be satisfied with table (if I can get THAT to work:) ).Unfortunately we won't have baseline data for the ratio of positive to negative interactions. However, we will have intervention data! While we are working on improving "The Ratio", I will begin baseline data on other behaviors that either we or their terrific babysitter have noted. They include, but are not limited to: physical fighting and/or aggression between the children, going outside without permission, and screaming/tantrumming. These behaviors have occurred enough for us to note them, but do not appear "dire". I'd like to take a little data to determine if they are isolated issues or if they need to be addressed. I'll be taking "ABC" data to help in determining the function of each of the behaviors, as well.
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