Keys to Successful Learning Experiences
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By: Tracey Spiro
Special Education /Aba Teacher
KEY #1 : PROMPTS
Without the use of prompts and meaningful reinforcement, your child may never respond to your
instructions and you may never have the opportunity to reinforce their attempts and increase learning.
Prompts : Assistance that you provide to ensure that your child responds correctly. They also help
strengthen the relationship between what you ask and the correct response.
• Verbal Prompts: modeling what you want your child to say.
• Gestural Prompts: Pointing to what you want your child to attend to.
• Physical Prompts: guiding your child’s body through the motions of the response.
• Positional Prompts: placing or arranging the objects in such a way that clearly indicates what
the correct response would be.
• Modeling Prompts: demonstrating what the correct response is.
• Visual Prompts: using pictures or schedules to cue a specific response.
Prompts are extremely effective in the learning process but remember:
Prompt right away to reduce frustration and ensure your child responds correctly!
As your child’s skill level improves, use less and less prompting until they are able to do it all by
themselves!
Prompts are GREAT but they are only ½ of the story
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KEY # 2: REINFORCEMENT
Reinforcement is something that is given to the child AFTER they have responded correctly and
INCREASES the likelihood that they will do the same thing again and again!!
That SOMETHING can be ANYTHING that is MEANINGFUL to your child (Tickling, bites of favorite
foods, access to favorite toys or videos, even a break from the demands that occur during instruction).
Things to remember about REINFORCEMENT
• Reinforcement provides a means of MOTIVATION
• When reinforcers are provided, you are reinforcing your child’s responses!
• In the beginning, provide LOTS and LOTS of reinforcement
• Save the BIGGEST for the BEST!!
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KEY # 3: STRIKE A BALANCE!
• Your Tempo or “Pacing” can be the difference between Success and Frustration!
• Keep the pace flowing in order to sustain attention, keep things interesting, and of course,
INCREASE MOTIVATION!