Introduction to Verbal Behavior

1. Introduction to Verbal Behavior By Tracy Vail,MS,CCC/SLP Speech/Language Pathologist Let’s Talk Speech and Language Services, Inc.

2. Contingencies Antecedent/StimulusResponse Consequence (Function Alt.) Evocative Function Altering Reinforcement Soc. Med + Soc. Med – Auto + R Auto – (s-delta) Extinction CSSMO SD Punishment Positive Punishment Negative Punishment

3. Self-Stimulatory Behavior High stereotypy Continuedabsenceof alternative behaviors Impairedlearning Fewerskillsacquired

4. Build Motivation (MO) • Establish Reinforcers- everyone wants something! • Start with non-verbal connection then add verbal • How does the child respond to the environment? • Be playful- play as children play • Build anticipation • Do the unexpected • Create routines • Gradually change the routines • Stay connected to find reinforcers • Be animated • Pair yourself and talking with reinforcement

5. BE the Reinforcer!

6. DODon’t • Teach errorlessly • Fade in demands • Teach to Fluency • Prompt Quickly • Fade prompts • Make sure all questions have answers • Find numerous reinforcers • Correct errors • Have fun! • follow negative behavior with reinforcement • Remove a child from a reinforcing activity to begin teaching • Give directions to do things you can’t prompt • Give directions without getting compliance • Kill reinforcers by placing too many demands

7. Pair Sounds/Talking with Fun!

8. Pairing Sounds with Fun!

9. Imitate All Sounds Produced

10. Reinforce all vocal attempts

11. Pairing with favorite activities

12. Transfer Procedures/Prompting • Teach a new behavior by starting with a behavior that you know the child can already do. • The child is more likely to repeat the same behavior under a different condition • Once the behavior is taught under the new condition, gradually fade the prompt • New learning is build on old learning • The learning remains “errorless”

13. Teaching Procedure for Transfers • Transfer trial- Use the mastered skill to evoke the desired behavior then present the new SD to get the same behavior. • Disractor trial(s)- Present a mastered task or two • Independent trial- Re-present the new SD to evoke the behavior and reinforce correct response heavily

14. Correction Procedure • Use whenever the child responds incorrectly • Give the SD + the response • Wait for the echoic • Repeat the SD • Wait for the response • Run a distractor trial (something the child can do easily) • Repeat the SD

15. Verbal Operants What purpose does the communication serve to the speaker and listener? • Mands- “I talk, I get” • Tacts- I can label things in the environment under a variety of conditions • Receptives- I can follow directions, do what others tell me to do • Imitation/Echoics- I can do/say what others do/say • Intraverbal- What I say is dependent upon what others say but is not the same

16. Manding • The basis of all other verbal behavior • Teach by transferring from echoics or “fill-ins” • Giving up the things we want • With and without items present • With and without someone asking “What do you want? • Teach a variety of sentence forms • Manding from peers • Expand sentence length and teach concepts through mands • Teach manding for information • Manding for attention

17. Choosing Response Forms • If child is non-vocal, must use an alternative/augmentative system • Augmentative communication encourages rather than discourages vocal productions • Experiment to determine how the child responds to various forms • Picture/object exchange • Signs • Communication Boards • Vocal • Voice output devices

18. Manding with PECS

19. Manding with Signs

20. Be sure not to fade signs too quickly

21. Watch for Sign/Vocal Inconsistencies

22. Shaping Vocals through Mands

23. Gradually Build Syllables

24. NET Manding/Mands for Info

25. Begin Teaching in “scripted” play

26. Generalize in less structured format

27. Teaching Concepts through Mands

28. Imitation • Teach through physical prompting or anticipating actions • Important for independent learning and play • Teach child to do multiple actions in response to “Do this” • Gradually increase difficulty and complexity

29. Mix NVI’s with other Operants

30. Echoics- Vocal Imitation • Teach by transferring from mand, motor imitation, songs, “sound play” and pairing with reinforcement • Use visual and/or physical prompting as necessary • Gradually increase length and complexity • Shape through the mand

31. Teaching Isolated Sounds

32. Receptive • Teach by transferring from imitation or with physical prompts • Teach the child to respond to a variety of SDs (touch, find, show, where’s the etc.) • Start with items the child can mand for as well as simple instructions (i.e. come, sit, clap) • Gradually increase complexity. Closely monitor conditional discriminations

33. Add receptives to reinforcing activities

34. Tacts • Teach by transferring from receptive (if child tacts), mand, fill-in, intraverbal or echoic. • Labeling objects, actions, parts, features, classes, functions • Be sure to vary SD’s • Verbal modules- teach the child to discriminate between question forms • Build them up and break them down

35. Receptive Objects

36. Fill-in to Tact Transfers

37. Intraverbal • Talking about things not present • Transfer from fill-in, tact, or echoic • Create “intraverbal links” • Begin with songs, rhymes, stories and daily activities • Gradually increase complexity • Teach reversal fill-ins early • Mands for information + intraverbals = conversation

38. Fill-ins with Books

39. Fill-ins with Songs

40. Intensive Teaching • Use to practice skills taught in the natural environment • Make sure instructors have mastered transfer and correction procedures to fluency • Mix and vary to make sure the child is responding to the correct SD

41. Intraverbal FFC’s/Categories in Intensive Teaching

42. Use Available Reinforcers

43. Dealing with Negative Behaviors • New Behavior (talking) won’t be used if the old behavior (hitting) still works • Must determine function of the behavior before determining how to respond • Look at what happened right before and right after the behavior • Put time between negative behavior and prompting appropriate communication • The child never gets anything for negative behavior • Don’t live your life trying to avoid negative behaviors • Get a functional analysis by a behavior analyst if problems persist

44. Suggested Readings • Educate Towards Recovery by Robert Schramm • The Assessment of Basic Language and Learning Skills (The ABLLS) by Partington and Sundberg • The Mariposa School Training Manual by Tracy Vail • Handouts available at letstalksls.com (Answers Database)

45. Thanks for who you are for children!