Data is a key component of our teaching. When used correctly, data should guide our teaching in order to ensure that our students are getting the instruction, support, and practice they need to learn what we are teaching them. That means that we need to be smart about how we take data, analyze it, and make needed changes to our instruction. By using progress monitoring to allow our students’ performance to guide our teaching, we are able to teach more effectively.

So how do you know how much data to take? I have 3 rules to follow for progress monitoring without it taking up all your time. And be sure to check out the FREE Taming the Data Monster Webinar to learn how to create a meaningful classroom data system! 

03:44 - How to know when to take more or less data

04:21 - What kinds of skills need more frequent data 

05:45 - The importance of reviewing your data to guide instruction

09:12 - What action step you can take to improve your data collection and progress monitoring

Show Notes: http://autismclassroomresources.com/episode187

Resources:

• Graphing instructional data with Google Sheets
• Graphing instructional data with Excel
• Watch the free data webinar
• Editable Behavior Data Sheets
• Editable Instructional Data Sheets
• Join the Autism Classroom Resources' Free Resource Library
• Get more information about the Special Educator Academy
• Join the Free Facebook Group

If you're enjoying this podcast, could you please take a quick moment to leave your review on Apple Podcasts? It would mean the world to me and will help spread the word to other special educators. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

We know reinforcement can be incredibly effective for our students with autism when used correctly. But how can we ensure that we are using reinforcements in the best and most effective way possible? Not every student is going to have the same reinforcers, and not every skill for the student is going to have the reinforcers. 

To help you implement reinforcement more effectively, I am sharing what reinforcement actually is, three elements of effective reinforcement, and what action step you can take to help improve the effectiveness of reinforcements inside your classroom. 

02:03 - The importance of pairing ourselves and instruction with things that are reinforcing to the student

02:38 - Why the whole classroom team needs to be clear on what specific performance is being reinforced

05:18 - How and why we should be differentiating our reinforcement for different skills

07:13 - The action step you can take to help improve the use of reinforcers in your classroom

Show Notes: https://autismclassroomresources.com/episode186

Resources:

• Token Economy Toolkit with Token Boards
• Token Boards: The Princess and the Train
• Join the Autism Classroom Resources' Free Resource Library
• Get more information about the Special Educator Academy
• Join the Free Facebook Group

If you're enjoying this podcast, could you please take a quick moment to leave your review on Apple Podcasts? It would mean the world to me and will help spread the word to other special educators. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

What are our choices when it comes to errors when working with our students? We know that there is no one approach that will work for all of our students with autism because each student is different. However, it may be helpful to have a default approach that we begin with and make adjustments as needed based on the student, their needs, and their performance. 

In this episode, I am sharing how to decide when to use errorless teaching or correct errors, how prompting fits into this, tips for using these approaches, and what action steps you can take to improve the consistency of handling errors in your classroom.

02:47 - What errorless teaching is, and examples of how it is used

04:40 - How to handle errors when you allow them to happen

06:18 - Options for what to do when students wouldn’t respond well to being told their answer is wrong

07:06 - The role of reinforcement in error correction

Show Notes: http://autismclassroomresources.com/episode185

Resources:

• What Are Stimulus Prompts? Or If I Don't Tell Them the Answer, What Other Kinds of Prompts Are There?
• What Do I Do About Errors in Discrete Trials? The Errorless Learning v. Error Correction Conundrum
• What are Prompts? 5 Main Types of Prompts in a Free Infographic
• Join the Autism Classroom Resources' Free Resource Library
• Get more information about the Special Educator Academy
• Join the Free Facebook Group

If you're enjoying this podcast, could you please take a quick moment to leave your review on Apple Podcasts? It would mean the world to me and will help spread the word to other special educators. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

As special educators, we understand the importance of clear and concise communication. For our students with autism, the way we deliver instructions can have a great impact on their ability to learn and understand the skills and concepts we are trying to teach them. Because of this, it is key that we deliver instruction in a way that is clear so that our instruction is effective. 

In this episode, I am diving into effective teaching characteristics for giving instructions to students with autism. I am sharing how to ensure you have your student's attention, how to give clear and concise instructions, and how to break down instructions in your student's academics. 

02:47 - Why you need to be sure you have your student’s attention before giving instructions

04:10 - How the instruction type might vary depending on the teaching strategy 

05:06 - The importance of giving clear and concise instructions

07:13 - How to break down instructions in academics

08:45 - What to avoid when giving instructions

Show Notes: https://autismclassroomresources.com/episode184

Resources:

• Behavior Analytic Instruction for Learners with Autism: Advances in Stimulus Control Technology
• Grow & LeBlanc (2013) Teaching Receptive Language Skills
• Why I No Longer Teach Eye Contact in Autism: Teaching Attention Skills
• 7 Ways You Could Be Sabotaging Your Discrete Trial Instruction
• Join the Autism Classroom Resources' Free Resource Library
• Get more information about the Special Educator Academy
• Join the Free Facebook Group

If you're enjoying this podcast, could you please take a quick moment to leave your review on Apple Podcasts? It would mean the world to me and will help spread the word to other special educators. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Creating effective special education teaching materials is more important than you may think, especially for our learners with autism. Students with autism oftentimes focus on details of pictures or learning materials that you may not even notice. Being aware and intentional of the teaching materials you are using is so important in helping them learn the concepts you are trying to teach. 

There are certain things to keep in mind in order to create effective special education teaching materials. In this episode, I am sharing six tips for how to develop effective special education teaching materials for your learners with autism.

01:35 - Why you should be using examples that are very different from each other when introducing new concepts

02:08 - The importance of keeping your examples clear and straightforward

02:50 - Why avoiding distracting backgrounds is helpful for students

03:26 - How to avoid material overlap

04:04 - What to avoid when creating materials so students can’t just guess the correct answer

04:49 - When to start working on generalization of a concept

Show Notes: http://autismclassroomresources.com/episode183

Resources:

• 3 Tips for Presenting Materials in Discrete Trials: With a Freebie
• Join the Autism Classroom Resources' Free Resource Library
• Get more information about the Special Educator Academy
• Join the Free Facebook Group

If you're enjoying this podcast, could you please take a quick moment to leave your review on Apple Podcasts? It would mean the world to me and will help spread the word to other special educators. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Breaking down target skills into their component parts and teaching them systematically is so beneficial for our students. These task analyses for autism are used frequently in special ed, and there are different formats of them and different things to consider when choosing which task analysis format to use for a specific target skill.

Teaching in a systematic way helps decrease decision fatigue while also increasing the effectiveness of your instruction. When teaching steps to reach a target skill, breaking the skill down into smaller steps helps you to know what comes next, and it helps your student to be successful as well. In this episode, I’m giving a bite-sized look into how to effectively use the different formats of task analysis for autism in your classroom.

01:27 - What a task analysis is

02:12 - What chaining task analysis is and when you might use it

03:49 - When using shaping task analysis is beneficial

05:13 - Why it is crucial that you write down the steps regardless of which type of task analysis you are using

Show Notes: http://autismclassroomresources.com/episode182

Resources:

• Shaping: 5 Tips You Need to Know to Use it Effectively
• Chaining: A Teaching Strategy That Can Save You Time
• What You Need to Know About Task Analysis and Why You Should Use It
• Join the Autism Classroom Resources' Free Resource Library
• Get more information about the Special Educator Academy
• Join the Free Facebook Group

If you're enjoying this podcast, could you please take a quick moment to leave your review on Apple Podcasts? It would mean the world to me and will help spread the word to other special educators. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Good instruction begins with assessment. It is so important to know what your students can and cannot do in order to determine what it is you actually need to teach them. When we are choosing learning objectives and target skills, we want to be sure we are not just pulling goals from the IEP.

When determining what the target skills will be, it is important to take skills from both our curriculum-based assessment as well as from the student's IEP. In this episode, I am breaking down why you should begin with assessments, how to choose a target behavior, and how to create great learning objectives.

01:31 - Why good instruction always begins with assessment

02:19 - How to choose target behaviors

03:10 - Why it's important that the learning targets are relevant to the student's daily life

04:04 - How to create good learning objectives

Show Notes: http://autismclassroomresources.com/episode181

Resources:

• What Is a Curriculum and Why Do I Need One in Special Education?
• Episode 180, 7 Things to Get Right for Effective Instruction with Any Type of Autism Intervention Strategies 
• Join the Autism Classroom Resources' Free Resource Library
• Get more information about the Special Educator Academy
• Join the Free Facebook Group

If you're enjoying this podcast, could you please take a quick moment to leave your review on Apple Podcasts? It would mean the world to me and will help spread the word to other special educators. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Good instruction is good instruction. Whether you are using Discrete Trials, Naturalistic Developmental Behavioral Intervention, or something else, there are key elements to making your instruction effective. Tweaking these key elements to fit your students is what makes autism intervention strategies effective.

There are noticeable differences in different autism intervention strategies but there are common elements that are important at the core of all of them. In this episode, I am sharing the 7 important elements in instructional loops that help to create effective instruction.

04:22 - The importance of identifying and outlining concrete learning targets

05:29 - Why we should be breaking down skills into component parts

06:44 - What to consider when designing materials and giving directions

07:59 - How reinforcements can help students get to the correct answer

10:14 - Why we need to be collecting data

Show Notes: http://autismclassroomresources.com/episode180

Resources:

• Watch the Taming the Data Monster Webinar
• Join the Autism Classroom Resources' Free Resource Library
• Get more information about the Special Educator Academy
• Join the Free Facebook Group

If you're enjoying this podcast, could you please take a quick moment to leave your review on Apple Podcasts? It would mean the world to me and will help spread the word to other special educators. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Are you looking for ways to get your classroom chaos under control? Utilizing classroom management best practices is crucial to your classroom running smoothly and for both you and the students to clearly understand expectations. Classroom management doesn’t need to be overly complicated but there are some key components that will help your classroom management be more effective. 

Following classroom management best practices can help to improve student behavior and student buy-in. To help you have the most successful classroom management, I am sharing five tips for classroom management best practices.

01:36 - Why you need to have a classroom management system

04:49 - The importance of explicitly teaching routines and expectations

06:51 - How to help students understand the concept of “fair”

08:45 - Why students need to win in your classroom management system

10:13 - The benefits of praising appropriate behavior publicly

Show Notes: http://autismclassroomresources.com/episode179

Resources:

• Grab Your Free Set of Classroom Rules
• Get the Classroom Routine Social Stories
• Get the It's Not Fair-Social Stories
• Join the Autism Classroom Resources' Free Resource Library
• Get more information about the Special Educator Academy
• Join the Free Facebook Group

If you're enjoying this podcast, could you please take a quick moment to leave your review on Apple Podcasts? It would mean the world to me and will help spread the word to other special educators. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Using reinforcement strategies in your classroom may seem fairly basic. But the truth is, effectively implementing reinforcement strategies is a bit more nuanced than you might think. Unfortunately, there is no magic reinforcer or reinforcement strategy that will work with all students but there are some things you can do to ensure you are using reinforcement strategies effectively.

If you feel like reinforcement doesn’t work with your students or you are struggling to find ways to implement reinforcement strategies effectively, join me as I share my favorite tips for using reinforcement strategies in the classroom so that they actually work for you and your students!

01:48 - What reinforcement is

02:57 - Why you need to be using actual reinforcers and using them correctly

06:45 - Why your reinforcer must be connected to what you are teaching 

10:33 - How to make the reinforcer even more powerful for your students

13:00 - My tip for using reinforcement strategies a the beginning of the year

14:45 - How to handle disruption and change using reinforcements

Show Notes: http://autismclassroomresources.com/episode178

Resources:

• Join the Autism Classroom Resources' Free Resource Library
• Get more information about the Special Educator Academy
• Join the Free Facebook Group

If you're enjoying this podcast, could you please take a quick moment to leave your review on Apple Podcasts? It would mean the world to me and will help spread the word to other special educators. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️