Many individuals with autism display behavior that may interfere with the acquisition of new skills within the classroom. Due to the rising rates of autism, it is likely that many teachers will encounter students with autism and behavioral difficulties within their classrooms. Current behavior interventions are typically designed by specialists…

Cox, Villegas, and Barlow (2018) published a reply to an article in which I (Shyman, 2016) argued that there were fundamental philosophical problems with behavior analytic intervention that prevent it from being considered as a humanistic approach. A number of important points were raised about the argument including criticisms and the need for…

Response interruption and redirection, commonly referred to as RIR, is an evidence-based intervention that has been demonstrated to quickly reduce moderate to high levels of vocal stereotypy in children with autism spectrum disorder. The RIR intervention is a simple, three-step procedure that can be embedded in classroom instruction with minimal…

Many teachers and parents of young children with disabilities, particularly autism spectrum disorder (ASD), are familiar with young children who engage in repetitive and restrictive behaviors such as flapping, spinning, and rocking. This type of restrictive and repetitive behavior, or stereotypy, can be common, over time it can become problematic…

This piece focuses on creating a safe space for several subsets of the elementary school student population, including Muslim students, children with autism spectrum disorder, and students with social-emotional challenges. These groups do overlap and intersect, and they are united in their reliance on the library as a refuge. However, school…

Functional Behavior Assessment (FBA) and behavior interventions have been effective in the management of challenging behavior among children with developmental disabilities including autism spectrum disorders. Research suggests the need for valid measurement instruments for verifying, calibrating and scoring competence in FBA and behavior…

Many teachers struggle with implementing self-help eating goals for children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). No group programs exist to target this important problem. We used findings from applied behavior analysis research and adapted single-subject interventions into a group-based eating program. In describing the program using two…

Research suggests that many children with ASD are visual learners (Quill, 1997) and may struggle to comprehend expectations presented in a verbal mode only. Visually structured interventions present choices, expectations, tasks, and communication exchanges in a way that is appealing and approachable for visual learners. There are many types of…

This article presents information on the impact of hyper or hypo-sensory responses and specific strategies that can balance the systems. We examine the five sensory systems (tactile, auditory, visual, proprioceptive, and vestibular), common behaviors associated with each system, and recommend instructional strategies designed to support student…

Challenging behaviors of students with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) may occur for a variety of reasons. These behaviors can contribute to the emotional burnout of teachers and impact the learning and safety of the student with ASD and his or her classmates. Physical education is one educational context where high and multiple risks of…

This list of tools was compiled to assist states and programs with identifying assessments that can be administered when the assessor cannot be in the room with the child. This is a list of screening tools that can be completed remotely when the practitioner cannot be in the room with the child. Screening tools assess the possibility of a…

There is a significant increase of children diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder (ASD); therefore, parents, educators, and specially trained instructional resource teachers need to come together to provide effective programming for these children. This paper provides a number of strategies and educational methods to assist educators in…

This article explicitly addresses the correlation between communication and behavior, and describes how to provide intervention addressing these two overlapping domains using an intervention called functional communication training (FCT; E. G. Carr & Durand, 1985) in individuals with ASD. A step-by-step process is outlined with supporting…

The behavioral treatments for persons diagnosed with autism have evolved from those that included punitive components to those that are now based upon principles of positive behavior supports. The proceeding document provides an historical overview of relevant behavioral approaches, including the type of approach and the quality of involvement and…

Evidence-based practices (EBPs) in early intervention for autism spectrum disorder (ASD) have the potential to improve children's developmental trajectories and address family needs. However, the successful use of EBPs in community early intervention settings requires careful attention to the context in which services are delivered. Implementation…