Discrete Trial Teaching exercises for ASD professionals and parents of ASD childrens

Exercise 1 – for parents

Strategy

Examples

Use this when…

Break apart difficult activities into smaller steps. When your child successfully completes a smaller step, praise your child or allow your child time with a favourite toy.

If your child is learning how to say ‘hello’, begin by helping your child wave ‘hello’.

When the task is a success, praise the child vocally e.g. “well done!” and/or give him/her time with the favourite toy/ blow soap balloons etc.

To help the child learn easier complex behaviours or difficult tasks.

Exercise 2 – for professionals

Strategy

Examples

Use this when…

Preparing for DTT Lesson

Create a sheet like the one below, to determine the best places for the lesson.

*Questions:*			*Possible Locations*
*Is the place quiet without too many distractions?*
*Is there sufficient space for instruction AND for breaks?*
*Does the location have easy access to peers to promote generalization?*
*Is there adequate lighting and seating? For seating, ensure that the seat and table fit the learner’s body.*

Determine an appropriate place for a DTT lesson to occur. Remember, multiple locations are preferable to help learners generalise skills or behaviours.

Exercise 3 – for professionals

Strategy

Examples

Use this when…

Select Reinforcers

Create a sheet like the one below, to determine the most appropriate reinforcers.

*Questions to Consider*	*List Potential Reinforcers*	*Age Appropriate?*
What natural reinforcers could be used?
What activities, objects and foods does the learner select independently?
What phrases or gestures seem to produce a pleasant response from learners with ASD?
What does the learner say s/he would like to work for? (if appropriate)
What reinforcers were identified by parents or team members as being successful in the past?
What items did the learner select as part of the reinforcer sampling?

To increase the likelihood that the learner will use the target behaviour again in the future, select reinforcers that are appropriate for the individual learner and the target skills.

Exercise 4 – for professionals

Strategy	Examples	Use this when…
Monitor the progress	Create a set of sheets like the one below, to monitor the progress of your learner.	When using DTT, trial by trial data collection is very important. Specifically design data sheets for the skill being taught.

Exercise 5 – for professionals

Strategy

Examples

Use this when…

Conduct discrimination training 2

Present new stimulus and fade prompts.

When teaching a new stimulus, present the new stimulus to the learner without any other items to choose from. Prove the learner with instruction (SD), prompt the target behaviour, and then reinforce the learner’s response if correct.

Overtime, prompts should be systematically faded until the learner can independently and consistently perform the skill with the one stimulus object.

To help the learner faster and better adopt the new behaviour

Exercise 6 – for professionals

Strategy

Examples

Use this when…

Conduct discrimination training 1

Present distractor stimulus

Once the learner is able to perform the skill independently and consistently with the one stimulus, another stimulus (distractor) is presented in the periphery. The distractor stimulus should only vary from the target stimulus on the one specific dimension being taught. The team member will provide the instruction (Sd) and then reinforce the learner’s behaviour if correct.

To help the learner faster and better adopt the new behaviour

Exercise 7 – for professionals

Strategy

Examples

Use this when…

Conduct discrimination training 3

Teach generalisation.

Teach generalisation of the skill or concept by teaching discrimination of multiple stimuli and applying use of skill in multiple situations.

To help the learner faster and better adopt the new behaviour