Where is the student now? Where do you want him to be? Given the sub-skill you selected within the task analysis (the starting point for instruction), how can you shape this behavior into a practical skill for the future?
What visual supports (scripts, instructions, reminder cues, etc.) will you use to help the student cope with change?
Preparation for change can be done through the use of visual supports, such as using weekly or monthly calendars or situational stories.
Or, if you are asking the student to do a task differently than they have been doing it, provide a visual support to re-teach the task. Write out instructions or provide instructions with pictures. Re-teaching a task will be much easier if the student is already familiar with using visual supports, such as written instructions, to-do lists, etc. You can re-teach a task by simply re-ordering or adding/subtracting steps to an already established sequence of steps. See an example in Visual Instructions.
A script might be used to support the student in self-advocating for advanced notice that change will occur (See Communication Scripts and Scenarios for more).
In addition to preparing for a change, visual supports should be used for students who need additional support coping with a change. A coping card or coping plan, for example, is a great way to relieve anxiety or frustration over change (see Social Narratives and Visual Cues sections for examples). At first, you must guide the student in practicing the response that is depicted within the visual support. For example, if the visual cue contains instructions on deep breathing exercises (a coping strategy), modeling and practice, with gradually faded prompts, will occur in the initial phase. Over time, the intent is for the student to independently refer to this visual support.
Video models can also provide examples of how to respond to and cope with change. For example, the video model might depict a series of deep breathing exercises that the student can then practice (see Video Models for more).
What type of prompting might you need to provide in the initial learning phase?
Teaching the student to self-identify change is likely to require verbal prompts at least initially (“Here is what is different…Greg, here is what will happen today…Mia, we are using new tools today….”). The instructor must consider how to fade the labeling of change so that the student sees it as a first step in the process of handling change without direct, personalized prompting.
It is likely that modeling prompts will be required as the student learns to perform strategies to cope with anxiety-provoking changes. In addition, the instructor is likely to need to model how a student should advocate for advanced notice or for clarification when change is to occur (e.g. Instructor models response by reading visual script and says, “If my seat is going to change, can you please let me know the day before?”).
A graduated sequence of more explicit verbal/gestural to less explicit gestural prompts may help the student orient to visual cues that will remain in the environment.
What is the plan for systematically and quickly fading out the prompting? How do you time and fade the prompt to support the student in initiating the target behavior?
Can the student discriminate between the more versus less appropriate response in a given role-play scenario? Are you arranging opportunities for the student to make such discriminations and to label when the instructor or someone else performs the behavior incorrectly?
Are you arranging frequent practice opportunities to build fluency through repetition?
Consider how important it is for the student to repeatedly practice routines in response to change (expected or unexpected changes). Furthermore, the student will require repeated opportunities to practice any coping strategies. When he is already upset or escalating, that is not the time to teach a coping strategy. These strategies should be taught and repeatedly practiced ahead of time.
If you are working with a student whose environment is highly controlled, and for whom you rarely or never change any aspect of their day, it is likely that you are setting that student up for a meltdown when inevitable changes do arise in school or at work. In this case, it is important to systematically program changes into his day to successively increase his tolerance for change. Arranging practice opportunities for tolerating change seems a bit odd, but actually it can be very helpful. Add changes to the student’s schedule as practice for them. In the beginning, these changes should be ALL POSITIVE. A lot of times, we may associate change with bad outcomes (i.e. cancellations, etc.), but in reality, there is such a thing as a good change!
Teach the student that change can be positive by changing a less preferred activity on their schedule to a highly preferred activity. Because any change (even positive ones) can be difficult for some students, have them practice any coping strategies they may need. As the student becomes familiar with the routine for changes in their schedule, then add neutral or even less preferred changes to their schedule on occasion to give them an opportunity to tolerate other types of change. However, you do not want to stress the student out too much by practicing negative (or upsetting) changes. Try practicing neutral changes and then adding in negative change when they naturally arise.
What steps do you need to take to ensure that everyone targeting that skill applies the same level of prompting and fades it out at the same rate to support initiation by the student?