If you have children, you know that they have a lot to learn about life. Applied behavior analysis is an educational approach that helps many children, especially those with autism or developmental disabilities, learn how to take care of themselves and interact with the world.
If you have a child who receives ABA services at school or in a clinic setting, you might want to bring some of those skill-building pursuits to your home. With these five activities, you can promote independence and growth in your child, while providing fun entertainment and structured engagement.
1. Visual Schedules and Rewards
Children often look for ways to better understand the world and what to expect, and visual schedules and reward systems can help. Instead of telling your children what will happen next, you can create a visual schedule that helps them see what they have done and still need to do. You can wrap the visual schedule into chore or activity rewards programs that provide a little incentive to focus and complete their tasks. That way, your kids can get the benefit of seeing immediate progress and identify how close they are to earning a reward.
2. Role-Playing Activities
Children often don’t know how to act in social situations, and role-playing activities provide the keys to better understanding. Set up an environment in which your kids will need to learn how to interact and help them through scenarios. Common role-playing activities include:
- Shopping at the store
- Going to a movie or other ticketed event
- Introducing yourself to an unfamiliar person
Feel free to get expansive with the imaginary situation with props and costumes where appropriate. If you have more than one child, have them trade roles so they get a more varied experience.
3. Food Preparation Fun
Children with sensory sensitivities often get stressed around mealtime, but you can make it fun. Start with the basics of having your child prepare their own meal, such as making a sandwich or dividing portions of grapes or carrots. Provide familiar favorites and one or two new options and let your children choose. As their experience grows, you can expand into helping them learn about food safety, such as cutting a banana or slices of cheese. Encourage them to make a game out of it, like choosing a variety of colors for each meal.
4. Chore Games
Many children are eager to help out, but they may need a little more help and encouragement to participate in chores. Cleaning up and organizing are key parts of maintaining a safe and comfortable home, and you can make it fun by creating games for the kids to play. Set a timer and see how many blocks you can pick up before time runs out. Hide a surprise at the bottom of a laundry basket to incentivize putting away clothing. Focus on games that allow all children to win, so you can emphasize the productive aspects of the activity.
5. Functional Play Sets
As part of ABA therapy training online, you may learn a lot about the importance of functional play in helping children to understand their world. To make each activity easier, especially for setup and cleanup, consider creating sets or kits for functional play activities. Use drawers, bins or containers that your children can easily open and put away themselves, for greater independence. For example, you might put a road-themed mat and a variety of toy cars into a container for driving activities, or dolls and clothing together for dress-up fun.
Although your child might be learning lots from their ABA activities at school or in the clinic, you can also help them work on their skills at home. By focusing on these activities in particular, you can promote independent activity that can lead to greater independence over time.
Author bio: Adam Clark is the owner of Coastal ABA, which provides remote Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) parent training and support to families affected by autism. Clark is a Board Certified Behavior Analyst and has been working with families affected by autism for more than 20 years. He is focused on increasing access to ABA care and giving parents the skills they need to help move their family forward.
SOURCES
https://moveupaba.com/blog/aba-therapy-activities/
https://striveabaconsultants.com/aba-activities-that-teach-independent-living-skills/
