4 Ways ABA Can Help My Child with Autism
Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) is widely recognized as the most effective treatment for individuals with autism. ABA treatment is a discipline devoted to the understanding and improvement of human behavior, focusing on objectively defined, observable behaviors of social significance. ABA utilizes many positive reinforcement strategies in order to improve a variety of skills.
ABA is not a one-size-fits-all approach. ABA programs should always be specifically individualized for your child and their needs, learning style, preferred items, etc. Assessments are constantly re-evaluated to ensure that your child’s needs are met.
There are many ways that ABA can help your child with autism, including the four key points outlined below:
Improve Social Skills
One of the most prevalent challenges for individuals with autism spectrum disorder is in the area of social skills. These include subjects such as observational skills, eye contact, play interactions, social pragmatics, sharing enjoyment and building relationships.
Social skills programs help children build relationships and successfully navigate various social situations while having a positive social peer experience.
Another way that social skills can be improved is through Speech Therapy. ALP collaborates with your local Speech Pathologist to foster consistency and increase your child’s ability to use learned skills across environments and across individuals. Speech Therapy can assist children with expressing their wants and needs (verbally and nonverbally), helping them understand words and directions, and making them more easily understood by others in a traditional verbal environment.
ABA can help children with autism learn and identify how to make connections with others and ultimately foster relationships with friends, peers, and family members.
Improve Effective Parenting Skills
It has been proven that parents who are actively involved in their child’s therapy often see more progress in their children. Our clinical team is trained to build behavioral plans that support the entire family unit. Our family-centered treatment model integrates caregivers at all stages, including goal selection, program implementation, and progress assessment. We guide you to include learning through play and natural routines, so it doesn’t feel like “homework,” which in turn increases retention of learned behaviors.
In understanding the ABA techniques used by your Board Certified Behavior Analysis (BCBA), implementing them in your daily routines and reinforcing their learnings, your interactions with your child will be more effective and intentional. It will also help your child to retain the information learned and understand the interactions as commonplace. By being actively involved in your child’s plan, you’ll learn how to cater to their unique needs and help reach their developmental goals.
Improve Living Skills and Encourage Independence
A child’s day is made up of activities and routines. These activities and routines can include playing with toys, getting dressed, using utensils during meals, or following directions. All of these activities are essential for a child’s development. Another form of therapy used with individuals with autism is Occupational Therapy. ALP additionally collaborates with your local Occupational Therapist to foster consistency and increase your child’s ability to use learned skills across environments and across individuals. Occupational therapy helps children to develop these skills.
Occupational Therapy can also help children to develop fine motor skills by improving their ability to grasp and release toys and increase the dexterity of their fingers. This may also include advancing pre-handwriting and handwriting skills.
Identifying and addressing self-care delays such as bathing, dressing, brushing teeth, and feeding oneself is an integral part of development as well. Many of these tasks often require strength in the hands, fingers and upper body. Occupational therapy will work to strengthen these muscles in order to improve ease and attainability of these daily functions.
By developing these essential self-care tasks and creating sustainable routines, children with autism are able to gradually become more independent.
Improve Overall Quality of Life
We want your child to be the best they can be in a complex world where social cues can be tough to read, even for the best of us. We believe it is important to help children with real-life situations, in real-life places, to engage in this wonderful world we all share.
By having a completely individualized curriculum, your child will be set up to succeed and grow as a person. You’ll be able to see the progress and improvements that your child has made and ultimately watch them reach even the most difficult goals and milestones. ABA is designed to help your child reach their full potential and live their best life possible while being their true selves.
Applied Behavior Analysis is the most researched and effective therapy for children with an autism spectrum disorder. When used as an early intervention technique, ABA programs can include more opportunities to help children with autism better engage in the world.
