Supporting Children's Language

and Preventing Challenging Behaviors at Home

Erin E. Barton, PhD, BCBA-D
Justin Lane, PhD, BCBA-D

!

How does a child share wants & interests?

!

• Eye Gaze
• Vocalization
• Guide Another Person
  • Speech
  • Eye Gaze
  • Body Orientation
• Gesture
• Signs
• Facial Expression
• Low-Tech or High-Tech Output
• Challenging Behavior
• Multiple Modality

Creating a Language Rich Environment

!

Plan Opportunities for Communication

• Modeling: Young children require adult support to learn how to use new words or phrases during typical activities.
• Be responsive to the child's communication and interests.
• Establish Routines: Consistent routines help in understanding communication cues.

How does this look like?

1. Be responsive to the child's communication and interests:
   • Consider establishing routines.
   • Offer choices to engage the child more effectively.
2. Manage materials and facilitate communication opportunities.
3. Wait for the child to respond after initiating communication.
4. If the child does not use the target word or phrase, model it for them.
5. Reinforce communication by providing items that encourage further interaction.

Using Time Delay to Teach

One of the goals in teaching language and communication is for a child to initiate actions and interests during play. This involves creating opportunities for communication that are meaningful and engaging in nature.

How does this look like?

1. Use time delays to create opportunities for the child to respond, expanding their use of target words or phrases.
2. Wait for the child to respond (e.g., 5 seconds) before providing help or prompting further.
3. Reinforce the child’s communication efforts with positive feedback.
4. If the child loses interest, revisit the activity later while maintaining a playful environment.

Additional information and resources

• Handouts and related documents available at:
  https://sites.google.com/view/building-blocks-for-learning/home
  or tinyurl.com/earlybuildingblocks
• For quick tips and information:
  Instagram: laneresearchlab

Prevention Strategies

• Provide frequent positive attention to encourage desired behavior.
• Provide transition warnings to prepare the child for changes in activity.