The Autism Helper Podcast

In this episode, I interview BCBA Shannon Biagi. Shannon is an author, entrepreneur, and supervisor in organizational behavior management. Shannon shares what OBM is and how teachers can utilize these principles to manage their team more effectively. She shares how to define what behaviors you want to see from your staff and how to troubleshoot when you aren't seeing those things. Shannon expl...

While schools are closed, teachers can continue to improve and grow professionally. This may actually help bring in a little bit of normalcy to an abnormal situation. Whether you feel like this situation has left you with more time or less time, fitting in small amounts of time to learn something new is good for the mind and the soul. There are many free ways to find professional development oppor...

With little warning, we have been thrown into a situation most of us were not ready for. With school closures around the world, teachers are suddenly trying to figure out how to make distance learning work for their classrooms. In this episode, I am sharing 4 tips for setting up and running distance learning in a special education classroom. Go with what you know. Keep it simple. Focus on connecti...

In this episode, I answer 4 questions from listeners that cover everything from behavior to staff training to collaborating with team members. The questions I answer in this episode: - How can I help my paras understand the importance of taking data? - What should I do when behaviors escalate when an iPad or preferred item is taken away? - What are some tips for pushing into a classroom to support...

Molly Ola Pinney is the Founder and Chief Executive Officer of the Global Autism Project, a nonprofit organization that increases the capacity of local individuals working with children with autism worldwide. In this episode, Molly shares how the Global Autism Project started and how far reaching its impacts are today. Molly discusses her focus on empowering others through the guiding principle &#...

In this episode, I am chatting with Leah Behrens. Leah is a parent to two children diagnosed with autism and shares her positive, honest, and hilarious point of view over on instagram (@leahbehrens) and her blog. Leah shares the diagnosis process for both of her kids and how she works with them at home. Over the years, Leah has worked with countless teachers, professionals, and therapists. Leah sh...

Jenny Friedman is a registered dietician and specializes at working with children with eating challenges and children on the spectrum. In this episode, Jenny shares tons of practical tips on how to encourage children to try new foods and expand the range of preferred healthy foods. Teachers have an important role when it comes to overcoming eating obstacles. Many students eat multiple meals at sch...

I have a lot of pet peeves when it comes to the mastery criteria in an IEP goal. In this episode, I break down some of the most common pitfalls for this part of the IEP goal and what you can do to avoid it. There are 3 important questions to ask yourself when developing the mastery criteria for an IEP goal: What does mastery of this skill really look like? What can you accomplish in the timeline y...

Transitioning is a skill that some of our learners may benefit from more instruction on. In this episode learn my 7 tips for teaching students to tolerate transitions effectively. I focus on evidence based antecedent interventions. We want to prevent the problem behavior before it starts. Identify tweaks or additions you can add to your classroom to make transitions better and less challenging for...

In this episode, I interview Dr. Megan Miller on strategies for approaching challenging behaviors while consistently looking at maintaining the dignity and respect for students. Megan Miller, Ph. D., BCBA-D, LBA is the co-founder of Navigation Behavioral Consulting and the Chief Clinical Officer of LifeTribe. Dr. Miller is an author and presenter on best practices within Applied Behavior Analysis....

After doing your due diligence and taking some baseline data, you may uncover what could be an attention seeking behavior. In today's episode, we break down exactly what that means. What can this attention look like? How will your data show you it is attention seeking? Next, I share tips and strategies on how to approach these types of behaviors from a skills perspective. Look to identify the...

There are no prerequisites to social skills! Ashley Rose, BCBA, is an expert at teaching social skills in a behavior analytic way. Ashley Rose is owner/director of Mission Cognition, Social Skills Development Centers. In this episode, Ashley shares tips and strategies to incorporate social skills into all areas of the school day. We discuss the importance of social skills and why, sometimes, this...

The Autism Helper Professional Development Membership is open for enrollment from 1/23 - 1/29. In this episode, hear from some of our current members on how they are using the membership, what strategies they put into action right away, and what has made the biggest impact in their classrooms. The membership will not reopen again until next school year! The Autism Helper Membership provides ongoin...

In this podcast episode, check out a replay of my FB Live from 1/14 where I discuss video 1 from the Behavior Change Masterclass. In the live, we chat about having a behavior change mindset, why it's essential for creating effective behavior plans, and what you can do to get your team on board! I share the strategies I use for keeping my perspective in check and maintaining a growth mindset. I...

You are never truly an expert on something until you know how to teach it to others. Reinforcement is something that affects all areas of your classroom and your students' success. It affects your students' academic skills, level of independence, social skills, problem behaviors, and more. It's a fundamental component to your classroom. You absolutely need to ensure that you and your t...

Leading your team effectively is essential for student success in the classroom. However, leadership skills aren't something that are taught and don't always come naturally. In this episode, I interview Dr. Sara Feldman. Sara is the co-owner of The Helm ABA Services in the Dallas area. As Sara has grown her business, she saw the importance in developing her team into strong leaders. Sara s...

In a school setting, working on teams is always part of the job. However, teamwork is hard. It can be even more challenging when working with colleagues who are "difficult". You may have colleagues who are pushy, overly opinionated, or aggressive. This can add stress to your day and impact your happiness at work. In this episode, we take an ABA approach to collaboration. I share 4 common t...

A power struggle occurs when two individuals are unwilling to change their opinion or position. Power struggles happen in our lives and in our classrooms. In this episode, learn my 6 strategies for AVOIDING the power struggle before it even starts. 1. Pick your battles. 2. Give ways to be in control. 3. Say yes instead of no. 4. Model what you want to see. 5. Give transition warnings. 6. Don't...

Executive functioning skills are a set of process to get things done to achieve a goal. They are the skills you need to perform (or execute) a task. Once I started learned about how these skills, I had some major light bulb moments. I knew so many students, clients, and adults who struggled with these skills. I immediately saw how these skills could impact so many areas of an individual's life...

Dr. Laura Riffel is also know as the Behavior Doctor and has trained hundreds of thousands of teachers, clinicians, and parents on the principles of function based behavior change. In this episode, she is sharing her revamped Competing Pathways Chart. Laura shares all the details on how to utilize this framework to identify the function of behavior and develop a strategy for positive and long last...

The school day starts from the second your student or child leaves the house and there is quite a lot that can happen between that moment and when the child enters the classroom. School bus staff are responsible for part of students' school day but receive very little (if any!) training and support. In this episode, I interview Patrick Mulick. Patrick is a BCBA, special education administrator...

In this episode, Whitney Sarnowski shares her story from special ed teacher and soon to be BCBA to special needs parent. She shares the details of her son's diagnosis with autism and discusses what early warning signs she saw in her son. After identifying these signs, she reached out to Florida State's First Words Project ( https://firstwordsproject.com/ ) and worked collaboratively with t...

Even with the best of intentions, utilizing AAC to its fullest can be both intimidating and overwhelming. In this episode, Susan Berkowitz, SLP helps streamline this process by sharing actionable and user friendly tips. Susan shares her 10 Best Practices for AAC Use in the Classroom. We discuss how staff can set up communicate opportunities, teach use of the AAC system, and help students expand th...

In my blog, social media, and this podcast, I strive to strike a balance between being positive and having a problem solving attitude with sharing being honest and discussing the struggles that come with the job of a special education teacher. In this episode, I want to share some of my hardest moments from my teaching career. I think it's important to talk about the challenges because it lets...

Jody is the parent of 5 year old, Remy. Jody shares the story of fining out her daughter was diagnosed with a rare genetic condition called PCDH19 and autism. From the process of diagnosis to acceptance, Jody discuss the lessons she has learned from her daughter, how she decided to share her story, and why having a community around you who understands is so important. Jody’s motivational message i...