Invited Presentation at The National Educators Law Institute: A Day on Autism Spectrum Disorders by Kelle Wood Rich, M.Ed., BCBA 2016

1. Make New Friends and Keep the
Old…How to Help a Child Create
a Social Network
Invited Presentation
NELI 22nd Annual Disabilities Law Conference: A
Day on Autism Spectrum Disorders
February 26, 2016
Kelle Rich, BCBA
Central Texas Autism Center

2. Social Skills and Friendships
• Social skill delays are a defining feature of autism, so it is
highly likely that students with autism will need direct
intervention and support in this area.
– #9 on Texas Autism Supplement
• One of the more difficult relationships for a student with
special needs, particularly a student with ASD, is peer
friendships.
• However, these peer friendships are an invaluable
learning tool and an important part of quality of life.
• Friendships provide us with a safe and comfortable
setting in which to express needs, desires, and opinions.
• Fostering these friendships may require assistance from
adults in the form of direct teaching and careful
scheduling and planning.

3. Barriers to Play and Socialization
• Why is it so difficult for our children on the
Autism Spectrum? (Sundberg, 1998)
– Play requires motivation for social attention, imitation
skills, low rates of interfering behaviors and language
– Verbal interactions with adults are often difficult to
obtain even with careful prompting, shaping and
differential reinforcement
– Once verbal interactions are developed with selected
adults, it is still often necessary to carefully generalize
responding to other adults

4. Barriers to Play and Socialization
• The generalization of verbal interactions with
peers is even more complicated due to:
– Peers may have defective listener and speaker
skills
• May not have clear communication skills
• May not attend to the speaker (your child)
• May not reinforce your child’s responses
• May accidentally reinforce negative behaviors
• May be too slow in delivering reinforcement

5. Barriers to Play and Socialization
• Peers may be an aversive stimulus in that they
are associated with a history of removal of
adult attention or removal of preferred items
• Peers may not have the motivation to interact
with our child
• Peers may not have developed stimulus control
over the behavior of our child

6. Barriers to Play and Socialization
• Peers may not have access or the ability to deliver the
desired reinforcers (i.e.; cookies, play doh, etc.)
– Even when they do have access, they may not be
willing to deliver them!

7. Intervention/ Social Networks Across
Abilities and Ages
• 0-48 months developmental skills
• 48 + developmental skills
• Middle School and High School Students
• 18+ programs

8. If your student is at the 0-48 month
developmental level

9. Level.MS# Independent Play
1.1 The student can manipulate and explore objects for 1 minute.
1.2 The student can show variation in play by independently interacting with 5 different items during 30 minutes.
1.3
The student can demonstrate generalization by engaging in exploratory movement and playing with the toys in a novel
environment for 2 minutes during 30 minutes.
1.4 The student can independently engage in movement play for 2 minutes during 30 minutes.
1.5 The student can engage in cause-and effect play for 2 minutes during 30 minutes.
2.6 The student can search for a missing or corresponding toy or part of a set for 5 items or sets.
2.7 The student can independently demonstrate the use of toys or objects according to their function for 5 items.
2.8 The student can play with everyday items in creative ways 2 times.
2.9 The student can engage in play on structures and playground equipment for a total of 5 minutes during 30 minutes.
2.10 The student can independently assemble toys that have multiple parts for 5 different sets of materials.
3.11 The student can spontaneously engage in pretend or imaginary play on 5 occasions.
3.12 The student can repeat a gross motor behavior to obtain a better effect for 2 activities.
3.13 The student can independently engage in arts and crafts type activities for 5 minutes
3.14 The student can independently engage in sustained play activities for 10 minutes without adult prompts or reinforcement.
3.15 The student can independently draw or write in pre-academic activity books for 5 minutes.
VB-MAPP 0-48 months

10. Level.MS# Social Behavior and Social Play
1.1 The student can visually track and show interest in people's movements at least 5 times in 30 minutes.
1.2 The student can indicate that he wants to be held or physically played with 2 times in 60 minutes.
1.3 The student can spontaneously look at other children 5 times in 30 minutes.
1.4 The student can spontaneously engage in parallel play near other children for a total of 2 minutes in 30 minutes.
1.5 The student can spontaneously follow peers or imitate their motor behavior 2 times during 30 minutes.
2.6 The student can initiate a physical interaction with a peer 2 times during 30 minutes.
2.7 The student can spontaneously mand to peers 5 times during 60 minutes.
2.8 The student can engage in sustained social play with peers for 3 minutes without adult prompts or reinforcement during 30 minutes.
2.9 The student can spontaneously respond to the mands from peers 5 times.
2.10 The student can spontaneously mand to peers to participate in games, social play, etc., for 2 times during 60 minutes.
3.11 The student can spontaneously cooperate with a peer to accomplish a specific outcome 5 times.
3.12 The student can spontaneously mand to peers with a WH question 5 times during 60 minutes.
3.13 The student can intraverbally respond to 5 different questions or statements from peers.
3.14 The student can engage in pretend social play activities with peers for 5 minutes without adult prompts.
3.15 The student can engage in 4 verbal exchanges on 1 topic with peers for 5 topics.
VB-MAPP 0-48 months

11. Pre-requisite skills before adding peers
• Your student should approach familiar adults and
accept reinforcement from them.
– This process is called PAIRING
• Pair yourself and other adults with a bettering of
conditions by offering powerful reinforcers with
no demands associated with accepting them.
• It may also be necessary to pair toys and
activities with established reinforcers if you have
a child that is limited in their variety of interests.

12. Manding (Requesting)
• Once your student is accepting reinforcement
from you and other adults AND is approaching
them to receive reinforcement then you can
teach them to request the
items/activities/people that they want.
– Vocal, sign language, augmentative device

13. Adding in Peers
• When the child has many unprompted mands
at a high rate per day, you are ready to work
with peers.
• If you have a young child, it is recommended
that you choose peers that
– Are old enough (and compliant enough) that they
can follow directions from the adult
– Show an interest in your child and/or share similar
interests

14. Adding in Peers
• With permission, it may be appropriate to explain to
the peers about Autism, teach them about their
communication system and even tell them their goal in
playing with your child i.e.; teaching friend, getting
them to talk to you, etc.
• For the first few sessions, choose a short amount of
time (15-30 min.) to insure success and plan the time
around preferred activities of the target child
• This can be done in the general education classroom,
at recess, in specials, lunch or in a reverse inclusion
model where general education students come to the
special education classroom.

15. Circle of Friends
Circle of Friends is a friendship group that focuses on
shared social experiences between a student with special
needs and his or her peers.
• Created to facilitate and develop peer interaction and
peer modeling between special needs students and
their schoolmates.
• Through individual and/or small group meetings, peers
learn the likes and dislikes of their partner and how to
respond to non-standard behavior in constructive
ways.
• These shared experiences also provide a common bond
and topics of conversation between students that
facilitate friendships.

16. Sample: Circle of Friends Permission Slip
I give my permission for______________ to participate in the Circle of Friends group
as a peer role model for children with special needs for the 2015-2016 school year.
By signing below you understand the following:
I understand that my child will be allowed to miss class for up to thirty minutes twice a
week (flex or recess time).
• will be responsible to make up any missed assignments during the assigned time
out of class.
• may not be eligible to participate in the program due to: a failure to complete
classroom assignments, homework, or failing grades.
• is expected to follow all school and classroom rules and procedures. A failure to
comply may cause an immediate suspension of participation in this program.
• will have the option not to participate in the program, however, is expected to
participate fully in the program once they have accepted the opportunity.
This program is a privilege. A failure to comply with the above expectations may
involve losing the opportunity to participate in the program.

17. Adding in Peers
• Step 1: PAIRING
– Deliver identified reinforcers to the peer and ask
the peer to deliver it to your child
• Direct all of your language to the peer and not the
target student so that your child will begin to attend to
the peer and not to you
• Do this until your child consistently accepts the
reinforcement AND begins to approach the child
unprompted

18. Adult Prompts Peer
Adult
PeerTarget Child

19. Adding in Peers
• MANDING (Requesting)
– Once your child is approaching their peer(s), then
prompt the peer to hold up a preferred item to
your child and wait for the child to ask them for it.
If they don’t say/sign/select the word within 3
seconds, prompt the peer to say the word and
then deliver the item.
– Your child is learning to ask peers for what they
want in this controlled manner so that they will
always contact success (the peer will always
reinforce their response.)

20. Adding in Peers
• Receptive Instructions
– Once your child is requesting frequently and
UNPROMPTED from their peers, prompt the peer
to ask your child to do something with them.
– “Come swing with me”, “Let’s do a puzzle”, etc.

21. Sample IEP’s for beginning
socialization
• ____ will independently request at least 10
different items or activities from at least 2
different peers for 3 consecutive social skill
sessions.
• ____ will respond to at least 5 requests from 2
different peers for 3 consecutive social skill
sessions.

22. Requesting from peer, Pre-K Video
• NickandSarahPeerMands.mpg

23. Components of Play
• Increasing interactions and sophistication of play
– It may be necessary to pre-teach the motor movements,
sounds/words and rules of a game or toy with an adult
prior to setting it up with a peer. Teach to fluency before
adding in a peer.
– Remember most turn taking games require waiting,
listening, sharing and communication—very difficult skills
• This can be done in a discrete trial format, during
natural environment teaching or through video
modeling.

25. Developmental Hierarchy of Games
• 1. Cause and effect games that just require simple
motor movements and/or simultaneous movements
(minimal waiting/ turn taking)
– Hungry, Hungry Hippo - Stomp Rockets
– Don’t Break the Ice - Marble Works
– Perfection - Buddy’s Balloon Launch
– Ants in the Pants - Pop the Pig
– Honey Bee Tree - Let’s Go Fishing
– Jenga -Crazy Cereal

26. Hierarchy of Recommended Games
• 2. Matching games and 2-step games (Simple, fast
turn taking)
– Memory - Twister
– Candy Land -Head Bandz
– Bingo -Uno
– Lotto -Go Fish, Old Maids
– Zingo -Hot Potato
– Topple

27. Hierarchy of Recommended Games
• 3. Rule-governed, strategic games
– Battleship
– Chutes and Ladders
– Trouble
– Connect 4
– Checkers
– Video Games

28. Older Learners and over 48 mo.
developmental age

30. Lunch Bunch
• The same concept as Circle of Friends, but
typically for middle to high school aged
students whose best time for socialization
may be lunch since the structure of classes is
more academic focused.
• Facilitated by the special education teacher or
counselor or possibly SLP.
• Students volunteer. Often, student service
organizations take ownership of the program.

31. Sample IEP for Lunch Bunch
1. ____will willingly go to Lunch Bunch as measured by 0 occurrences of complaining or whining
for 2 consecutive sessions.
2. ____will ask each peer for his preferred items at least 2 times per session by making eye
contact, using their name and saying thank you.
3. ____will allow at least one peer to sit next to him and watch him play his DS for 5 minutes for 2
consecutive sessions.
4. ____will allow a peer to ask him 2 questions as it relates to the DS during a 5 minute period
while he is playing the DS for 2 consecutive sessions.
5. ____will follow at least 4 directions given by a peer for 2 consecutive sessions.
6. ____will correctly play a game he chooses with at least 2 peers for at least 5 minutes for 2
consecutive sessions.
7. ____will correctly play a game a peer chooses with at least 2 peers for at least 5 minutes for 2
consecutive sessions.

32. Sample IEP for older and/or advanced
social skills
1. B. will appropriately maintain a conversation with peers for an
average of 2 minutes for 3 consecutive sessions.
2. B. will politely interrupt when entering into a conversation with
peers for 3 consecutive sessions.
3. B. will follow-up with a novel response when greeting or leaving a
peer or adult (e.g., Peer, “It was so nice see you.” Ben, “You too.
See ya later!”) for 3 consecutive sessions.
4. B. will talk about topics of interest of the listener (peer) for 3
consecutive sessions.
5. B. will politely change topics in conversations with peers for 3
consecutive sessions.
6. B. will use at least 5 idioms in conversations with peers for 3
consecutive sessions.

33. Outcomes
• Direct social skills instruction provides the skills
necessary to make and maintain friends.
• Direct facilitation of friendship groups allow our
students to generalize those skills in the natural
environment across settings.
• These groups allow our general education
students the opportunity to get to know and
understand our students and produce genuine
lasting friendships.
• Reduction in teasing and bullying.
• Facilitates more successful inclusion
opportunities.

34. 512-328-5599
www.ctac1.com