As a first step an initial consultation will take place in the home environment. The reason the initial consultation will take place at the child’s home is to observe the child in his natural environment. This first consultation usually lasts from 2-3 days. During that time I will explore the parent’s expectations regarding their child’s education and will compare them to my assessment of the current situation. This approach helps to prioritize learning goals and enables me to help where it’s needed most. Another important part of the first visit is the introduction of the parents to the theoretical background of the science (ABA). The goal of the theoretical part is for the parents and other caregivers to acquire a basic understanding of applied behavior analysis. Therefore, the principles of behavior and other important techniques and procedures, which are important for their child’s education, will be explained and practiced. Another focus of the initial consultation will be on the assessment of the current skills of the child. The results will be used for the development of the individual behavior and learning plan. The program will be tailored to the needs of the child and the current teaching skills of the parents. Then it will be practiced together and should eventually be implemented by parents and other tutors.
After the initial consultation follow-up consultations are recommended on a regular basis (usually 1 day per month). The follow-ups are used to determine the progress of development, modify the behavior and learning program and for further training sessions. As the initial consultation, follow-up consultation will also be at your home or they could take place in the child’s kindergarten or school. Since the needs of the families change over time and new issues will come up, these are discussed and addressed during the next consultations. Data analyses are used for an objective determination of the child’s progress, which can also be represented in graphs. The aim is to include all important persons in the program and to offer a continuous supervision.
The entire consultation day is structured as individual as possible to meet the family’s needs. Usually a full-day consultation includes 8 hours and a half-day consultation 4.5 hours of services. These hours are composed of services that are completed in the family’s home and those that take place outside of the actual consultation. During a full-day consultation 5-6 hours take place in the child’s environment and the remaining 2-3 hours are used for preparation and postprocessing. For a half-day consultation the time is distributed to 3 hours in the child’s environment and to 1.5 hours of preparation and postprocessing.
Services within the actual consultation:
Services outside of the actual consultation: