Privet speech therapy or ABA?!

[samira837]

Hi ds1 dx with autism 3 months a go very limited speech 3-4 words but understand more just wanted 2 get some advice don't know if u should start him on privet speech therapy(have email some teachers and got replay) or go strait for ABA??

Maby start off with some speech and if that is not helping go for ABA as I still have 2 apply for funding and find the ABA teachers ect let me know what 2 do

Thx

DS see's a private speech therapist once a week. It has really helped with his speech and his attention and listening issues. We have recently had an asd diagnosis to and I have been looking in to ABA but like you not sure whether just continuing with the speech therapy is enough at this stage.

We are in the same place then my ds1 mane thing is speech and attention when being directed (no problem when self directed)

What I would do is get a highly experienced ABA tutor to come and play with your ds and teach you the ABA ropes and then get a SALT to assess your ds and set the targets. The good SALTs that I know, once they are convinced that you are following their advice and doing the work will simply email you the next lot of targets once you say you have reached the previous and not insist you see them. Unless of course you can get an ABA trained SALT but good luck with that, they are like gold dust.

I don't think that it is wise to undergo an ABA programme WITHOUT some SALT guidance/overseeing. There can be underlying causes that if you understand can be a lot faster to fix with the ABA than if you don't understand.

I'd agree with Star.
I am an s/lt with ABA training.

Ok so let's see if I got it wright find a ABA tutor and a speach therapist?!
Can I just ask how hard is it 2 get funding for ABA?! I know that u can get some money for privet speech and how 2 apply but have no idea about ABA.

I was thinking to start the speach therapy wile looking for ABA tutor and the funding..hmm..is this ok or will it confuse him?!

Sorry forgot moondog are u in sheffield?!

Samira, no I'm not I'm afraid and at the moment I do no private work.
What Pipin says is also somethnig I agree with strongly.
S/lt is really of little use to a child with complex communication and compliancy issues of the type associated with some aspects of ASD.
These need to be sorted first (assuming there is an issue with them) and then an s/lt can be very useful in assessing and telling you what needs to be worked on.

The ABA gang are the ones who are best at owrking out how to teach it and measuring progress.

The ABA Yahoo UK forum is good for discussing ABA as is MN.
There are presently no listings for s/lts wo are good with ABA but this is the lnik for getting a reputable private s/lt and it would be worth you ringing/emailing the very helpful administrator for help with narrowing your search to find an s/lt who is an expert in issues such as PECS (ABA based intervention) or with an interest in behavioural methods.

It will be hard work and take a lot of your time and energy, both to research and implement so be warned.

Here

Ah, bless you.
You have nothing to be guilty of ever.
You are a warrior mother, like all the mothers posting here.
Your children are all so so lucky to have you fighting their corner.
Hope it goes well.

Pipin, I'm amazed to see you post that. I thought you were invincible! . You're certainly an inspiration. Please don't ever feel guilty.

Thx everyone for al the advice..hmm... ds1 is starting a 6 weeks pecs course on the NHS (they have offered it so way not?!) After that I have emaild 2 speech therapist that works with pecs and have experience working with children that are on the spectrum that can take over where the NHS stops,should I still ask for speech on the NHS to or will this just confuse ds1?!

I have decided to start with speech therapy as ds1 main problem aria is communication and after talking to his doctors psychologist ect they felt as ds1 is starting to say words on his own that more pecs will be the push he needs 2 start talking!...hmm..now I'm thinking that they mabye just didn't like the idea off ABA...

PECs IS ABA, (but only if done properly)!

Don't confuse 'talking' with 'communication'. Most parents think that communication will be solved once a child can talk, but in actual fact learning the benefits of communication provides the motivation to attempt talking iyswim. That is why PECs is a good system (but again, only if done properly).

Pip TBH I'm feeling a bit long in the tooth myself. We're looking at Independent Special Schools now (long story about why), and cannot believe the number that go to extreme pains to make it clear that they do not do ABA. In fact, one very expensive AS specialist school rejected us outright because they don't agree with ABA and because ds has been doing it he won't 'fit' now with their eclectic approach. Grrrrr

• I am starting to believe that it is parents who have seen ABA work and who have developed high expectations for their children that won't 'fit' with their eclectic approach really.

SN is an industry and industry thrives on the perpetuation of the issue the industry purportedly seeks to tackle.
If children make progress and are able to effectively jettison the parasitic industry that thrives and feeds on their continued failure (the 'support workers' and 'outreach team' and 'therapists' and 'education officers') the industry shrivels and dies and the apple cart is well and truly turned over.

That is the essential dichotomy of the 'caring sector'.

Pip, we're looking at EVERY possibility. We have so far met with 4 schools and we have another 9 over the next 2 weeks. They range from indi special, ABA, state special, state mainstream, Indi mainstream etc etc. I no longer believe that we can find out what works for ds and then adapt a school to enable it to happen (although I am still Persuing that in hope) so we are looking for one that is simply the best fit and I'm unconcerned about what it is actually called.

The trouble is though that we are getting rejected from all the ASD schools as ds is far too advanced for their cohorts, and we are getting rejected from the mild SEN schools because he has a dx of ASD.

ABA has just worked too well.

The thing is though is that thanks to ABA I KNOW what I am looking for and am nit blinded by horse riding and sensory rooms. I am also able to get to the point when communicating with schools.

Very expensive AS school has just unrejected us btw after I sent them an email telling them to not be so bloody silly. Doesn't mean we're IN though or that we want to be, but knowing what I now know is an unbelievable advantage.

Hi everyone just one last question ds1 NHS speech therapist have now also asked me if I want 2 do a pecs course that is starting soon, the course is for assistant speech therapist but have put down my name for it. Don't know way (well mabye I know) but from the day I told her that I'm thinking abut going privet she have started 2 offer me things!!!
Well now the question is the 6 pecs on the NHS plus the privet pecs good for now (he also have nursery where the staff is trained with pecs) and he have a a nursery teacher that is trained in "every child have a voice" and experience working with autistic children (there are round 3 kids at his nursery that are on the spectrum) that is with him on a 1:1 at nursery 15 h a day.

Samira, Would agree the issue for DS with language was the autism bit (lack of motivation etc) not the speaking bit (he could recite for England), so keep open mind about ABA. We used ABA for a long time without any (effective) SALT and it did not matter one bit that SALT input was missing, a good ABA provider will know how to get your child a long way down the road with speech.

Star sorry this mess you are in. Its so frustrating because DS is doing well in PT m/s and PT home ABA, and your DS is so much further on it is bonkers you are even having to look at special / ind when his needs could be perfectly well met in m/s+ABA. Even our very sceptical Reception teacher is saying 'if only all children with ASD could have what DS gets' (and she sold herself as having bags of ASD experience and years of working with outreach / eclectic). Apparently all the kids in his class thinks his ABA 1:1 is his Mum!

S PECs course is well worth going on but if you dare ask to see the Pyramid certificate of the trainer.

Agnes schools in my LA where ABA has been won have been trained how to be obstructive in a specific way that will mean it could work. For obvious reasons I'm not going to give those details on here. One parent is doing a JR with regards to this, so it might get resolved but perhaps only for her.

Happy to PM details if you're interested and fancy being depressed for a bit, but it doesn't matter a jot how much of a fighter I am, I'm not going to win that battle at this point in time.

That mean it could NOT work

Go on the PECS course Samira.
It will give you some very useful information on how to motivate your child to communicate.

Ask if yuor trainer is a certified PECS implementor.
If she isn't that doesn't mean that she is not gonig to do a good job of it, but if she is then it almost 100% will be a good job.

I do a lot of PECS training althoguh I am not a PECS implementor, )a fact I always make clear at the start of a training session). I know what I am doing thoguh as PECS is based on principles of ABA and PECS is what got me interested in ABA in the first place.

PECS was devised by a married couple, Andy Bondy and Lori Frost, who are a behaviour analyst and s/lt repectively so it incorporates the best of both worlds.