#020: Generalization and Embedding Communication - A Discussion with Braxton Baker

How do you differentiate your speech therapy work from your autism work? Does it even matter? Serving the whole child, Braxton Baker, an SLP, and BCBA is a huge advocate of the big picture approach to therapy. For him, ABA gave him the vocabulary to describe what he's doing, which he can, in turn, apply everywhere. For me, after ten years of being both an SLP and BCBA, I can agree with him. ABA is just how my brain works now, and it helps me approach life with a better understanding of the learning processes.

In this conversation today, Braxton shares some of his therapy philosophy. He starts off IEPs and therapy goals with what the end result needs to look like in the natural world. Because he believes that if you’re not focused on the end result, then you miss the entire point of therapy services. You’re going to hear about how he brings in what he calls the 5 Ps into creating better goals and IEPs for his clients:

1. Creating processes
2. Giving them more purpose
3. Creating more possibilities
4. More overall progress
5. Making more peace

Sometimes emotions can run high at an IEP meeting, so Braxton’s approach is to diffuse the situation with “Do you think that this person or anyone here would have intentionally done something to be harmful?”. If the answer to this question is yes, then you have more than a communication problem; you have a trust problem.

Braxton’s approach is authentic, and it fits well into the real world. You can connect with him on Facebook. And if you love social media, check out my new TikTok channel!

What's Inside:

• The questions you can ask in an IEP meeting to make sure that all stakeholders are on the same page.
• How to make your sessions less rigid and embrace flexibility to meet your students’ needs better.
• Braxton prefers to think of ABA not as a therapy technique, but as a way to describe the world.
• If generalization doesn’t occur, did you actually teach a new skill?