Fundamental skills of an ABA therapist

Fundamental skills of an ABA therapist: ABA’s fundamental success relies on the consistency in the way skills are taught, but also in the way the child is encouraged and reinforced. ABA therapists have individualised programmes that they execute, and their skills directly support the lessons conducted within the sessions. The programmes are tailored to meet the child’s needs and to cater to the realistic levels of lessons the child can participate in and complete. A programme that is too easy for a child leads to boredom, increasing the chances of the child displaying challenging behaviour. Similarly, a programme that is too difficult can also increase the likelihood of escape-based behaviours. Despite the varying skill levels required for all the lessons, ABA therapists have the skills to work at different levels of needs and can identify when the child is struggling or not finding the lessons challenging at all.

Why Fundamental skills of an ABA therapist are important

ABA therapists often pursue behavioural therapy due to their background in studying education, psychology, and anything related to child development. Because of their existing passion for working with children, many education and psychology students gravitate towards supporting additional needs for children with autism.

Are the Fundamental skills of an ABA therapist important

Children with autism may have deficits that neurotypical children often do not display, but that does not mean they lack certain skills entirely. The role of the ABA therapist is to create an environment where the child feels safe enough to practise the skills they can develop. Building this sense of safety takes time and occurs through regular sessions in a consistent physical location where the therapist can establish rapport with the child. Once rapport is built, the therapist gains a deeper understanding of what motivates the child, their areas of strength, potential triggers for behaviour, and how best to support them. Therefore, one of the most crucial skills an ABA therapist possesses is the ability to build relationships with children. This requires patience, affection, firmness, an understanding of the child’s level of play, and meeting them there.

What are the Fundamental skills of an ABA therapist

ABA therapist

ABA therapists are trained in behaviour management, providing them with the necessary skills to manage certain functions of behaviour. They must identify the function of behaviour (whether it’s for an item/activity, attention, automatic sensory input, or escape) and use that to determine the appropriate response to a behaviour, prioritising the safety of both the child and the therapist. An appropriate response to behaviour involves not only recognising the function but also knowing how to provide functional replacements for the behaviour.

Ultimately, the skill set of an ABA therapist involves running structured educational programmes and lessons while providing a safe environment for the child to learn functional communication and skills, especially in a playful and structured manner.