Ms. Rao wanted Rico to learn a more appropriate way to meet his needs, and she wanted to make sure he demonstrated this skill across settings. Thus, Ms. Rao was focusing on setting generalization. Rico needed to ask for a break appropriately during math, science, and history class. Ms. Rao operationally defined an objective to determine response generalization had occurred:

• When Rico receives a grade of B or lower on assignment, he will ask the teacher for a break without screaming, crying, or tearing up his assignment on 9/10 opportunities.

With her objective operationally defined, Ms. Rao needed to determine an instructional setting and method. She knew the skill was very personal to Rico and would require explicit explanations. She decided direct instruction would be the most effective and efficient method to teach the skill. Additionally, she decided a 1-1 instructional setting would be best for protecting Rico’s dignity.

• Instructional Setting: 1-1
• Instructional Method: Direct instruction

Ms. Rao then decided upon a generalization tactic. She would train Rico’s teachers to prompt him to ask for a break when they knew he was about to receive a grade on an assignment that would upset him. Because Rico’s tantrum behavior was reinforced by breaks from the classroom, Ms. Rao thought that teaching Rico to ask for a break would be similarly reinforcing. However, she wanted to make asking for a break more reinforcing than tantrum behavior. So, she decided to provide additional reinforcement for asking for a break appropriately. When Rico demonstrated the operationally-defined behavior, he would select one of five preferred activities to engage in for 5-10 minutes before returning to class.

• Generalization Tactic: Train others to prompt and reinforce
• Support Strategy: Reinforcement

Ms. Rao’s Lesson on “Identifying How Behavior Affects Others”

Implementing the Direct Instruction Lesson

In a 1-1 direct instructional setting, Ms. Rao explained to Rico that he was doing a good job identifying the effect of his behavior on others. She told him that sometimes, even when we know we might upset others, it’s very hard to control our emotions. She emphasized to Rico that it’s okay to take a break when he needs to. He just needs to ask the teacher. 

First, Ms. Rao shared with Rico that sometimes he will receive grades he does not like. She said that it’s okay to be upset about grades, but it’s not okay to scream or cry in class. Instead, Rico simply needed to raise his hand and ask for a break. Ms. Rao modeled this behavior for Rico. She pretended to receive a graded assignment with a B or lower. She showed Rico how she could raise her hand, wait for a teacher, and ask, “Can I have a break?” Then, the teacher would allow her to go to the hall or the special education room for a break. 

Next, Ms. Rao asked Rico to practice asking for a break. She gave him a fake graded assignment with a large “B” written on it. Rico practiced raising his hand and saying, “[Mr./Ms. Teacher’s Name], can I take a break?” Ms. Rao then told Rico he would be able to take a break in the hallway or special education room. She showed him the choice of activities, which would serve as reinforcement, and he practiced choosing an activity. Ms. Rao told Rico that as long as he did not scream, cry, or destroy his assignment, he could ask for a break and choose one of the reinforcing activities. She told him that asking for a break would not make others feel uncomfortable or scared, but crying, screaming, or destroying assignments could upset others.

Training Staff to Prompt the Skill

After the lesson, Ms. Rao met with Rico’s teachers to train them to prompt the skill. She told them that Rico had learned to ask for a break when he received a grade he did not like, and she would accompany Rico for his break. She explained that the teachers could help by prompting Rico when they were about to deliver an assignment with a grade of a B or lower. She told them they could prompt Rico and tell him, “You did well on this assignment, but you did not get enough points for an A. Remember, just let me know if you need to take a break to calm down.”