Teaching Social Skills: Green, Yellow, and Red Zone Adaptations

1. Teaching Social Skills: Green, Yellow, and Red Zone Adaptations Bruce Stiller; Anne Tomlanovich; Kim Reinhardt

2. Behavior Must Be Taught Behavior should be taught -- the same way we teach academic skills Identify the correct skill; model it; differentiate from the most common errors; practice to mastery; reinforce correct responses at a high rate initially and then intermittently, correct errors by re teaching the skill

3. Basic Format for Teaching Social Skills Skills are identified. Examples: Empathy; Impulse Control; Problem Solving; Anger Management/Assertiveness; Friendship Skills Lesson Plan Formats Social Stories/Discussion to generate thought/interest Role Play to teach/practice new skills or �replacement behaviors� Video; vignettes; cartoons; other technology

5. Establish Instructional Control Establish group rules and a prosocial norm during the first class meeting Use and model research validated behavior management strategies

6. Basic Management Strategies Expectations/routines are explicit; positively stated Expectations/routines practiced to mastery Students receive high rates of positive feedback - once approximately every 5-10 minutes Ratio of positive to corrective feedback is 4:1 Frequent review of expectations -- especially following a bad day Routines are efficient Instruction flows at a good pace. There is a minimum of �dead air�

7. Making it Fun Preview the lessons -- choose lessons/role plays that are meaningful for you students. Modify as appropriate Pacing -- keep it moving fast during the discussion phase

8. Role Playing Reserve adequate time for role playing. Repeat the lesson as many times as necessary for students to become skilled at role playing Generate role plays that are meaningful for your class. Think about the common errors you have seen your students make in context Invite students to brainstorm some common scenarios that apply to the skill being taught, and use those scenarios for your role plays

9. Role Playing Student Role Plays -- Teacher plays perpetrator; students take turns playing the recipient Students may not play the perpetrator in front of the class

10. Role Playing Model the Positive Example first. Model the Most Common Problem Behaviors Have the students practice the positive behavior to mastery

11. Role Playing Feedback: Provide behavior specific positive feedback Students may provide positive feedback only. Precorrect Feedback: Only the teacher may provide constructive, corrective feedback Practice to Mastery

12. Social Skills Groups Yellow Zone Intervention

13. Why Social Skills? Targeted intervention for students struggling with social aspects of school Groups arise from current needs of students

14. Logistics Groups run 8 to 10 weeks Membership Depending on the group, you will need: Large, open space Props Co-leader

15. Group Topics & Formats Direct Instruction Social Skills: perspective taking, friendship skills, conflict resolution, etc Useful for students on the spectrum, others who benefit from straight-forward instruction Tools: T-Charts, board games, structured activities

16. Group Topics & Formats Experiential Social Skills: teamwork, problem-solving, anger management Useful for students who have trouble managing emotions, feel disempowered, who are shy, need to build friendships Tools: Raccoon Circles, art supplies, other props

17. Group Topics & Formats Targeted Social Skills: groups created to address relational aggression, bullying, or some other social problem that is negatively impacting school environment

18. MEAN GIRLS How many of you have dealt with relational aggression, or �Mean Girl Behavior�, in your school in the last year? How about in the last month? Week? RA is a common issue in elementary, middle and high schools

19. Background Nine 8th grade girls were destroying school climate 2 to 3 incidents per day, no end in sight Decision: swift and intense intervention designed to immediately address the issue

20. Scope & Sequence 10 meetings Twice per week for 2 weeks, then once a week Two counselors, one administrator Activities: moved from general level to very personal level

21. Hopes, Fears & Who�s Not Here Run by administrator with counselor present Very direct presentation of the problem and need for change Permission slip Activity: making connections

22. Building Trust Ground Rules Pass the Cup �I� Statements Friendship Survey

24. Digging In �Mean Girls� cafeteria map What does this group value? Is this group open or hard to join? Who is in charge of this group? Why? Does everyone in this group dress the same? Have the same interests?

25. Getting Personal Queen Bees & Wannabes Map their own group and answer questions Conflict resolution and role plays

26. How do we make behavior change in �real world� settings? Staff Support - asked to encourage positive behavior, interrupt negative behavior Parent Support In group - address directly conflicts that happened since our last meeting Direction/Correction from group leaders

28. Red Zone Intervention For students who are not responsive to a targeted group intervention (a social skills group) add a Behavior Support Plan to the targeted intervention A key feature of the BSP is the teaching of replacement behaviors Replacement behaviors must be prompted and reinforced in the natural setting in order for transfer to occur

29. Intervention Categories for a Behavior Support Plan Prevention: Prevent the problem behavior from being triggered Teaching: Teach specific replacement behaviors that will allow the student to access the reinforcement appropriately Reinforcement: Deliver social, activity, or tangible reinforcers contingent upon the desired behavior. Extinction: Ensure problem behavior is not reinforced. Safety: Steps to ensure student/staff safety, if needed

30. Identify the �Replacement� Behavior An appropriate Replacement Behavior: Serves the same function as the problem behavior The replacement behavior is a member of the same response class as the problem behavior Is as, or more efficient than the problem behavior physical effort, schedule of reinforcement, time to reinforcement Is socially acceptable

31. Basic Format for Teaching Social Skills/Replacement Behaviors Identify the problem behavior Identify an appropriate replacement behavior Differentiate the replacement behavior from the most common errors Model the replacement behavior Practice to Mastery Prompt the correct behavior Reinforce correct responses Errors: Re-teach; prompt; reinforce Implement consequences if the student will not attempt the correct response

32. HA Competing Behavior Pathways

33. HA Competing Behavior Pathways

37. Which of the Following are Appropriate Replacement Behaviors? Jason is nine and cries when asked to do difficult tasks. The crying is maintained by avoiding or escaping the tasks. Possible Replacement Behaviors: More rewards for doing tasks Asking for a break from tasks Asking to do something other than the tasks Requesting adult attention Asking to have soda after tasks are done

38. Which of the Following are Appropriate Replacement Behaviors? Jason is nine and cries when asked to do difficult tasks. The crying is maintained by avoiding or escaping the tasks. Possible Replacement Behaviors: More rewards for doing tasks Asking for a break from tasks Asking to do something other than the tasks Requesting adult attention Asking to have soda after tasks are done

39. Which of the Following are Appropriate Replacement Behaviors? Leslie is 12, has severe intellectual disabilities, does not use words, and hits her head. Head hitting is maintained by adult attention during work periods. Which is the best Replacement Behavior hide under her desk and be ignored sign for �more� to another student take completed work up to show the teacher move to sit by another student engage in stereotypies

40. Which of the Following are Appropriate Replacement Behaviors? Leslie is 12, has severe intellectual disabilities, does not use words, and hits her head. Head hitting is maintained by adult attention during work periods. Which is the best Replacement Behavior hide under her desk and be ignored sign for �more� to another student take completed work up to show the teacher move to sit by another student engage in stereotypies

42. Behavior Support PlanJason S. Setting Event Strategies (make the problem behavior irrelevant) Build self esteem by giving the student a role in which he can excel. He is a good student. Pair him with a student who is not as academically able. Behavior Teaching Strategies (make the problem behavior inefficient) Teach student a replacement behavior that accomplishes the same thing the problem behavior accomplishes. 3 half hour sessions with school counselor on anger management, leading to the replacement behavior: �this is insulting. I want it to stop� Prompt this behavior when he becomes agitated. Reinforcement Strategies (make the replacement behavior more rewarding) Student earns the class 5 minutes free time on Friday for each day he gets through class without an anger outburst.

43. Social Skills Resources Second Steps -- Committee for Children 1-800-634-4449 www.secondstep.org/ (elementary/middle) Steps to Respect -- Committee for Children 1-800-634-4449 www.cfchildren.org/ (elementary/middle) Be Cool -- James Stanfield Co., Inc. www.stanfield.com/conflict/htm (middle) Tools for Teaching Social Skills in School -- Hensley, Dillon, Pratt, Ford, & Burke 2005, Boys Town Press $29.95 (elementary) The Incredible 5 point scale -- Kari Dunn Buron and Mitzi Curtis (elementary/middle) �Why Try� www.whytry.org (middle/high) Salvaging Sisterhood by Julia Taylor (4 thru high school) The Stop and Think Program -- Howard Knoff, Ph.D 2001 Sopris West Superflex � A Superhero Social Thinking Curriculum -- Stepanie Madrigal and Michelle Garcia Winner