Preventive Teaching Interactions

Pre-Service Workshop

PREVENTIVE TEACHING

Anticipating the skill or behaviors necessary for a particular situation

and practicing them in advance.

(Teaching in the absence of inappropriate behavior)

PREVENTIVE TEACHING

TYPES:

Preventive Teaching occurs on a daily basis in a neutral setting when teaching a new skill or reviewing a previously taught skill

– Prompt / Roleplays• brief reminder prior to event

When and Where to Do Preventive

Teaching

• When– New Youth– New Treatment Parents– Possible Difficult Situations– New Skill

• Where– Private Area, Individually with

Youth– In Front of the Other Youth– Family Meeting

RATIONALES FOR PREVENTIVE TEACHING

• Provides process to shape behavior• Increased youth success• Increases teaching opportunities• Increases staff comfort level• Demonstrates tolerances in a positive

manner• Helps to implement treatment plans• Shows fairness and concern• Contributes to a pleasant atmosphere• Can help to reduce out-of-self-control

behaviors

“An ounce of prevention is

worth a pound of cure.”

-Ben Franklin

SOME CHILDREN WILL DO WHAT

YOU WANT THEM TO DO, IF YOU

JUST TELL THEM WHAT YOU WANT.

-TOM LOVITT

HOW WE LEARN WHAT TO DO

• Observing others and imitating what they do

• Experiencing the consequences of our behavior

• Direct teaching

Goals of Preventive Teaching

1. Identify problem behaviors and

determine alternative behaviors

to teach

2. Explain skill to youth and

immediately practice

3. Conduct follow-up practices with

reduction of prompts

4. Offer rewards and explain

consequences

5. Monitor successful

generalization of skill

Preventive Teaching Occurs Naturally in

Society

HOW TO TEACHHOW TO TEACH

NEW YOUTH OR

NEW SKILL

•Be Specific•Practice the Skill

•Use Pretend Issues

SKILLREVIEW

•Youth Participates More•Tests Youth Memory

•Use Real Issues

Initial Praise / EmpathyInitial Praise / Empathy

• Recognizes & reinforces positive elements

• Starts the teaching on a positive note

Examples of Praise: Nice work, Great, Super job…

Examples of Empathy: I understand, I know, Sometimes it is difficult to…

Positive Motivation Positive Motivation StatementStatement

• Helps keep interaction positive

• Encourages youth participation

• Demonstrates pleasantness

Example: “I want to talk to you about a new skill today and for

practicing with me, you can earn some positive points.”

Description of SkillDescription of Skill• Sets expectations for

appropriate behavior– Label skill– List steps– Give 2 examples of where

the youth will use the skill.

Example: “The skill is Accepting ‘No’. To Accept ‘No’ you need to look at the person, . . . ”

“You will use Accepting ‘No’ in our home and with your mom when you go on home visits.”

RationaleRationale

• Helps generalize the skill

• Teaches the benefits of using the skill– Youth centered– One sentence

Example:

“Accepting ‘No’ shows that you can be mature.”

Request Request AcknowledgmentAcknowledgment

• Ensures that youth understand

• Checks for youth attentiveness

Example:

“Does that make sense.”

Staff DemonstrationStaff Demonstration

• “Shows” youth what they need to do

• Helps youth internalize behavior– Label skill / steps– Set up clearly

Example: “Now I am going to show you how to Accept ‘No’. I am going to ask you if I can go outside. You tell me no and I will show you how to Accept ‘No’ by looking at you . . . ”

Youth PracticeYouth Practice

• Gives the youth an opportunity to demonstrate the skill

• Helps youth internalize behavior– Same situation– Have the youth practice 3 times

Example: “Now you try. Ask me if you can go outside.”

Practice FeedbackPractice Feedback

• Reinforces appropriate alternative & increases likelihood of future use

• Positive statements enhance staff / youth relationship– Specifically describe

appropriate behavior

Example: “Good job. You looked at me with a pleasant face and voice, said okay, and stopped talking.”

Positive ConsequencePositive Consequence

• Reinforces appropriate alternative & increases likelihood of future use

• Demonstrates fairness and pleasantness– Label skill– Label specific behavior

– Point Economy

Example: “For practicing Accepting ‘No’ and saying ok, you have earned 1,000 points.”

Cued PracticeCued Practice• Sets up an expectation that the

youth will need to demonstrate the skill in future situations

• Increases generalization of skill– Set up time / event– Positive motivation

statement

Example: “After dinner I want you to ask me for ice-cream and we can practice ‘Accepting No.”

PraisePraise

• Ends the interaction on a positive note

• Aids in maintaining a positive relationship–General praise

statement

Example: “You’re doing great in the program. I am very pleased with your progress.”

Do The WorkDo The Work

“You are going to do the work. You can either do it on the front end with praise interactions and preventive teaching or on the back end with intensive teaching.”

- Anonymous Family Teacher

Preventive TeachingPreventive Teaching

Initial Praise / Empathy

Positive Motivation Statement

Description of Appropriate Behavior

Rationale

Acknowledgment

Staff Demonstration

Youth Practice

Practice Feedback

Positive Consequence

Cued Practice

General Praise

RESOURCES

PREVENTIVE TEACHING

• When a youth first enters a home, spend considerable time engaged in "preventive teaching." Don't wait for signs, incidents, or problems to occur. Ensure that the youth knows-the components of rational conversation by setting the expectation that these components are employed in all interactions between. Individuals in the home. In each interaction, look for eye contact, voice tone and volume, use of appropriate language, etc. Teach the youth the components of instruction following, how to respond to "no". How to accept criticism, and how to disagree appropriately before major problems arise in these areas. Prevention is always the key. By teaching and praising the youth for progress in these areas, major "intensive teaching" encounters can be avoided.

Preventive Teaching

• In giving youth simple instructions such as to "please tuck in your shirt" or "it's time to clear the table now," it is extremely important to monitor how the you follow the instructions (eye contact, facial expression, acknowledgement, beginning the task promptly, and checking back). Such monitoring is preventive teaching. Each time you prompt a youth to follow instructions properly or to object properly, you are teaching him/her behaviors that will benefit him/her in school, with friends, with adults, etc. Also, by ensuring that he/she is under instructional control in these "small ways," you are making major incidents between you and the youth less likely to occur and less intense if they do occur.

Preventive Teaching

• One obvious advantage of a preventive teaching strategy is that both you and the youth are more likely to succeed. The youth is more likely to follow your instructions appropriately when his/her emotions are not intense and you will have opportunities to praise and give positive consequences for developing his/her skill level. With an emphasis on prevention, not only is success more likely, but the relationship with the youth is more likely to be a mutually positive, pleasant one.

How we learn Behavior

• Observing others and imitating what they do

• Experiencing the consequences of behavior

• Direct teaching

Preventive Teaching

• Preventive teaching is teaching in the absence of inappropriate behavior. In other words, teaching your child in advance what he needs to know for a future situation and then practicing it.

• Some children will do what we want them to, if you just tell the

what you want

• Tom Lovitt

Basic social skills

• Following instructions

• Accepting criticism

• Accepting “no” answers

• Disagreeing with others

Importance of Preventive Teaching

• Provides for a gradual process to promote behavior change – you may chain steps of difficult

skills together

• Plan for youth success and increase teaching opportunities – you are teaching them ahead of

time because you want them to succeed

Importance of Preventive Teaching

• Increases comfort level in situations affecting reputation of home– Your comfort level– The youth’s comfort level

• Demonstrates tolerance levels– If you describe the specific steps

to a skill, you are telling the youth exactly what you expect when they use the skill in a real situation

Importance of Preventive Teaching

• Demonstrates fairness and concern– It would be unfair not to teach the

youth skills– Tells youth “We’re on your side!”

• Backbone of implementing treatment plans– You will decide how you will use

preventive teaching to help the youth learn the skills quicker

Importance of Preventive Teaching

• Contributes to pleasant home atmosphere– Preventive teaching can be fun. You

are providing a way the youth can earn points

• Provides a way to teach alternatives to behaviors not observed– You may not see the youth being

offered drugs, or asked to run away with another youth. However, you can teach how to say “no” to a peer to give the youth other options.

When and Where to do Preventive Teaching

• When– New Youth

– New Family Teachers

– Possible difficult situation

– New skill

• Where– Private area,

individually with youth

– In front of other youth

– Family meeting

Goals of Preventive Teaching

• Identify problem behavior and determine alternative behavior

• Explain skill to youth and immediately practice

• Conduct follow-up practices with reduction of prompts

• Offer rewards and explain consequences

• Monitor successful generalization of skill

Preventive Prompt Components

• Brief reminder of skill

• Request acknowledgment

• General praise

• Use this to remind a youth of a skill taught earlier that they can use in a current situation

Preventive Teaching Interactions

Pre-Service Workshop

This training presentation is available for download at:www.utahparenting.org

© 2007 Utah Youth Village.