9. Rewards before consequences
We all love being rewarded and people with autism are no different. Rewards and positive reinforcement are a wonderful way to increase desired behavior. Help students clearly understand which behaviors and actions lead to rewards. If possible, let your students pick their own reward so they can anticipate receiving it. There are many reward systems which include negative responses and typically, these do not work as well. An example of this type of reward system is where a student will begin with a blank sheet of paper. For each good behavior the student will receive a smiley face. However if the student performs poorly, he will receive a sad face or have a smiley face taken away. It’s far better to just stop providing rewards than it is to take them away. Focusing on negative aspects can often lead to poor results and a de-motivated student. When used correctly, rewards are very powerful and irresistible. Think of all the actions you do to receive rewards such as your salary, a good body and close relationships. There are many wonderful ideas for reward systems. Ten tokens might equal a big prize. Collecting pennies until you have enough to “buy” the reward of your choice. Choice objects to play with after a student does a great job. Rewards don’t have to be big. They do have to be something a student desires and show students they have done a great job. Every reward should be showered in praise. Even though people on the spectrum might not respond typically when praised, they enjoy it just as much as you!