Dr.
Amy
Tanner
Behaviour Analyst I Entrepreneur
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The mind is not a vessel to be filled, but a fire to be ignited
-Plutarch
3 Ways to Work with Me
01 Parent Coaching Model
Infants and Toddlers howing signs of autism or developmental delays
6 months - 2 years of age
Virtual or in-person
02 Early Behaviour support
Consultation model
Assessment, Program Creation, Training, Observations and Program Updates
2 -6 years of age
Vancouver, Richmond, North Shore
03 Supervision, Mentorship, training and workshops
RBT, BCaBA, BCBA supervision
Infant/Toddler mentorship
Workshops
Virtual, Pre-recorded and in-person
Want to learn more?
Why Early Intervention?
Every Month Counts
When it comes to early intervention, the earlier the better and really, every month counts. From 0-3 years of age, a child's brain is building millions of neural connections a minute. It is much easier, faster and more efficient to make changes while the neural pathways are being created, rather than trying to change neural connections after they have been formed.
Neural Connection Formations from Birth to 2 Years of Age
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Key Take-Aways
Signs of developmental delays and autism can be observed beginning around 6-12 months of age
From 0 to 3 years of age the brain is developing more rapidly than any other time during one's life, making millions of neural connections every minute
Providing support while these neural pathways are being formed allows for the most significant gains to be made in the least amount of time
What is Parent-Mediated Intervention?
Why is a Parent-Mediated service delivery model so important?
Different or atypical child development can often lead to atypical parental responsiveness. For example, a child may occupy themselves for an extended period of time by lining up their toys into various geometric shapes and every time the parent tries to engage with the child or toys, the child gets very frustrated and upset. Over time, the parent may feel more reluctant to try and engage with the child during this time because this often leads to challenging behavior or meltdowns. However, this may result in the strengthening of those rigid repetitive behaviours along with the challenging behaviour increasing all while missing out on valuable social engagement.
By teaching parents how to maximize the engagement with their child and turn daily routines into learning opportunities that practise and teach social communicative skills allows the parent to feel more competent and effective at engaging with their child. This can act as a protective factor for parental stress, anxiety and depression all while moving their child’s developmental forward.
By using a parent-mediated service delivery approach, the transaction parental cycle which may be maintaining or increasing problematic behaviours can be reversed and begin to further aid the child’s social, communication and play development.
The role of parents in intervention
For infants and toddlers, learning occurs throughout the entire day; meal times, getting dressed, bath time, play time, car rides, grandmas house, etc.
Parents are the best teachers when it comes to their child, not just because they know them the best, but because they are there day after day
If a child begins to develop atypically, often times parents begin to respond atypically which can inadvertently increase challenging behaviours and exasperate delays
Parent Coaching gives parents the tools to create a rich learning environment for their child, build strong social connections and reduce challenging behaviours.
The SPARC in action
12 sessions of parent coaching condensed to 8 minutes.
The Sequential PARent Curriculum (aka The SPARC) is designed to address very early developmental delays and signs of autism which emerge in infants between 9 and 18 months of age.
The SPARC is is comprised of 12-weekly lesson plans targeting early childhood social and communicative development through parent-mediated intervention and coaching.
The SPARC combines the foundations of natural environment teaching, functional communication training, verbal behaviour, motivation and shaping procedures as the primary methods of teaching early social communicative skills.
It is the first pre-diagnostic comprehensive treatment model to teach language using a verbal behaviour framework.
The SPARC
The SPARC is a 12 session curriculum which will focus on how to:
Follow your child's lead and interests
Have more fun with your child and expand the activities that make them smile
Set up your environment for success
Practice imitation (gross motor, fine motor, oral motor and vocal)
Teach and encourage the use of gestures such as waving, pointing, giving objects and showing objects
Encourage joint attention and referencing
Create learning opportunities across play, bath time, meal time, dressing and other daily routines.
Build the foundations for future communication and learning
Service Delivery Models
01
Parent Coaching
Infants and Toddlers
6 mos - 2 yrs
6 Week Program
75 mins sessions x6
Virtual or In-person
Learn how to create engagement, learning opportunities and communication foundations through playing with your child.
02
Early Behaviour support
Consultation model
1-2 Observations per month
Virtual or In-Person
Assessment, Program Creation, Training, Observations and Program Updates