Episode Details

“Scaffolding” has become a buzzword when it comes to helping kids become more independent with academic and functional tasks, but it's only useful if people know what it means. 

Watching students or your own children struggle to transition or complete daily tasks can be uncomfortable for both the adults and children. 

As a result, it can be easy to get pulled in to a situation where kids become prompt-dependent. 

That’s why I invited Rebecca Robbins to De Facto Leaders to talk about how to use declarative statements and strategic pausing to increase independence. 

Rebecca Robbins is a speech language pathologist who has spent the bulk of her career helping children, young adults, and families impacted by autism. She has worked in various settings over the course of her career including a private school for children with autism, Early Intervention & Preschool agency work, as well as a public school. She is now the proud owner of Mind ShaperSLP, LLC where she provides 1:1 speech therapy, executive functioning and life skills coaching for individuals and social skills groups. In addition, Rebecca provides parent online training programs and consultation services. Rebecca currently lives in Pennsylvania, and provides services in The Hudson Valley, NY and in Montgomery County, PA.

In this conversion, we discuss:

✅Parent coaching: It’s emphasized in early intervention, so why aren’t we doing it for school-age kids and adolescents?

✅What does it mean to “act as kids’ executive functioning”?

✅Directive statements, explicit teaching, reflective questions, and pauses: How to use these strategies to fade prompts.

✅Getting started with coaching and consulting: What strategies can we teach adjacent disciplines and caregivers to improve carryover?

You can connect with Rebecca and learn about her therapy services and online programs for Autistic clients here: https://mindshaperslp.com/

Connect with her on Instagram here: https://www.instagram.com/mindshaperslp/

Connect with her on Facebook here: https://www.facebook.com/MindShaperSLP/

In this episode, we mention Linda Murphy’s Declarative Handbook and website. You can learn more about Linday Murphy’s work on her website here: https://www.lindakmurphy.com/declarative-language

In this episode, I mention the School of Clinical Leadership, my program that helps related service providers develop a strategic plan for putting executive functioning support in place in collaboration with their school teams. You can learn more about that program here: https://drkarendudekbrannan.com/clinicalleadership

Learn more about today's sponsors, Playworks, IXL and Renaissance:

Learn more about Renaissance:

As a global leader in education technology operating in more than 110 countries, Renaissance is committed to providing educators with insights and resources to accelerate growth and help all students build a strong foundation for success. We believe that technology can unlock a more effective learning experience, ensure that students get the personalized teaching they need to thrive, and help educators and administrators to truly, fully, See Every Student. Learn more at renaissance.com.

We’re proud to be sponsored by Playworks, a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization with evidence-based practices that help schools improve the health and well-being of children by increasing opportunities for physical activity and safe, meaningful play.

If you’re a school or district leader struggling with the challenge of chronic absenteeism, as so many are across the U.S., you may not realize that structured recess is a research-backed approach to keep kids in school. In fact, a UC Berkeley study of Title I schools found that those partnering with Playworks had significantly lower chronic absenteeism r