What is ABA? 

Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) is the application of the principles of learning and motivation from Behavior Analysis, and the procedures and technology derived from those principles, to the solution of problems of social significance. Many decades of research have validated treatments based on ABA.

ABA is more than Discrete Trial Teaching and more than structured teaching. Students must learn to learn in all environments, not first in one and then taught to generalize to others. Environmental contingencies (the way in which the environment is arranged, so to speak) has a lot to do with stimulus control. In order to generalize well and easily, generalization must be built into teaching from the beginning, and one way to do this is with Natural Environment Teaching (NET).

How Does ABA look in our classroom?

We utilize the principles of ABA every minute of the day.  At the middle school level, the focus has shifted to the application of skills across a variety of settings and people.  Additionally, we are focusing attention on students' abilities to complete tasks independently to begin to address pre-vocational skills and behaviors.  Our day is broken into 5 subjects: ELA, Functional Math, Communications, Health and Science, and Community Awareness.  All of the subjects that are taught, frequently overlap in order to build a well-rounded individualized program for each learner. Students' individual programs are specific to their needs and goals.