Behavior Management Strategies For Teletherapy

Speech pathologists frequently have students on their caseload who have goals to improve their participation and engagement during speech therapy sessions. I am here to provide you some behavior management strategies for teletherapy for students who have limited attention and a tendency to elope or wander from your sessions. Many of the strategies you use during your in person sessions can be used during teletherapy. You just have to adapt them.

Before I jump in, I do have to say you will be excited to see how well students attend in a virtual environment. I have heard over and over again that students will attend better to a teletherapy session than to an in person session. You just might be surprised that with little work your students attention will improve with the use of fun and engaging technology.

Caretaker or Virtual Assistant

Having a caretaker or virtual assistant present during all sessions is essential. Trust me when I say that you WILL have those situations where the student is set up on their computer and then left alone. If the student has underlying behavioral or attention needs, you will quickly find your self alone talking loudly at the computer hoping you can grab your students attention enough to bring him back to your session. This will be frustrating. My advice is to set clear expectations to your families that they need to be present during the session to help facilitate the learning. I have a handout for you in my TPT store that is FREE! It is called Teletherapy Tip for a Successful School Year! Grab it now and share with your families/teachers!

Designate A Learning Space

Prior to your first teletherapy session, you MUST work collaboratively with the caretaker to establish boundaries for your student. Parents must put together a learning space for their child and expect that when it is time for their teletherapy session that this is the space they will be in. It does not have to be anything fancy but the expectations must be clear and must occur from the very first session. I see all too often students will attempt to lay in bed or on the couch during speech. It works best if the students are in a sturdy chair and a table or desk. The kitchen table works great. For younger students, it works well to have them sitting in a booster chair where they have boundaries and can see the computer. I even had a student (age 4) who did extremely well while sitting in a high chair. Be creative and be very clear with the caretaker why this is important.

Be Flexible With Session Length

Most often on IEP’s we may list services per week. I encourage you to list services per month. This allows flexibility with scheduling students. It works very well with kids who cannot work for extended periods of time. I have some students who I see two times per week for 15 minutes. I see so much more progress with them than if I were to see them 30 minutes once per week. Each session, my goal is to get them to attend or participate a little longer. Some days we get there and some days 15 minutes seems like one hour! I encourage you to be flexible with the number of days you see your students and the length of your sessions. It can really work to your benefit.

Virtual Schedules, Choice Boards, Token Boards, & Timers

We use visual schedules for in person therapy so it only makes sense that visual schedules are needed in the virtual setting. You can do this a few different ways. I have all the digital tools to help you set up your sessions for success. I use split screen features so the student can see their schedule, token board, or timer as well as the target activity I am completing with them.

Use your whiteboard on your computer. Use the shape tool to give your student stars. Create a quick schedule and check things off on their schedule with the pen or stamps if available.

Check out my virtual token boards and schedules here. I use these Boom Card lessons frequently and they work great for increasing participation with my students. You will also see a MUSIC choice board that works great for keeping students engaged and increasing participation with songs through simple requests. Just bookmark your the youtube songs before using the choice board.

Use online visual timers to give your students clear starting and ending times to your activities. I also use these for brain breaks. MY students LOVE THEM and know exactly how long they have to work or how long they get a break for. Check out my favorite bomb timer here. Otherwise, just do a google search to find one that works for you!

On a side note, you can always print a visual schedule off then send it to your virtual assistant or caretaker. They can facilitate the session for you using the schedule.

Did I miss any tips? Please comment below and share!