Vanderbilt Kennedy Center LEND Program Introduces Two New Toolkits for Educators

“The toolkit collaboration between the Vanderbilt Consortium LEND and TRIAD has been extremely valuable from multiple perspectives,” said Vanderbilt Consortium LEND director Evon Batey Lee, Ph.D. “TRIAD postdoctoral fellows -- who are also LEND psychology trainees -- receive expert mentoring from experienced TRIAD faculty such as Verity Rodrigues, M.S., Ph.D., Laura Corona, Ph.D., and Whitney Loring, Psy.D. They gain knowledge about important autism spectrum disorders and developmental disability topics, as well as training in developing collaboration and leadership skills.

“The products that have been produced over the years consistently have high national and international impact as they are disseminated through the Vanderbilt Kennedy Center and AUCD networks,” Lee continued. “Every year I look forward to sharing the new toolkits with faculty, trainees, and the community at large!”

The two newest toolkits share the theme of Cognitive Behavioral Strategies for Autistic Students and is broken into two specific age groups, one for elementary-age students and the other for adolescent students.

What are Cognitive Behavioral/Instructional Strategies?
Cognitive Behavioral/Instructional Strategies (CBIS) are interventions based on the simple principle that thinking (internal behavior) impacts emotions/feelings and controls overt actions (external behavior). These are interventions used to teach learners to support their self-awareness and self-management skills. 

The goal of these toolkits is to provide helpful suggestions on how to integrate CBIS to support mental health for elementary-age and adolescent autistic students.

“These new toolkits not only provide detailed explanations of several Cognitive Behavioral/Instructional Strategies, but they also include step-by-step instructions and implementation considerations for educators wanting to use these strategies with their students,” said Verity Rodrigues, M.S., Ph.D. “The information included is practical, highly relevant, and accessible to educators working with elementary through high school-aged students.”

See the descriptions below to learn more about each toolkit and links to access the information and online courses.

 

Cognitive Behavioral Strategies for Autistic Students (Elementary)
This toolkit is intended for educators and school teams in elementary school settings. This could include teachers, school staff, administrators, paraeducators, school psychologists, and others working with autistic students and students with developmental disabilities.

Click here to access a free PDF of the toolkit.  A more detailed review of this material and additional resources can be found for free in the corresponding Cognitive Behavioral Strategies for Autistic Students (Elementary) interactive online course. Make a free account at triad.vkclearning.org, then go to the “School-Age Services” folder. If you already have an account, log in here.

This publication was authored by LEND trainee and TRIAD postdoctoral fellow Abiola Taiwo, Ph.D., BCBA, Verity Rodrigues, M.S., Ph.D., and TRIAD co-director Pablo Juárez, M.Ed., BCBA, LBA.

Cognitive Behavioral Strategies for Autistic Students (Adolescent)
This toolkit is intended for educators and school teams working with adolescent students. This could include teachers, school staff, administrators, paraeducators, school psychologists, and others working with autistic students and students with developmental disabilities.

Click here to access a free PDF of the toolkit.  A more detailed review of this material and additional resources can be found for free in the corresponding Cognitive Behavioral Strategies for Autistic Students (Adolescent) interactive online course. Make a free account at triad.vkclearning.org, then go to the “School-Age Services” folder. If you already have an account, log in here.

This publication was authored by LEND trainee and TRIAD postdoctoral fellow Ryan Coleman, Ph.D., Verity Rodrigues, M.S., Ph.D., and TRIAD co-director Pablo Juárez, M.Ed., BCBA, LBA.

Vanderbilt Consortium LEND has a collection of free printable resources serving families, caregivers, and self-advocates, educators, and professionals, including resources en español. Click here to view LEND’s assortment of toolkits.