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Naturalistic Teaching Strategies (NATS) to Teach Speech to Children with Autism: Historical Perspective, Development, and Current Practice

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Abstract

The present manuscript reviews four promising procedures for teaching speech to children with autism: Natural Language Paradigm, Speech/Play Enhancement for Autistic Kids, Multiple Incidental Teaching Sessions, and Time Delay. These training procedures are called Naturalistic Teaching Strategies (NaTS) because they incorporate components and strategies known to facilitate acquisition, generalization, and maintenance of new behaviors. These components include motivation, functional relationships, and facilitators of generalization and are briefly defined and discussed in relation to the four teaching procedures. All of the procedures and findings are data-based and can be used in a variety of settings such as classroom, playground, home, and community settings. The manuscript begins with a historical perspective of behavioral speech/language training and the need for NaTS and concludes with a discussion of the merits of NaTS and their importance in the treatment of children with autism.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Psychology, P-6, Claremont McKenna College, 850 Columbia Ave. P-6, Claremont, CA, 91711, USA

    Marjorie H. Charlop-Christy & Linda A. LeBlanc

  2. Claremont Graduate University, Claremont, USA

    Michael H. Carpenter

Authors
  1. Marjorie H. Charlop-Christy
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  2. Linda A. LeBlanc
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  3. Michael H. Carpenter
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Correspondence to Marjorie H. Charlop-Christy.

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Charlop-Christy, M.H., LeBlanc, L.A. & Carpenter, M.H. Naturalistic Teaching Strategies (NATS) to Teach Speech to Children with Autism: Historical Perspective, Development, and Current Practice. Contemp School Psychol 4, 30–46 (1999). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF03340868

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