TAGteaching: Yes I Do Train My Son

by Adria Karlsson, BCBA, CPDT-KA

Today I’m going to deviate from my typical “dog training” topic into the realm of “child training” or “teaching” as it is typically referred to!  In my previous life (really, up until December) I taught children with dyslexia how to read and write using the Orton-Gillingham method.  As I moved through my Masters program in Applied Behavior Analysis I came to realize that the reason that method is so successful is that it really is based on sound behavioral methodology.  During that time I also learned about TAGteach essentially, using applied behavior analysis in the form of clicker training to teach people. Now I also have my own children and am constantly considering the principles and methods of behaviorism when raising them. 

No Risks

My 2-year-old son, Oliver, is a very cautious toddler.  He explores new experiences but doesn’t like to take risks.  Recently I’ve been trying to get him to use the “roller board” on the back of the stroller so that he can mostly walk, but hop on and take a ride if he gets tired.  He wasn’t having any of it. So, today, after a whole weekend of thinking like a trainer, I decided that it made the most sense to “shape” the behavior of riding on the roller board.  

Shaping

Shaping is a way of teaching where you reinforce closer and closer approximations to the sought-after behavior.
In this case, the terminal behavior was stepping onto the roller board, holding onto the stroller, and staying on for a reasonable duration of time. (Reasonable is a bit undefined, but it changes depending on where we are going.) I used freeze-dried blueberries as the reinforcer as they are currently a hot favorite in our house. I didn’t use a clicker in this instance, but he received a verbal marker (good job! or other variations) and a blueberry while still in position immediately after performing to criteria. 

Criteria for Reinforcement

This is what I reinforced:

1. Putting one foot on the stationary board. (His dad modeled this twice and was given a blueberry each time, that was the last piece that was modeled.)
2. Putting two feet on the stationary board.
3. Holding onto the stroller with two feet on the stationary board for 5 seconds.
4. Holding onto the stroller with two feet on the board while moving for 5 seconds.
5. Holding onto the stroller with two feet on the board while moving for 10 seconds.
6. Holding onto the stroller with two feet on the board while moving for 15 seconds.
7. Holding onto the stroller with two feet on the board while moving for one entire city block.

Success!

And it worked!  With no more than 1 or maybe 2 blueberries at each stage and with never having to “put” Oliver on the board (he kept asking to get back up when he finished his blueberries), we successfully shaped the behavior.  We finished steps 1-7 by the time we got to Starbucks (10 minutes away), and he rode all the way home on the board afterwards. In the interest of full disclosure, he did get a lollipop from the barber that he sucked on all the way home, which may have also helped keep him there. But, isn’t shaping fabulous?

Reinforce Kids with Food Treats? Really?

Many people are uncomfortable with reinforcing their children with food, but really- what were my alternatives here? As I see it, I could have done these:

• Held him on the board until he “got used to it”
• Waited six months until he understood the “rule” about standing on the board.
• Given up.

Wasn’t shaping it using a handful of dried fruit a better option? My relationship with my son is healthy and happy; Oliver played a fun game and got to eat something he loves (and is even healthy!); and rather than six months of pushing around an extra stroller seat, we now have a functional option to walking.  Hurray!

Behavior Analysis = Happy Relationships

So no, this is not a parenting blog or a teaching blog- but it is a blog about behavior and that extends well beyond dogs.  It impacts every relationship in our lives and everything we want to teach to any organism- be it child, dog, or goldfish.  As such, I just wanted to share how I use applied behavior analysis in my day-to-day life to make it easier, less confrontational, and more positive.

Adria is a Board Certified Behavior Analyst and owner of Click'n'Treat Dog Training LLC
adria@clickntreattraining.com


Do you ever wonder what your older kids REALLY want as reinforcers? To find this out, TAGteacher Lynn Loar asked them (huh!). Click here to read what the kids told Lynn

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The Three Try (or Less) Rule - How to Create Success

Learners can become frustrated and lose focus when they fail, especially if they are adult students.
This is why we suggest, the three try (or less) rule.  If a learner fails three times to meet the tag point criterion, go to a past point of success and move forward in smaller increments. In this manner you can build on success instead of searching blindly for a potential point of success. Of course the 'three try rule' isn't really a rule. The learner never has to fail three times. If it is clear the learner will not likely achieve the tag point criterion after the first failure, jump right in and clarify or change the tag point.

The best designed tag points move the learner forward but don't ask them to teeter on failure.
Some people have remarked after watching a TAGteach session or seeing some of our videos "they got a tag every time, don't they need to make mistakes to learn?" The answer is, no they don't need to make mistakes to learn. A TAGteacher will always try to set the learner up to succeed and never purposely make things too difficult. The whole point of using TAGteach is to create clear communication, encourage focus and build a desire to succeed. When the fear of failure is reduced, the learner can focus on the task at hand. Skill acquisition is accomplished quickly and without an undue amount of stress.

Watch this video of the three try rule in action. The learner makes three mistakes in a row. Instead of asking him to try again and risk frustration (and a full-on meltdown) the teacher goes back to a previous tag point and starts to build up again from there.

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TAGteach With Toddler Video

Watch great mom Keri Gorman using TAGteach to help her toddler accept saline nose spray. You will see the "before" situation, which every parent will recognize is leading to trouble and possibly a full blown tantrum. Keri skillfully changes her son's motivation using TAGteach methods and soon he is happily cooperating. Please note that Max is very TAG savvy and has had lots of great experiences with TAGteach. If you want to use TAGteach to help with something that might be scary or uncomfortable or you want to change a longstanding behavior, it is best to start first with fun things and activities that don't matter. The tag gains power with a strong reinforcement history and so you want a lot of fun and positive reinforcement associated with the tag before you start using it to change more difficult behavior.




more about Keri

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TAGteacher Tale - Toddler Tagging Follow-up

Thanks to TAGteacher Denise Lacey for keeping us updated on her toddler tagging adventures. Denise is a clicker trainer and TAGteacher who has been tagging her young son with great results.

My son is almost 27 months old. Focusing on the stuff I want him to do is working really well. He is currently the only kid in his "social circle" who does not use the word "no" as a general response/statement. He has used it a couple times to decline when I asked him if he wanted something. That to me seems really reasonable.

He is helpful in getting dressed and feeding himself. He (usually) is cooperative with having his teeth brushed. He holds my hand when we go in the street and will insist on holding other peoples hands if they are nearby. He also makes wonderful "piggy noises", has learned to blow "raspberries", and is generally a fun little guy. We're getting good with all sorts of things using positive reinforcement. And usually I can ignore the bad stuff and redirect with other behaviors I want.

But this evening I found it impossible to ignore him kicking a plate of stew left from lunch off the kitchen table. Management issue: I suppose I will have to improve my table clearing skills for the near future.

Denise

p.s. Lest you think my child is really a wild beast in a zoo, I confess that I don't think the plate was intentionally kicked. I was turned away finishing wrapping a gift for a cousin's birthday party and had left him happily eating pretzels in a chair so the dog couldn't "help." I believe he climbed on the table and began dancing (a behavior which has earned him a great deal of attention/reinforcement lately so why not try it out on the table) and accidentally dislodged said plate with all contents to the floor. And my response, while I couldn't ignore it, consisted of sitting him on the bottom step so I could clean up the mess without him running through it. Our "bottom down" cue worked pretty well since he seemed to still want to go dancing. Meanwhile, my husband will enjoy our son's impact on my housekeeping skills. I bet I even get clicked for the prompt cleaning!

Check out our previous blog posts about toddler tagging

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TAGteach with Toddlers

In a previous post we talked about some reinforcers for toddlers and today we will hear from two mothers of toddlers who are also accomplished clicker trainers and TAGteachers. How lucky are these kids to grow up with positive reinforcement-based parenting right from the start?

From Keri Gorman - Getting Started

I've been tagging my 2 year old son since he was about 16 months old. Hopefully I can add some ideas that worked for us, but as I'm quickly learning, human animals do not seem to be as straight forward as non-humans :)

When I was just introducing tag, I would do it when we were engaged in a fun game and would only do it for a few minutes and then bring it out again a few days later. This seemed to help keep his interest, it was a novelty to him. I would tag him for doing something I knew he would be successful at and had fun with. For him at that age it was a little sorting cube. He already liked putting the shapes in the cube and was good at it so I would tag him for the correct responses followed by my praise.

We did the same game with sign language. I started with his favorite signs and signs he knew really well. I would tag him for signs that he really liked and had a 100% chance of getting right. I gave him the tagger for this game and would ask him, "Is this the sign for 'more'?" (i would do the sign for 'milk' and he would shake his head no) I would then ask him "Is this the sign for 'more'?" and then do the correct sign for 'more' and he would tag me. it was a great way for him to learn that tagging meant "yes, you did it right"and that incorrect answers didn't get a tag. I was really structured when I gave him the tagger and made the session short and sweet so he couldn't get carried away with it. I would give a very clear "all done" sign and quickly move onto another game or toy.

It was only after he bought into the game did I attempt to use it for washing his hair or changing his diaper. He was in the bathtub and we were having the usual struggle of rinsing his hair and I just stopped and said, "do you want me to tag you?" and he nodded his head. I didn't have a tagger or a reinforcer, but just did a tongue click followed by praise and that was totally enough. As for diaper changing, a hair rubber band turned out to be a perfect reinforcer. He likes shooting rubber bands (you could use a ball or something else to throw) the great thing is that the item leaves their hands and you have to go pick it up and hand it to them again, which sets you up to tag them again right away.

Toddlers are SO smart and I'm not sure I could ever "train" mine to do something. I think letting them feel control over situations is more powerful than anything. I don't think I would be successful with Max if I just said, "I'm going to tag you for..." I think our success has been in making it a game first off, and then giving him the option if he wants to play the game or not. If he says no, I'm respectful of that.

This is just my experience and every kid is so different, so take it for what it's worth.

From Denise Lacey - Some Toddler Tag Points

Owen's first  tag point was "Open fingers" - a wide open hand. Worked great  because I did not want to cut my hair and he wanted to grab it. He had this one mastered by seven months because I was bragging about him at ClickerExpo after  his birth. It has been very handy for lots of things - petting our cats and dogs, getting things out of his hand that he should not have (although now asking him to hand it to me works for that).

We also use "bottom down" for lots of stuff: getting in the car seat, sitting down to brush teeth or eat. He loved doing bottom down in the tub so much that he'd stand up again and crash down to make a big splash so I stopped asking for it there.

"High five" is a great targeting skill. I've used this with other toddlers as well to get them to come back instead of running off.

Many of my reinforcers are strange noises, silly faces and laughing. Toddlers seem to love doing things that cause a reaction so those all work instead of me having to carry a tangible reward around. Owen beams when I say "I LUV IT!" very expressively.

Mostly I just find that I phrase things in terms of what I want not what I don't want or what he can't do. I don't say stay out of the road, instead it is "hold a hand to go in the street." This afternoon he had dad's hand but wouldn't go in the road until he had mine too. I was not planning on crossing the street but with toddlers plans change all the time and I crossed the road.

We had three other little boys over in the sandbox this morning. What started as three moms saying "Don't throw sand" ended up with four moms saying "put the sand in the sand box." I am more than willing to talk to moms about what I'm doing if they ask but just like with my relatives, I tend to just try to be an example and let them choose what they want to do. And I do find that I repeat some tag points over and over and over and over...alternative behaviors can be self reinforcing.

Even after I had started tagging Owen, another mom mentioned an article she read that said toddlers grab things from other toddlers because that is how their parents interact with them - if they have something we don't want them to have or that we want/need we just take it without asking. That just really solidified for me how I wanted to interact with my son. Of course, there are things he can't do. I won't let him play with the stove regardless of whether or not it is on. If I give him a behavior and he chooses to persist in going for the stove, I physically move him (I am bigger and he is not a dolphin :) ). He gets very mad for a brief moment and then I can get him to do something acceptable. Seems that sometimes he is so fixated on his goal that he can't process my requests. Makes me think of "squirrel!" Mostly, he is pretty easy to redirect with a positive request for another behavior and is really getting to be quite the helper around the house.

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TAGteach Reinforcers for Toddlers and Preschoolers

We are sometimes asked if TAGteach works with toddlers and preschoolers. Well of course it does! Sometimes very young children just like the sound of the tag and that fact that their actions can make it happen. It is a fun game that gives them control. Sometimes something more tangible is required. Here is a list of some possible reinforcers for toddlers and preschoolers:

• Stickers - to put on a chart, on their hand, on their clothes
• Bubbles (child blows, or you blow and child breaks)
• Using Crayola stamping markers - on their hands, feet or on a chart
• A piece of a puzzle to build later when all the pieces are collected
• Opening a drawer or window of a special prize chest - as with advent calendar - to see a new picture or get a small prize
• Giving the dog/cat/bird/fish a treat
• Pushing buttons - cell phone, remote control etc
• Putting drops of food colour in a clear glass of water to watch the swirls
• Planting seeds in little pots
• Clicking a clicker
• Adding a Duplo (or Lego) block to a tower
• Knocking down any kind of tower
• Adding something to a driveway chalk picture
• "Painting" with water on the deck or patio
• Making noise with any kind of noisemaker

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