Parent-Implemented Oral Vocabulary Intervention for Children With Down Syndrome

Young children with Down syndrome (DS) often demonstrate impaired oral vocabulary development; however, few intervention studies have focused on this population. One promising method to improve the oral vocabulary of young children with DS may be to train their parents to intervene at home. In this study, we used tele-education methods (e.g., videoconferences, email) to coach parents to implement an adapted version of Down Syndrome LanguagePlus (DSL+). Four children with DS (aged 5–6 years) participated in the multiple probe across behaviors (i.e., stories) single-case research design study. Increasing trends during baseline and data variability precluded confirmation of a functional relation; however, results indicated that all participants increased their scores on mastery measures of targeted vocabulary. Three of the four parents implemented DSL+ with high fidelity and responded favorably to social validity interviews.

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Adapting Phonological Awareness Interventions for Children With Down Syndrome Based on the Behavioral Phenotype: A Promising Approach?

Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities ◽

10.1352/1934-9556-53.4.271 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 53 (4) ◽

pp. 271-288 ◽

Cited By ~ 15

Author(s):

Christopher J. Lemons ◽

Seth A. King ◽

Kimberly A. Davidson ◽

Cynthia S. Puranik ◽

Deborah Fulmer ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Down Syndrome ◽

Phonological Awareness ◽

Single Case ◽

Functional Relation ◽

Behavioral Phenotype ◽

Future Research ◽

Single Case Design ◽

Children With Down Syndrome ◽

Alphabetic Language ◽

Case Design

Abstract Many children with Down syndrome demonstrate deficits in phonological awareness, a prerequisite to learning to read in an alphabetic language. The purpose of this study was to determine whether adapting a commercially available phonological awareness program to better align with characteristics associated with the behavioral phenotype of Down syndrome would increase children's learning of phonological awareness, letter sounds, and words. Five children with Down syndrome, ages 6 to 8 years, participated in a multiple baseline across participants single case design experiment in which response to an adapted phonological awareness intervention was compared with response to the nonadapted program. Results indicate a functional relation between the adapted program and phonological awareness. Suggestions for future research and implications for practice are provided.

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Phonological awareness intervention using a standard treatment protocol for individuals with Down syndrome

Child Language Teaching and Therapy ◽

10.1177/02656590211033013 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 026565902110330

Author(s):

Alison Hessling Prahl ◽

Ragan Jones ◽

C Melanie Schuele ◽

Stephen Camarata

Keyword(s):

Down Syndrome ◽

Phonological Awareness ◽

Small Group ◽

Group Intervention ◽

Standard Treatment ◽

Visual Analysis ◽

Single Case ◽

Treatment Protocol ◽

Functional Relation ◽

Children With Down Syndrome

This multiple baseline across-participants single case desgin study examined the effect of small group, phonological awareness intervention on the phonological awareness skills of three school-age children with Down syndrome. Each child with Down syndrome was paired with a typical peer to participate in small group intervention, three sessions per week for seven weeks. Lessons from a single unit in the Intensive Phonological Awareness Program were adapted to incorporate repeated exposure to the curriculum and increased opportunities for practice. A functional relation between the intervention and improved phonological awareness skills was not established based on visual analysis of the probe data across the three participants. However, an increasing therapeutic trend following delayed treatment effects as well as an increase in phase means from baseline to intervention was observed for each participant. This investigation provides preliminary guidance for adapting phonological awareness standard treatment protocols for children with Down syndrome by providing repeated opportunities for practice and including peers in small group intervention.

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Physiological arousal and observed behaviour in parent–child interactions involving young children with Down syndrome

Journal of Intellectual Disability Research ◽

10.1111/jir.12714 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 64 (6) ◽

pp. 426-433 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

E. Lorang ◽

S. Hartley ◽

A. Sterling

Keyword(s):

Down Syndrome ◽

Young Children ◽

Physiological Arousal ◽

Children With Down Syndrome ◽

Parent Child Interactions ◽

Observed Behaviour ◽

Parent Child

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Building Professionals’ Capacity: The Cascading Coaching Model

Journal of Positive Behavior Interventions ◽

10.1177/10983007211039295 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 109830072110392

Author(s):

Moon Y. Chung ◽

James D. Lee ◽

Hedda Meadan ◽

Michelle M. Sands ◽

Ban Sleiman Haidar

Keyword(s):

Professional Development ◽

Single Case ◽

Family Engagement ◽

Functional Relation ◽

Professional Organizations ◽

Probe Design ◽

Intervention Package ◽

Coaching Model ◽

Behavior Analysts ◽

Multiple Probe

The importance of family engagement in their children’s education and treatment is emphasized by researchers, professional organizations, and legislatures. Providing services with caregivers via telepractice has gained more support and is becoming especially timely due to the current pandemic and social distancing requirements. Professionals, such as board-certified behavior analysts (BCBAs), who work with caregivers with children with disabilities may benefit from receiving professional development on strategies for building better rapport with caregivers and coaching them to bring about maximum clinical efficacy. The current pilot study replicated an earlier study by Meadan et al. to examine the effects of the Coaching Caregiver Professional Development (CoCarePD) intervention package, in which BCBAs received training and coaching from researchers via telepractice, on their caregiver coaching practices. A single-case, multiple-probe design study across three BCBAs was conducted, and findings support a functional relation between the CoCarePD and BCBAs’ use of coaching practices.

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Sleep problems and temperament in young children with Down syndrome and typically developing controls

Journal of Intellectual Disability Research ◽

10.1111/jir.12321 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 61 (3) ◽

pp. 221-232 ◽

Cited By ~ 12

Author(s):

A. F. Lukowski ◽

H. M. Milojevich

Keyword(s):

Down Syndrome ◽

Young Children ◽

Sleep Problems ◽

Typically Developing ◽

Children With Down Syndrome

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Early intersubjective skills and the understanding of intentionality in young children with Down syndrome

Research in Developmental Disabilities ◽

10.1016/j.ridd.2013.09.027 ◽

2013 ◽

Vol 34 (12) ◽

pp. 4455-4465 ◽

Cited By ~ 10

Author(s):

Laura J. Hahn ◽

Deborah J. Fidler ◽

Susan L. Hepburn ◽

Sally J. Rogers

Keyword(s):

Down Syndrome ◽

Young Children ◽

Children With Down Syndrome

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Reading Beyond the Book: Educating Paraprofessionals to Implement Dialogic Reading for Preschool Children With Language Impairments

Topics in Early Childhood Special Education ◽

10.1177/0271121418821167 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 40 (2) ◽

pp. 68-83

Author(s):

Jacqueline A. Towson ◽

Katherine B. Green ◽

Diana L. Abarca

Keyword(s):

Preschool Children ◽

Single Case ◽

Functional Relation ◽

Dialogic Reading ◽

Expressive Vocabulary ◽

Single Word ◽

Preschool Classrooms ◽

Vocabulary Skills ◽

Variable Fidelity ◽

Multiple Probe

We examined how educating paraprofessionals in preschool classrooms on dialogic reading (DR) affected their storybook reading and effects on children’s single word vocabulary. Through a single-case multiple-probe across participants design including four paraprofessionals and eight preschool children, we identified a functional relation between educating paraprofessionals in DR and implementation of the CROWD prompts; yet, no functional relation was observed for the implementation of the evaluate, expand, and repeat strategies. Data collected on children’s expressive near-transfer vocabulary showed all but one child made minimal gains from baseline to intervention, whereas receptive data remained stable for six participants. Results suggested that paraprofessionals implemented the strategies of DR with variable fidelity following a singular training and in-text supports. Additional supports may be necessary for all aspects of the intervention and generalization to be implemented with fidelity and for improvement to carryover to both receptive and expressive vocabulary skills for children.

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