Experience Steps

1. Offer up a few choices of materials that could be used to create a pretend play routine (e.g. dolls, animals, teddy bears) and see where your child lands. Join your child here, sitting near/opposite and comment with interest. Back up if your child shows signs of fussing.
2. Narrate/describe your child’s actions. Commenting on how your child is playing with the materials e.g. patting, feeding, rocking. Remember to speak in single words. Continue to praise and describe and don’t worry about touching materials or teaching, yet. The goal is to slowly increase your involvement without challenging the child.
3. Slowly start to involve yourself in your child’s play by offering materials such as blankets, food, bottle etc. Only touch materials not yet claimed by your child. The goal is to hand them over when the child is facing you and watching your handling of the materials, although eye contact from the child to receive the material is not yet necessary.
4. Next, offer help. When your child is not looking, put things in containers they need help to open, or show new toys the child needs support to operate. Be sure to give the item right back as soon as you have helped. The goal is for the child to see you being helpful with the materials.
5. Begin to imitate your child, pick up the same materials and create the same movements, using single words to express the actions. The goal is to capture your child’s eye contact, both on your handling of the material and to your face, and to find your child’s smile in the game.
6. For every three times you imitate your child, give your child a choice related to the play. E.g. Wash or Feed? (i.e. wash the baby or feed the baby. Holding a washcloth and a piece of food up near your face can support this choice). Don’t worry about eye contact yet. The goal is for the child to become more active in decision-making and to increase the length of the activity.
7. For every three times you offer your child a choice, ask your child to do something in the play e.g. burp the baby. Whatever it is, make sure there is a fun reward following compliance e.g. a loud pretend burp. Remember that the consequence has to be worth the effort. The goal is for the child to become more active in play and to take turns following your ideas in play.
8. For every 3 times you provide a fun reward, have the child respond to your teaching opportunity using a non-verbal behaviour. This could be a gesture, body movement, or eye contact. It has to be directed towards you and relate somehow to this activity. Remember to accept attempts and reward. The goal is to have the child use an intentional behaviour in response to your antecedent, followed by the rewarding consequence. E.g. you might pat your baby on the back slowly opening your mouth wider and wider, with lots of excited affect and pause waiting for your child to cue you to continue, reward this non-verbal behaviour by immediately providing an exaggerated burp with lots of affect.