If your child has been diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) or other developmental delays, you should seek out professional resources in your community. Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) is the foremost evidence-based treatment for ASD. In addition to professional services, and ideally in coordination with your provider, MyBT can be incorporated into the treatment plan to best utilize the number of therapy hours available, while making sure to cover important vocabulary building targets. For example, instead of 30 hours of weekly treatment, some of which is spent conducting discrete trial teaching (DTT), explore options fewer hours of direct therapy which can be fully devoted to natural environment teaching (NET), while covering important developmental language targets through parent-led use of MyBT outside of therapy sessions. If ABA services are currently unavailable, start using MyBT independently, utilizing our automatic assessment algorithm, website resources and support services, and begin progressing through early language milestones at home today.
MyBT is designed to save your team time and energy, while achieving the same level of intensive quality teaching and covering the same developmental ground. Never print out picture cards again, never write LRFFC targets again, and reduce training and oversight required for implementation and data collection. MyBT can be used to set up BT-led, parent-led or independent DTT sessions, covering a wide variety of typical VB-MAPP, ABLLS, or PEAK style targets. Prioritize NET when therapists are with the student, and utilize face-to-face interaction as naturally as possible. Use the MyBT clinician portal to set up custom sessions, analyze data which can be used to target generalization of mastered targets in play settings, and manage multiple client treatment programs from one device. Group teaching environments in a clinic can be used to increase ratios of students to therapist, where one floating therapist can motivate 3-5 learners to complete their star requirements before accessing a therapist led social skills activity all together. Schedule a consultation to speak with our team about all the ways MyBT can benefit your current practice.
MyBT has a built-in token system using a simple and straightforward star meter to reward correct responses. To start, the star requirement should be very small, even as low as 1 star for some students. When the student reaches the star requirement, MyBT will celebrate, and the instructor, whether it’s a parent, therapist, or teacher should also celebrate, delivering praise, and most important- reward the student with a preferred toy, food, or activity. Soon the student will learn that completing the star requirement by answering questions correctly will lead to accessing their favorite things. Over time the star requirement should gradually be increased (e.g., up to 50 stars), to increase the amount of vocabulary learning trials during each session.
Increasing screen time is a valid concern in today’s ever more digitalized world. MyBT in no way emphasizes an excess of screen time, and should indeed be used in moderation. MyBT sessions that are as short as 5 minutes at a time can still cover a wide breadth of language learning targets, and in typical DTT fashion, MyBT recommends a process where the student may spend 2-3 minutes earning 10 stars, followed by a short break for a tasty snack, or physical play with their parents, which can be repeated about 6 times in a period of 30 minutes, wherein the student has correctly answered 60 questions. MyBT is designed to be efficient, and effective, leading to increases in vocabulary skills across years of developmental milestones. In order to maximize the benefits, MyBT should be used in proper moderation, and as a supplemental treatment component in combination with a rigorous regiment of face-to-face interactions with parents, therapists, or teachers.
Yes. MyBT understands that not all learners are vocal, and also understands that just because someone doesn’t speak does not mean that they are incapable of learning through other communication channels. With the simple click of a button, you can turn off all vocal targets, thereby covering the same developmental ground and vocabulary building targets, but only through receptive forms of communication. Your child can still learn to identify apples, cars, shoes, or which ones are red, have wheels, or we wear on our feet, but will use pointing to demonstrate mastery instead of vocalization. As a student’s vocabulary and their ability to process language around them in the natural environment improves, we hope to increase the likelihood that they will one day engage in vocal communication. MyBT also recommends extensive consultation with resources and professionals in your community such as BCBAs, Speech-Language Pathologists, and Occupational Therapists in order to maximize your chances of achieving the highest levels of independence possible. MyBT hopes to be a helpful tool on that journey.
The length of time necessary for using a program like MyBT or receiving any services such as ABA, or Speech-language Therapy, will be different for every learner. MyBT has outlined a comprehensive developmental curriculum for early learners moving from simple identification of common objects like apples or cars, all the way to moderately advanced academic skills such as writing, spelling, and money-math. MyBT curriculum spans approximately 7 years of developmental milestones, and is designed to teach as quickly and efficiently as possible, with the intent of covering ground in a shorter period of time than is chronologically indicated (i.e. move through 3 years of developmental targets in 1 year of practice). You or your BCBA can use early data results to analyze your child’s acquisition/learning rate and make predictions about how much of the curriculum can be covered in a certain period of time.
As MyBT continues to grow, we will always be looking for ways to improve, which will include continually updating programs and targets based on recent research, and evidence-based practices in the field of ABA, as well as expanding our program to include multiple languages. The overall mission of MyBT is to expand access to high-quality intensive language instruction, especially for people who are currently unable to access or afford such services in their community, and MyBT understands that the most highly affected groups are very likely to be non-English speakers in countries other than the USA or Canada. As MyBT grows, we intend to offer our program in a multitude of languages for learners in every continent. Please send feedback in the app to suggest a language, and check back frequently for updates!