Understanding and managing challenging behaviour is an important area of focus for those who support individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), both in school and home environments. This one-day workshop will provide an overview of fundamental aspects of understanding behaviour, such as defining, measuring and determining the function(s) of behaviour. In addition, basic strategies for preventing, responding to, and teaching replacements to challenging behaviour will be introduced, including providing predictability, promoting functional communication, and using reinforcement. An emphasis will be placed on behavioural strategies most applicable to remote-learning situations. Given the role of families in remote-learning, time will be spent addressing ways that school teams can support families via remote coaching. By the end of the workshop, participants will be familiar with basic behavioural principles and behaviour management strategies and will have a framework for coaching and providing support to families remotely.

This workshop is appropriate for K-12 classroom teachers, resource teachers, learning support teachers, case managers, educational assistants, other professionals, and parents who want to learn more about understanding and managing challenging behaviour, particularly in the context of remote learning. It may be beneficial for participants who can attend as a team supporting one or more students. However, it is not required to attend as a team, and individual attendees will take-away tools and strategies to implement within their respective teams after the workshop.