How to Conduct a Session

Prepare the space and materials

• Choose a comfortable, quiet space with minimal distractions, such as a small room or a quiet corner on the floor.
• Sit close to the learner (across, next to, or diagonal) so you can share materials and observe responses clearly.
• Organise all materials needed for the session and keep them within easy reach.
• Keep your recording or data sheet ready and fill in the basic details before starting.

Arrange the learning materials

• Place the pictures, objects, or other materials in a neat row, directly in front of the learner, evenly spaced.
• Avoid patterns or unusual arrangements that might accidentally draw the learner to one position or item more than others.
• Vary the left–right–centre positions across trials so the learner does not depend on location alone.

Get the learner’s attention

• Make sure the learner is attending before you give an instruction.
• Use simple verbal cues like the learner’s name or “Look” / “Look at these,” but say only one, and avoid repeating it many times.
• Use nonverbal ways to draw attention, such as sliding the whole row of cards smoothly closer, or moving your finger back and forth across the entire array without pointing to any single picture.
• You can occasionally combine one verbal and one nonverbal method, for example “Look” while running your finger over the array.
• If attention is still difficult, invite an orienting action: ask the learner to run a finger over the array, touch each picture, turn over cards to reveal pictures, or remove a sheet to uncover the set.

Avoid: snapping fingers, physically turning the learner’s face, pointing to individual pictures and naming them, or repeatedly saying “look, look, look.” Do not start the activity until the learner is attending.

Give clear instructions

• Look at the learner (not the pictures) when you give the instruction.
• Use brief, clear phrases such as “Cow”, “Find cow”, “Show me cow”, or “Point to cow”.
• Keep your facial expression and tone of voice neutral while giving the instruction, and save your animation and enthusiasm for responding to the learner’s success.
• You can vary the instruction wording, but keep it short and consistent.

Notice and respond to the learner’s answers

A response can be correct, incorrect, or a behaviour that shows how the learner is reacting to the situation (for example, engagement, looking away, pushing materials, throwing objects). Responses are not limited to table-and-chair time; they include how the child reacts to various stimuli in many contexts.

When the response is correct Acknowledge it with simple, genuine validation such as “Yes”, “That’s right”, or “You got it.” For some learners, this is reinforcing enough; others may need more explicit enthusiasm, or access to a meaningful reward (for example, a toy they wanted to play with). Choose consequences that are meaningful and linked to the learner’s internal motivation. If the child is clearly interested in a toy, use the toy, not an unrelated item like a chocolate.

When the response is incorrect or the learner disengages, the focus is on support and orientation, not pressure. Try different prompts (both stimulus prompts like highlighting, rearranging, or simplifying materials, and response prompts like modelling, gesturing, or giving the first part of the answer) to gently guide the learner toward the correct response. This needs planning in advance, so the facilitator has a range of prompts ready to use in a calm, predictable way. Gently reorient and try once more, watching the learner’s emotional state closely.

If the learner has clearly lost interest or the material is not appealing, it is okay to end that activity for now and prepare a different or more suitable version for next time. In the moment, you can simply provide the correct answer and move on, without insisting that the child repeat it.

Avoid blaming, shaming, or punishing comments such as “I already taught you this” or “How many times do I have to tell you?”, as these can damage the learner’s confidence and relationship with learning.

If distress appears (for example, the child points to blue instead of red and starts throwing materials), you can say something like “You don’t like this activity, all right,” calmly label a few examples (for instance, “This apple is red; this card is red; this paint is red”), then back off from the demand. You can later revisit the skill using easier, priming activities like sorting all red things into one tub or matching red items before returning to “Show me red.”

Use priming and step-backs when needed

• If a task is hard or has become aversive, go back to simpler or related activities that build familiarity and confidence, then return to the main activity.
• This might involve matching, sorting, or other low-pressure steps that still connect to the same concept.
• The aim is to keep learning emotionally safe and to protect a positive relationship with both the activity and the adult.