One of the most extensively researched interventions in autism. It breaks a complex skill into small, teachable steps and uses consistent reinforcement to build each one.

• Use “errorless teaching” — prompt before your child can get it wrong, to build confidence rather than frustration
• Five focused minutes during snack time beats a distracted thirty-minute sit-down
• Keep reinforcers consistent — if stickers work Monday, use stickers Tuesday too

Always follow the goals your qualified ABA therapist has set — home practice supports their plan, it doesn’t replace their judgement.

Communication is broader than spoken words — gestures, expressions, pointing, and picture or device-based systems all count. At home, this means creating dozens of small communication opportunities throughout the day.

• OWL: Observe, Wait, Listen — pause before jumping in, and give space for them to initiate
• Narrate simply: “Washing the cup. Washing. Cup.” — repetition builds vocabulary without pressure
• Trade questions for comments — “Oh, the dog is running!” invites response without demanding one

Structured parent-coaching programmes exist for exactly this — ask your speech therapist whether they can recommend one suited to your child’s age.

A relationship-based approach built around play — you literally get on the floor and follow your child’s lead. The core idea is “circles of communication”: every back-and-forth exchange, however small, is one circle, and the goal is building longer chains of them over time.

• Create gentle “problems” — a favourite toy just out of reach — that invite interaction without demanding it
• Aim for around 20 minutes of pure, phone-free Floortime daily, even split into several short bursts

This is something parents can genuinely do well at home, especially with early guidance from a trained therapist — it’s about connecting, not teaching.

Focused on building flexible, adaptive thinking — the ability to read social context and share an experience with someone else, rather than a specific discrete skill.

• Do activities side by side rather than face to face — washing dishes, folding laundry, gardening
• Swap testing questions (“what colour is this?”) for shared wondering (“hmm, I wonder which one fits…”)
• Slow down — the small variations that spark noticing and response need room to land

Ideally guided early on by a certified consultant, but the underlying principles weave into daily life with relatively little training.

For children who don’t communicate best through words or structured tasks, drawing, music, movement, and storytelling can be the most natural route to expression and regulation — not about producing good art, but using the process itself.

• A consistent “clean-up song” or “bath time song” signals what’s coming and reduces transition anxiety
• “Show me how you’re feeling today” with a blank page can open conversations a direct question can’t
• Five minutes of jumping or dancing before a demanding task is preparation, not indulgence

Originally developed for young children with behavioural difficulties, and adapted for autism — particularly effective for managing challenging behaviour while building secure, warm attachment.

This one genuinely needs a trained therapist to guide initial sessions — not something to attempt from an article or book alone. Once learned, usually over a course of sessions, parents apply the skills independently at home with lasting effect.

OT addresses sensory processing, fine motor skills, and daily-living independence — and its home activities are among the most immediately practical things a parent can do.

• Sensory bin play: hide small objects in rice, lentils, or kinetic sand — builds tactile tolerance and fine motor skill together
• Threading & sorting: stringing beads or sorting buttons builds the hand strength needed for writing and self-care
• Backward chaining for dressing: you do everything except the last step, and hand back more steps as confidence grows