1). Observe student with peers over at least three days.
2). Use rating sheet to determine weaknesses.
3). Determine one area on which to focus.
4). Pre-teach vocabulary of Conversation Basics.
5). Talk with student about their perceptions of their Conversation Basics skills.
6). Integrate Conversation Basics into a one-minute conversation in a 1:1 setting (initially you will likely do a lot of verbal and/or visual prompting).
7). Advance length of conversation and decrease number of prompts.
8). As progress is made, provide opportunities to practice with a small group of peers. You can use visuals (note cards, Conversation Basics, non-verbal cues, gestures) and the conversation does not have to be mastered prior to this step).
9). Continue to extend the conversation and decrease prompts.
10). The end goal is for student to initiate a variety of contributions to a conversation with peers without prompts.
11). Once Conversation Basics are mastered, develop new goals for secondary conversation skills (e.g., eye contact, body position) as needed.
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