How can video modeling help neurodivergent students? Screen time is not just for fun. While your child may enjoy watching their favorite streaming series on the small screen, videos are also a teaching tool that healthcare and educational professionals, such as behavior analysts and speech language pathologists, can use to help students overcome obstacles, think critically, develop social problem solving skills, and learn about new life situations in meaningful ways.
What Is Video Modeling?
As the name implies, this technique uses videos to model specific behaviors, situations, scenarios, or interactions. There are two primary ways to use video modeling with children—as a how to-ish instructional video and as a way to role play. The how to option is fairly straightforward. The therapist or educator creates a teachable scenario, storyboards it out, writes a script, and has actors act out the script as someone films the scene.
Role play video modeling is somewhat more complex. To use this method, the therapist or educator will create or choose a scenario to film. They may also use a storyboard to frame the video. But instead of scripting it out fully or handing out lines to actors, the students get the chance to role play the activity or interaction.
After the scene wraps, the students watch their video and critique it. This is similar to a football play recap. In a football recap, the coaches and players watch a video of a specific play or part of the game. The players get the chance to take themselves out of the picture and watch what happened IRL. This step back gives them perspective and allows them to see what worked and what didn’t. It allows them to point out strengths, come up with areas for improvement, and mentally review the steps or series of events that got them from point A to point B. The same thing happens when students get the chance to watch and recap their own video role playing sessions.
What Are the Benefits of Video Modeling?
The practical aspects of everyday life can get in the way of real-world teachable moments. Even though you might want to take your teen to a store for some in-real-life practice shopping for groceries or buying clothes, sensory issues, unfamiliar people, and the general hustle and bustle of many public places can easily overwhelm a child with disabilities. This interferes with their ability to fully communicate during activity-based learning interactions, make choices, and problem-solve.
Unlike a real-world or real-time lesson in practical life skills, video modeling slows everything down and allows the child to immerse themselves in the activity—minus the pressure to get it right the first time around. And, if the video is a role modeling scenario, it provides plenty of time for self-reflection. Being able to pause and discuss different aspects of an interaction is very powerful.
While video modeling can help children with disabilities to develop practical or life skills, it can also improve communication, cognitive and social development, as well as emotional recognition and expression. This makes the approach valuable in a variety of settings and for a variety of reasons. Whether the child needs to practice meeting new friends at school, playing a game with their peers, visiting a large public store, going to an amusement park, ordering a meal at a restaurant, interacting with their teacher, or almost anything else, video modeling and role play video modeling make it possible for students with disabilities to develop new skills in a completely controlled environment.
Not only can students learn from the videos, they can also benefit from creating their own mini modeling films. The role play video is a collaborative process that requires each child to work as part of a team. From choosing a scenario to role playing and acting it out, each child gets the chance to contribute individually and navigate the social obstacles required to collaborate with others. This can help the students to build new social skills and work on effectively communicating in both verbal and non-verbal ways.
Is It Difficult To Create Videos for Modeling?
Video modeling is something that is done in the therapeutic setting.You don’t have to direct a full Scorsese masterpiece. Instead, think smaller—much smaller. It’s perfectly fine to use your smart phone as a video recording device and your home, your child’s school, or a similar setting for the movie. Likewise, you don’t have to create complicated storyboards to pre-tell the tale you want to direct. Poster board, markers, and pencils are the only materials you will need.
How Can Parents Learn More About Video Modeling?
Does video modeling sound like an approach that could work well for your child? Do you have questions about the applications of video use or how to make your own videos? To learn more about video modeling as a therapeutic tool, discuss this creative approach with your child's treatment team!
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