The Misfit Behaviorists - Practical Strategies for Special Education and ABA Professionals

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The Misfit Behaviorists - Practical Strategies for Special Education and ABA Professionals

Audra Jensen, Caitlin Beltran, Sami Brown

90 episodes

5 days ago

Some days it feels like every classroom around you is perfectly color-coded, freshly laminated, and Instagram-ready… and yours is, well, real life. In this Misfit Minute, Audra shares a mindset reset for teachers who feel stuck in the comparison spiral. Your classroom doesn’t need to look like anyone else’s—your heart work is what changes lives. These five quick tips help you shift from comparing to caring so you can focus on what truly matters: your students. 🔑 Key Takeaways • Celebrate the...

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All content for The Misfit Behaviorists - Practical Strategies for Special Education and ABA Professionals is the property of Audra Jensen, Caitlin Beltran, Sami Brown and is served directly from their servers with no modification, redirects, or rehosting. The podcast is not affiliated with or endorsed by Podjoint in any way.

Some days it feels like every classroom around you is perfectly color-coded, freshly laminated, and Instagram-ready… and yours is, well, real life. In this Misfit Minute, Audra shares a mindset reset for teachers who feel stuck in the comparison spiral. Your classroom doesn’t need to look like anyone else’s—your heart work is what changes lives. These five quick tips help you shift from comparing to caring so you can focus on what truly matters: your students. 🔑 Key Takeaways • Celebrate the...

Show more...

Episodes (20/90)

The Misfit Behaviorists - Practical Strategies for Special Education and ABA Professionals

Misfit Minute 18: Stop Comparing Your Classroom — Focus on What Your Students Need

Some days it feels like every classroom around you is perfectly color-coded, freshly laminated, and Instagram-ready… and yours is, well, real life. In this Misfit Minute, Audra shares a mindset reset for teachers who feel stuck in the comparison spiral. Your classroom doesn’t need to look like anyone else’s—your heart work is what changes lives. These five quick tips help you shift from comparing to caring so you can focus on what truly matters: your students. 🔑 Key Takeaways • Celebrate the...

2 weeks ago

3 minutes

The Misfit Behaviorists - Practical Strategies for Special Education and ABA Professionals

Ep. 70: Modernizing ABA Assessment – Flexibility, Self-Awareness, and Real-Life Skills

Every BCBA and teacher has lived the moment: you pour months into an intervention… only to open an assessment and think, “Wait. Where did all that progress go?” In this episode, Caitlin sits down with Casey Barron and Dr. Anika Hoybjerg—creators of the Meaningful Outcomes Treatment and Assessment Scale (MOTAS)—to talk about why so many traditional tools miss the skills that matter most, and how the MOTAS fills those gaps with flexible, functional, and family-aligned assessment practices. 🔑 ...

3 weeks ago

26 minutes

The Misfit Behaviorists - Practical Strategies for Special Education and ABA Professionals

Misfit Minute 17: How to Make Transitions Easier for Students with Autism

Transitions can be tough—especially when students move from a preferred activity to something less exciting. In this quick Misfit Minute, Audra shares practical ways to make transitions smoother and reduce challenging behaviors before they even start. Whether it’s adding countdowns, visuals, or empathy, these small tweaks can make a big difference in your day (and theirs). 🔑 Key Takeaways • Predictability is prevention: Use visual cues, countdowns, or consistent verbal prompts to prepare stu...

1 month ago

1 minute

The Misfit Behaviorists - Practical Strategies for Special Education and ABA Professionals

Ep. 69: Catch Them First — 3 Proven Ways to Prevent Misbehavior Before It Starts

Every teacher has that moment when they realize—“ugh, I missed it.” The chance to redirect before things spiraled. In this week’s episode, Audra and Caitlin flip the classic “Catch Them Being Good” idea into something even more powerful: Catch Them First. They share three simple, proactive strategies you can use to prevent behavior issues before they happen—so you spend less time reacting and more time connecting. 🔑 Key Takeaways • Catch Them First: Don’t wait for misbehavior—frontload suppo...

1 month ago

7 minutes

The Misfit Behaviorists - Practical Strategies for Special Education and ABA Professionals

Misfit Minute 16: When Writing Tasks Cause Behaviors: Helping Students Stay Focused

Sometimes our students giggle, get wiggly, or completely check out when it’s time to write. Is it task avoidance? A skills gap? Sensory overload? In this Misfit Minute, Audra walks through 5 quick questions to help you figure out what’s really going on—and what to do about it—when pencil-and-paper tasks go sideways. 🔑 Key Takeaways • Start with: Is it a can’t or a won’t? Skill deficits and motivation issues need different responses. • If it’s a can’t, reduce the demand—use scribes, stamps, t...

1 month ago

3 minutes

The Misfit Behaviorists - Practical Strategies for Special Education and ABA Professionals

Misfit Minute 15: Can’t or Won’t? How to Tell If It’s a Skill or Motivation Issue

Sometimes behavior looks like defiance—but what if it's actually a missing skill? In this episode, Audra walks you through a simple visual tool to help determine whether a student’s challenging behavior is due to a skill deficit (“can’t”) or a motivation issue (“won’t”). Using her quadrant graphic, she explains the four learner profiles (Engaged, Frustrated, Avoidant, Resistant) and gives practical strategies for supporting each one. Whether you're a teacher, para, or BCBA, this is a must-li...

1 month ago

7 minutes

The Misfit Behaviorists - Practical Strategies for Special Education and ABA Professionals

Ep. 68: From Chaos to Calm — 5 Quick Classroom De-Escalation Strategies

Every teacher knows those days when everything seems to erupt at once. In this episode, Audra and Caitlin share five quick, practical de-escalation strategies that help you shift from chaos to calm—without losing your sanity or your sense of humor. From using proactive visuals to setting the emotional “temperature” of the room, these are tools you can use right away in any classroom or therapy setting. 🔑 Key Takeaways • Prevention is your protection: Plan ahead with visuals, pre-corrections,...

2 months ago

12 minutes

The Misfit Behaviorists - Practical Strategies for Special Education and ABA Professionals

Ep. 67: The Role of a BCBA on RTI & MTSS Teams in Schools

Being a BCBA in a public school means more than behavior plans—it’s about collaboration, data, and supporting teachers on RTI and MTSS teams. In this episode, we share tips for building relationships, starting with Tier 1 strategies, and making sure your role feels valuable (not overwhelming!) to your general education colleagues. 🔑 Key Takeaways • Start simple: Review Tier 1 supports before jumping to FBAs or complex plans. • Bring tools: Have ready-to-use data sheets and low-prep intervent...

2 months ago

12 minutes

The Misfit Behaviorists - Practical Strategies for Special Education and ABA Professionals

Misfit Minute 14: Do You Really Need a New Behavior Plan?

Sometimes the issue isn’t that your behavior plan is “bad”—it’s that it’s not being followed with fidelity. Before you rewrite the whole thing, pause and check: are all staff on the same page, teaching replacement skills, and delivering reinforcement consistently? In this Misfit Minute, Caitlin shares some tough love and practical reminders about when you actually need a new plan versus when you just need to work the one you’ve got. 🔑 Key Takeaways ⦁ Consistency is...

2 months ago

1 minute

The Misfit Behaviorists - Practical Strategies for Special Education and ABA Professionals

Misfit Minute 13: Reduce Student Pushback with Simple Choice Strategies in Special Education

Offering students simple choices can reduce pushback and boost cooperation. In this Misfit Minute, we break down how to turn everyday directives into opportunities for autonomy and engagement. 🔑 Key Takeaways Choice = Power: Even small choices give students autonomy and reduce resistanceCircle Time Example: Let students choose where or how they sit instead of forcing one optionDirective Reframe: Switch “Put your things away and line up” to “Do you want to line up first or pack up first?”Week...

2 months ago

3 minutes

The Misfit Behaviorists - Practical Strategies for Special Education and ABA Professionals

Ep. 66: Behavior Management for Early Learners - 5 Preschool Classroom Strategies

Teaching little ones with big feelings can be equal parts joyful and challenging. In this episode, we share five simple, effective strategies for supporting early learners in preschool and special education settings. From using visuals to keeping it playful, you’ll walk away with practical tools you can try tomorrow. 🔑 Key Takeaways • Keep it visual: Use simple schedules, choice boards, and social stories to support communication and independence. • Narrate everything: Model posi...

3 months ago

17 minutes

The Misfit Behaviorists - Practical Strategies for Special Education and ABA Professionals

Misfit Minute 12: Spot Early Warning Signs to Prevent Escalation in the Classroom

This week’s Misfit Minute is all about catching behaviors before they escalate. Caitlin breaks down how to spot the earliest warning signs—like a shift in posture or a sigh—and why waiting until the meltdown starts is already too late. Learn how small, proactive strategies can prevent big challenges in the classroom. 🔑 Key Takeaways Escalation is the “tip of the iceberg” — behaviors begin long before yelling or refusal.Early signs might include subtle changes like silence, avoidance, or body...

3 months ago

1 minute

The Misfit Behaviorists - Practical Strategies for Special Education and ABA Professionals

Ep. 65: How to Teach Maintenance and Generalization of Skills in ABA and Special Education

If it’s not generalizing, it’s not functional. In this episode, we break down what true mastery looks like, how to plan for maintenance from the start, and practical ways to “teach loosely” so skills stick across people, places, and materials. 🔑 Key Takeaways Redefine Mastery: Ditch “80% for 3 days” as the finish line—probe across time (weeks), people, places, and materials.Plan for M+G Early: Write IEP goals that embed generalization (different staff, tables, exemplars) and maintenance chec...

3 months ago

14 minutes

The Misfit Behaviorists - Practical Strategies for Special Education and ABA Professionals

Misfit Minute 11: Sticky Note Praise Strategy for Quick Classroom Reinforcement

This week’s Misfit Minute is all about a tiny tool with a big payoff—sticky notes! 📝 Audra shares a quick and easy praise strategy you can implement immediately to boost positive behavior, make students feel seen, and encourage classroom-wide reinforcement. Perfect for preschool, special education, and any classroom that thrives on connection and encouragement. 💛 🔑 Key Takeaways 📝 Use sticky notes as quick, visual praise for behaviors you want to reinforce 👏 Simple compliments like “I love h...

3 months ago

1 minute

The Misfit Behaviorists - Practical Strategies for Special Education and ABA Professionals

Ep. 64: Preschool Circle Time Tips for Engagement, Structure, and Special Education Success

Preschool circle time doesn’t have to be chaos! 🎶 In this episode, we share simple strategies to keep little learners engaged, structured, and having fun—while meeting every student where they are. 🌟 🎧 Key Takeaways • Purpose of Circle Time: Sets the tone for the day, offering structure and fun through songs, weather checks, and IEP skill practice. Adaptations are key to meeting the students where they are! 🌞 • Four Pillars of a Balanced Circle Time: 1. Physical Movement:...

4 months ago

21 minutes

The Misfit Behaviorists - Practical Strategies for Special Education and ABA Professionals

Misfit Minute 10: Reinforcement vs. Bribery – What Teachers and BCBAs Need to Know

Reinforcement isn’t a trick, a loophole, or a bribe—it’s an evidence-based strategy that builds real behavior change. In this quick Misfit Minute, Caitlin shares a practical way to explain the difference between reinforcement and bribery—perfect for staff training or team refreshers. 🧠 Key Takeaways: 🔄 Reinforcement is proactive, planned, and delivered after the desired behavior 🚫 Bribery is reactive, often given during or after problem behavior to stop it 💼 Think of it like a paycheck: you ...

4 months ago

1 minute

The Misfit Behaviorists - Practical Strategies for Special Education and ABA Professionals

Ep. 63: 5 Data Collection Mistakes BCBAs and Special Educators Should Avoid

Are you drowning in data but still missing progress? In this episode, we’re talking about the five most common data collection mistakes we’ve seen (and made!)—and how to fix them. Whether you're a BCBA, teacher, or therapist, these tips will help you streamline your systems, support your staff, and actually use the data you're collecting. 🧠 Key Takeaways: 📊 Too much data = too little connection — Prioritize quality over quantity. 🧍‍♀️ Inconsistent systems can lead to confusing or unusable da...

4 months ago

14 minutes

The Misfit Behaviorists - Practical Strategies for Special Education and ABA Professionals

Misfit Minute #9: Easy Circle Time Ideas for Joint Attention and Conversation Skills

This week, we’re keeping it super simple—and super effective. Audra shares two of her favorite low-prep activities that boost engagement, joint attention, and early conversation skills using nothing more than a decorated box or bag and a few trinkets from around the room. Perfect for preschool, early intervention, and special education classrooms! 🔑 Key Takeaways 🧠 Use a Surprise Box to build early joint attention and excitement during circle time 💬 Try a Chat Bag for turn-taking, contingent...

4 months ago

4 minutes

The Misfit Behaviorists - Practical Strategies for Special Education and ABA Professionals

Ep. 62: How to Run Social Skills Groups in Schools and Clinics

Running social skills groups can be tricky—especially when you’re balancing different student needs, group sizes, and settings. In this episode, we unpack how to structure and differentiate social skills groups for learners at every level—whether you’re in a school, clinic, or classroom. From dyads to full-blown community outings, we’re breaking down what works (and what really doesn’t). 👥 Whether you're supporting early learners or advanced social thinkers, you'll walk away with practical s...

4 months ago

25 minutes

The Misfit Behaviorists - Practical Strategies for Special Education and ABA Professionals

Misfit Minute #8: Redirection Without Power Struggles — Gentle, Positive Behavior Strategies

In this quick episode, Caitlin shares how to redirect student behavior without power struggles, using subtle, positive phrasing that preserves dignity and prevents escalation. Learn how to guide students clearly—without ever saying “No!” 💡 Key Takeaways 🔄 Redirection doesn’t need to be confrontational 💬 Use clear, positive language to say what to do instead 🧠 Build habits with consistent, gentle phrasing 🤝 Preserve student dignity and avoid resistance ✨ Try phrases like “Use a calm voice” or...

5 months ago

1 minute