The Verbal Behavior Milestones Assessment and Placement Program

The Verbal Behavior Milestones Assessment and Placement Program: VB-MAPP How to Complete the Assessment Meredith Geier, M. S. BCBA Steven Celmer, M. A. BCBA

How to – Milestones Assessment With each protocol, there is room for 4 separate assessments 1 1 Scoring for each milestone is either 0, ½, or 1 3 When all of the milestones in a skill are scored, the total goes here ½ ½ 0 Page 6 For each skill, there are 5 separate Milestones

How to – Milestones Assessment Step 1: Make sure that you locate the correct skill to color in Step 3: Fill in the boxes For a score of 1, fill in theof For a score ½, entire fill inbox to the dotted line Page 4 Step 2: Remember that the numbers go from 1 -5 starting at the bottom If you assessed the entire skill section, and the score was 0, then fill in the bubble at the bottom to indicate that you assessed that skill, but the student was not able to perform any of the Milestones

How to – Echoic Subtest (EESA) Write in an. Instructions “X” for � General all of theis points The purpose of this. Count subtest to each response X X / evaluate the where all sounds student’s are correct ability to repeat a speech model. for each group and write in the score here an “/” if the ◦ Ask. Write the instudent to say the item (say “hop”). Omit X’s count as 1 point response is recognizable, the word “say” if the student repeats it /’s count as ½ point but has incorrect or missing Leave the boxes blank consonants, or extra if there is no response, syllables an incorrect vowel, or Give up to three trials, scoring the deleted syllables ◦ It 4. 5 best response, if looks at articulation, prosody, intonation, the initial response is inaccurate or absent. and various syllable combinations to ensure that the student can easily be understood Page 24

Say that a student screams How to - Barriers Assessment on a daily basis, and it � General lasts for at least 10 minutes each time – we would write in a “ 3” here Instructions 3 For this section, typically ◦ For each section, read through the criteria, starting when a new worksheet or from 0 activity is given the student ◦ Select the criteria daily behavior Page 25 usually covers his eyes for 3 seconds and then begins working – so we that best fitswould thewrite student’s in a score of 1 1 typical,

How to - Barriers Assessment Color in the boxes in the appropriate column according to the score given Each assessment has its own column Page 5 Continue to do this for each of the sections

Say that our student How to – Transition Assessment typically will tact everything � This in the classroom and mand for items, but rarely emits intraverbals – we would give him a score of 3 assessment usually uses the same 3 format as the Barriers Assessment ◦ Simply read through each of we thehave criteria starting For this section, to first add the scores from the from 1 independent play sections of ◦ Select the criteria bestassessment fits the student’s typical, thethat Milestones (in all three levels) – and then daily behavior � Some use this to determine the appropriate score here 2 scores are taken from other parts of the So, if the sum of the VB-MAPP assessment scores equals 7, then we would in a in 2 ◦ Simply add up the specified numbers andwrite here the appropriate score according to that sum Page 31

How to – Transition Assessment Page 30 Completion of the sections here is done in exactly the same manner as on the Barriers Scoring Form

How to – Task Analysis � Note The Task composed of that Analysis the Task is Analysis is NOT part of the intermediate skillsassessment that support the regular VB-MAPP process acquisition of the Milestones Since we’ve mastered the first Milestone in the Mand section, we’ll write a check here. Rather, once the assessment process has � been Thesecompleted skills are not prerequisites andnecessarily goals for the student These three tasks Then wemay find the goals be considered as for a been Milestone, or need to be worked onitin have selected, for our student, here possible objectives is the 2 for milestone in the exact order they are presented. ◦ This can be usedthat as a guide forourcurriculum reaching milestone the Mand section nd goal and for selecting objectives to special meet ◦ development Each student is different and each presents IEP goalsabilities that may make a single skill more learning important or easier to learn than another Then we look at the tasks under this section Page 38 The first thing that we want to do is and to check theones that fill in the Milestones Scoring form and transfer the ourmastered student can do Milestones to this form

How to – Task Analysis Similar to the Milestones scoring form, simply color in the boxes with the corresponding color from the last assessment Page 35

Tips � Before you sit down with your student, make sure to do a “pre-scoring” ◦ Walk yourself through each of the milestones, and write in any scores that you are sure the student can or can’t do ◦ Make a note by those milestones that you are unsure about so that you can go back and physically test those later Hint

More tips… � When completing the assessment, especially for the first few times, keep the guide available to reference ◦ This helps in knowing what a ½-point score is on the milestones assessment ◦ This is also particularly helpful when scoring the Barriers and Transition assessments because it provides more background for the criteria in each section Hint