Tanya trained her processing skills using several different exercises with the timer and metronome. She was resistant to do these, as she didn’t want to do poorly or ‘look dumb.’  An important first goal became to develop her growth mindset and to get Tanya to the point where she was not only willingly putting in effort, but also seeing progress in her performance. This was difficult, because her lack of effort often fed her inability to progress, and her lack of progress only discouraged her from trying.

A chart was used to visually track Tanya’s progress and she was flooded with positive reinforcement. She had a customized reward system where she received glitter pens and notebooks for exerting full and genuine effort. This reward system later tied in to her doing chores at home. A session plan also was created for each day that detailed all that was expected of her, so she can follow along and stay focused in sessions.

Tanya also was taught techniques and strategies for memory. Learning trials were set up so that she realized the utility of these, as she often would abandon what was taught to use an ineffective technique such as rote-memory or something of her own.

Visualization technique was heavily practiced. Specifically, we did customized tasks that involved providing descriptions, and making drawings that appealed to the senses. She also learned adjectives and other language to support visualization.