Transition Survival 103: Must-Have Social Skills for Adolescents/Adults - Part 1

For teaching the everyday conversations involved in school, work, and community life, Michele LaMarche and Christine Austin's recorded Part 1 examines social communication for adolescents and adults with autism. They connect assessment and teaching methods with concrete skills such as greetings, asking for help, joining conversations, and responding to suggestions.

Presenter biographies: Michele LaMarche, Christine Austin.

MANDATORY DISCLAIMER: The Behavior Analyst Certification Board (“BACB”) does not sponsor, approve, or endorse Special Learning, the materials, information, or sessions identified herein.

The presenters compare structured teaching with natural environment and incidental teaching, then discuss picture stories, social stories, and structured learning. They examine instruction, modeling, roleplay, feedback, reinforcement, and practice beyond the teaching session.

The skill catalog moves from facial expression, voice, and timing to greetings, introductions, conversation turns, and asking for help. The closing discussion brings conversation skills together through TGIF: Timing, Greeting, Initial questions, and Follow-up questions.

What does this recording cover?

• The presenters compare discrete trial teaching, natural environment teaching, and incidental teaching for social communication.
• Structured learning combines instruction, modeling, roleplay, feedback, and practice across environments.
• The skill catalog examines conversation openings and endings, turn taking, introductions, and asking for help.
• The closing discussion introduces TGIF: Timing, Greeting, Initial questions, and Follow-up questions.

Recording context: Recorded June 21, 2012, this foundational session uses older diagnostic terminology and social rules, including eye-contact targets.

Three selected learner comments

The six-item evaluation mean was 4.28/5 across 37 complete responses, from 267 recorded rating responses. This mean includes only complete six-score responses. Source: Special Learning's course evaluation records, snapshot October 11, 2026.

Three selected anonymous responses appear below, with the wording and spelling retained. They describe learners' experiences and requests; they are not a guarantee of results or a claim that these comments represent every learner.

loved it! I am happy to find content that relates to adults with DD, ASD, FASD.

Course evaluation response, 2023

The questions felt beneficial, not as if you were trying to trick me.

Course evaluation response, 2023

Update content - I wasn't aware how dated some of this content was when purchasing this product. This is a disappointment and I will not recommend it to peers, or I will warn them to look at date of recording before purchasing this content

Course evaluation response, 2023

Explore related recorded discussions

• Transition Survival 103-B: Advanced Social Skills for Adolescent and Adults - Part 2
• Transition Survival 101- How and When to Create a Transition Plan
• View this course's purchase and access details