In-Home Session Flow

A flow guide for RBT / BT implementation · BCBA-supervised · scales to any session length

A compass, not a checklist
This guide is here to orient you, not to grade you. Sessions vary with the learner, so the structure below describes a typical flow rather than a required order. If your session isn't matching the timeline, treat that as information about what the client needs right now. Use the phases to find your footing, and let your clinical judgment and the client's treatment and behavior plans take the lead. When you're unsure how to proceed, returning to pairing is a sound default.
Your session
Session length:

Select your session length and the windows below rescale. Minute ranges are approximate — elapsed time from the start of the session, not deadlines.

Open Pairing Work cycle Ease off Repair Handoff

Band width reflects roughly how much of a session each phase tends to occupy. The work cycle is the bulk, with pairing and rapport repair at either end. These are general tendencies, not targets.

The flow
Session open
Pre-session pairing AO / CMO?Pairing can act as a motivating operation — momentarily lowering the value of attention or escape, so behavior maintained by them is less likely. Michael, J. (1993). Establishing operations. The Behavior Analyst, 16, 191–206; Michael, J. (2007). Motivating operations. In Cooper, Heron, & Heward (Eds.), Applied Behavior Analysis (2nd ed.).
Pair before you teach. Get close with no demands · offer preferred items · mirror affect · give non-contingent praise · imitate and expand their play · run an informal preference assessment. Move on when the client is engaged with you, and keep at least one reinforcer identified at all times.
  • Proximity — move close, no demands
  • Initiation — offer preferred items / activities without requiring responses
  • Reflection — echo vocalizations, mirror affect
  • Praise — warm, non-contingent reinforcer delivery
  • Imitation — follow the client's play actions
  • Expansion — add fun new variations within their play theme
  • Informal preference assessment — notice what they approach, reach for, or request; what holds engagement longest; watch for satiation; keep updating your reinforcer list?Brief, low-effort preference sampling in the moment. Roane, H. S., Vollmer, T. R., Ringdahl, J. E., & Marcus, B. A. (1998). Evaluation of a brief stimulus preference assessment. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 31, 605–620.
  • Natural-environment opportunity: preference sampling surfaces manding chances — follow the client's lead to functional communication as it arises

Paired reinforcer delivery establishes the instructor as a conditioned reinforcer?The core rationale for pairing: "The main purpose of this procedure is to establish the instructor as a form of conditioned reinforcement for the child." Sundberg, M. L., & Partington, J. W. (1998). Teaching Language to Children with Autism or Other Developmental Disabilities. Pleasant Hill, CA: Behavior Analysts, Inc. and may abolish the value of attention- or escape-maintained behavior.?Pre-session reinforcer delivery can counterbalance the aversiveness of demands and reduce escape-maintained behavior. Lomas, J. E., Fisher, W. W., & Kelley, M. E. (2010). The effects of variable-time delivery of food items and praise on problem behavior reinforced by escape. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 43, 425–435. Easing into preferred, high-probability activities also tends to increase later compliance.?High-probability request sequences and pre-session reinforcement raise compliance with later, harder demands. Pitts, L., & Dymond, S. (2012). Increasing compliance of children with autism. Research in Autism Spectrum Disorders, 6, 135–143.

Move on when the client is engaged with you — approaching, relaxed, choosing to interact — rather than at a set time. Pairing is the foundation the rest of the session rests on, and you can return to it any time engagement drops off.
Reinforcer on hand — all session long
Teaching depends on reinforcement. Before any demand — planned or incidental — know what you'll reinforce with. Keep at least one active, non-satiated reinforcer identified at all times. When a preferred item loses its value, identify the next one before continuing.
If challenging behavior occurs — follow the BIP
The client's behavior intervention plan always comes first. In general terms: stay calm, redirect to an appropriate alternative and reinforce it, and if needed use a brief high-probability or maintenance demand to rebuild momentum, then reinforce.?Behavioral momentum: a run of easy, reinforced responses increases persistence and compliance on harder demands that follow. Mace, F. C., et al. (1988). Behavioral momentum in the treatment of noncompliance. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 21, 123–141. Guide the learner back using the least intrusive, most reinforcing approach available. Document anything notable or outside the client's typical baseline for the BCBA.
Mid-session work cycle — alternate DTT and reinforcement/NET; repeat as the session allows
DTT block
  • Reinforcer identified before you start — no exceptions
  • Begin when conditions are right: reinforcer identified, no satiation, client engaged
  • A short run of trials per block; calibrate to the program's demand and the client's engagement
  • Between trials: brief praise and a quick, genuine bit of social play (a high five, a shared smile)?A brisk pace of instruction tends to reduce off-task behavior and raise participation. Carnine, D. W. (1976). Effects of two teacher presentation rates on off-task behavior, answering correctly, and participation. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 9, 199–206.
  • Close the block with genuine praise, the client's choice of reinforcer, and warm social engagement on their terms

Rotate program difficulty to keep correct-response rates high; lean on maintenance targets in lower-engagement moments to hold momentum.?Interspersing easy/mastered tasks among harder ones supports responding and reduces problem behavior during instruction. Neef, N. A., Iwata, B. A., & Page, T. J. (1980). The effects of interspersal training versus high-density reinforcement on spelling acquisition and retention. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 13, 153–158.

Reinforcement + NET
  • Full reinforcer access — stay present and engaged with the client at the start of every reinforcement interval, continuing to pair yourself with reinforcement
  • Mid-interval (not at the start): add a word or two to the note — activity, target worked, brief behavior note; keep it to seconds
  • Identify your next reinforcer before this interval ends
  • Embed incidental targets in free play: mands, labels, expansions in context
  • Preference assessment never stops — watch what they choose, how long it holds, what they abandon; revise in real time
  • NET surfaces functional-communication moments — a want, a need for help, or a wish to escape is an opportunity to teach a communicative response
  • Fold into the home: target adaptive skills in situ (requesting at snack, labeling during routines)

Reinforcement time isn't a break from the client. Keep documentation brief and mid-interval, rather than pulling away just as reinforcement is delivered.

DTT block (repeat)
  • Same structure — a new program, or continued mastery / maintenance targets
  • Confirm the reinforcer is still motivating before you start
Reinforcement + NET (repeat)
  • Same structure — stay engaged at the start, document mid-interval
  • Watch for satiation; switch reinforcers the moment engagement drops
↻ Repeat the DTT and reinforcement/NET cycle. Dashed cards indicate later iterations. The number and frequency of blocks depend on the client and the session.
Late session
Easing off
  • Reduce trial density and demand complexity
  • Maintenance and fluent targets only
  • Raise the reinforcement-to-demand ratio?Richer reinforcement in a demand context can reduce escape-maintained behavior while maintaining responding. Ingvarsson, E. T., Hanley, G. P., & Welter, K. M. (2009). Treatment of escape-maintained behavior with positive reinforcement. Education & Treatment of Children, 32, 371–401.
  • No new acquisition programs
Rapport repair
  • Fully demand-free interaction
  • Child-led play only — follow their lead completely
  • Non-contingent attention and reinforcer delivery
  • Re-pair yourself with positive affect and preferred activities

A session shouldn't end with a demand as the client's last experience. Rapport — the quality of the relationship — is itself a setting event for how the next session goes.?Quality of rapport functions as a setting event for problem behavior; building and repairing it has measurable effects. McLaughlin, D., & Carr, E. G. (2005). Quality of rapport as a setting event for problem behavior. Journal of Positive Behavior Interventions, 7, 68–91.

Family handoff + note
  • Let the family know the session is wrapping up
  • Verbal debrief: share at least one specific success — what the client engaged with most, a moment of strong connection, or a new or improved response. Small wins still count.
  • If something notable or difficult happened, name it briefly and let the family know it will be shared with the BCBA — don't minimize genuine concerns or leave them wondering
  • If a caregiver did something helpful during the session, point it out specifically and encourage more of it
  • Transition the client to the caregiver — don't disengage abruptly
  • Write the note in-home while keeping peripheral awareness of the client; note-writing and active supervision don't mix, so the handoff is what makes the note accurate
  • Obtain caregiver signature; ask if there are any questions or concerns before you go
  • Record caregiver-reported information as collateral data; flag questions for the supervising BCBA

Finish the note same-session, before you leave the home.

Helpful hints — start where the client is

If the session isn't following the flow above, that's normal — and it's often when this guide is most useful. There's no single right place to be. Notice what's true right now and let it guide your next step. None of these states is "behind" or "ahead." Reading the client and responding to where they are is a clinical skill, and it grows with experience.

The client is with you and motivatedrelaxed, approaching, engaged in preferred activities
This is a good window for demands. With a reinforcer already on hand:
  • Start a DTT block, or embed a target in the play you're already in
  • Begin while engagement is high
  • Keep it short and end on a strong, reinforced response
You can't get any tractionclient won't engage with demands, drifting, refusing
Pushing harder when engagement is low usually backfires. Step back and rebuild the connection.
  • Return to pairing: proximity, no demands, follow their lead
  • Run an informal preference assessment to find what's reinforcing today
  • Join what the client is already doing before placing any demands
  • Re-establish yourself as a reinforcer first; demands come after
Behavior is happeningaggression, elopement, unsafe play, escalation
Follow the behavior plan first — it takes precedence over this guide. In general terms:
  • Stay calm and keep everyone safe
  • Redirect to an appropriate alternative and reinforce it
  • A brief high-probability or maintenance demand can rebuild momentum — then reinforce
  • Document anything notable or outside baseline for the BCBA
The client is fading or getting overloadedtired, irritable, demands turning aversive
Ease off before things escalate. Lowering the intensity isn't the same as stopping.
  • Maintenance and fluent targets only — nothing new
  • Raise the reinforcement-to-demand ratio
  • More pairing, and follow the client's lead
  • Prioritize the client's regulation and your relationship for these minutes
You're near the endwinding down, time's almost up
Close out with intention.
  • Rapport repair: demand-free, child-led play; re-pair yourself with preferred activities
  • Try not to end on a demand
  • Handoff and note: share one specific success with the family, flag anything for the BCBA, and finish the note in-home
You're not sure where to startjust arrived, feeling unsure how to begin
That's okay — there's always a safe first step.
  • Start with pairing; it's never the wrong choice
  • Notice what the client gravitates toward — that's your preference assessment
  • Get one reinforcer working, then look for a small opening
  • You don't need the whole plan at once — just the next good step
References & further reading
  1. Carnine, D. W. (1976). Effects of two teacher presentation rates on off-task behavior, answering correctly, and participation. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 9, 199–206.
  2. Ingvarsson, E. T., Hanley, G. P., & Welter, K. M. (2009). Treatment of escape-maintained behavior with positive reinforcement: The role of reinforcement contingency and density. Education & Treatment of Children, 32, 371–401.
  3. Kelly, A. N., Axe, J. B., Allen, R. F., & Maguire, R. W. (2015). Effects of presession pairing on the challenging behavior and academic responding of children with autism. Behavioral Interventions, 30, 135–156. (Presession pairing reduced challenging behavior across all three participants and modestly increased accurate academic responding — the source study behind this guide.)
  4. Lomas, J. E., Fisher, W. W., & Kelley, M. E. (2010). The effects of variable-time delivery of food items and praise on problem behavior reinforced by escape. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 43, 425–435.
  5. Mace, F. C., Hock, M. L., Lalli, J. S., West, B. J., Belfiore, P., Pinter, E., & Brown, D. K. (1988). Behavioral momentum in the treatment of noncompliance. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 21, 123–141.
  6. McLaughlin, D., & Carr, E. G. (2005). Quality of rapport as a setting event for problem behavior: Assessment and intervention. Journal of Positive Behavior Interventions, 7, 68–91.
  7. Michael, J. (1993). Establishing operations. The Behavior Analyst, 16, 191–206.
  8. Michael, J. (2007). Motivating operations. In J. O. Cooper, T. E. Heron, & W. L. Heward (Eds.), Applied Behavior Analysis (2nd ed., pp. 374–391). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Merrill/Prentice Hall.
  9. Neef, N. A., Iwata, B. A., & Page, T. J. (1980). The effects of interspersal training versus high-density reinforcement on spelling acquisition and retention. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 13, 153–158.
  10. Pitts, L., & Dymond, S. (2012). Increasing compliance of children with autism: Effects of programmed reinforcement for high-probability requests and varied inter-instruction intervals. Research in Autism Spectrum Disorders, 6, 135–143.
  11. Roane, H. S., Vollmer, T. R., Ringdahl, J. E., & Marcus, B. A. (1998). Evaluation of a brief stimulus preference assessment. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 31, 605–620.
  12. Sundberg, M. L., & Partington, J. W. (1998). Teaching Language to Children with Autism or Other Developmental Disabilities. Pleasant Hill, CA: Behavior Analysts, Inc.
This guide is a general orientation tool for supervised RBT/BT implementation. It is not individualized clinical advice and does not replace a client's treatment plan, behavior intervention plan, or BCBA supervision. When the plan and this guide disagree, follow the plan.  ·  All tools