Welcome Parents, Grandparents and Caregivers!

My name is Annie Goyal, and I am so excited to be your guide through this journey. I will be sharing lots of articles, information about upcoming events, and on the several strategies available to you. But, the most important thought I want to share with you is THIS/my motto:

 YOU CAN DO IT.

I want you to always remember this and give yourself a pat on the back for all that you have done and continue to do.

 To start, let me tell you about myself. I am a Behavior Specialist, which means that I am certified by the Board of Behavior Analysis to serve as a Behavior Specialist, also known as a BCBA. I have spent over two decades serving children with special needs which included consulting for school districts as well as supervising home sessions for children from ages 18 months old to 17 years old.

I began serving children with special needs in India and worked for street and working children in the slums of New Delhi. As a social worker and a school counselor, I was able to wean off hundreds of these children off the streets and mainstream these first generation learners into public schools in the area. While doing this, I discovered I was passionate about serving children by understanding their needs and challenges and providing them with solutions that worked for them. I was inspired by the resilience of these young minds and their desires to rise above their difficult circumstances. Where others saw difficult behaviors ,obstacles or challenges , I saw hidden potential , opportunities and manageable solutions.

I was intrigued by why children behaved the way they did and what they gained by doing so, what could be a practical yet positive alternative to their behaviors to lead towards progress  for the child and happiness for the families I served. I was able to serve children both within classrooms in schools and at their homes. It was at this time that I discovered Applied Behavior Analysis and it was as if a dream had materialized for me! I completed two years certification in Applied Behavior Analysis through Florida Institute of Technology and was certified by the Board of Behavior Analysis.

Subsequently, I provided consultation to LAUSD and several charter schools, serving hundreds of children with special needs, with conditions such as Angelman’s Syndrome, Down’s Syndrome, Autism, Aspergers Syndrome, Learning and Speech Impairments, Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder and the like. I trained many paraprofessionals and developed a curriculum for imparting the knowledge of ABA interventions to parents.

I love to travel and get to know different cultures and my background in Child Development and Social Work allows me to connect with professionals and parents from various ethnicities and geographic areas. In my pursuit to reach out to more families I regularly organize presentations at local libraries and parent support groups. Having served in so many schools and so many homes, I decided it was time to reach out to many more parents by publishing and launching AG Autism Care to serve more and more families and bring positive solutions right to them.

This blog is also an attempt in the same direction. In my many years of serving families with children with special needs I have come to see closely how overwhelming this can be on a daily basis. As a professional who has the know- how of how daily routines can be simplified for parents, I feel strongly obliged to share it with all the parents of my clients. I have taught parents how to manage their child’s non compliance and lower the stress they experience 24/7.  As a part of the training I impart to parents, I have shown parents how they can predict when challenging behaviors are most likely to occur and what to do when they do occur. I derive happiness from doing this and would not trade the satisfaction I feel by doing so with anything in this world. I feel blessed that I am able to and I want to continue to do all this and much more!

Throughout this blog, there are many topics I will discuss: you can find a list below. If there is something in particular you would like me to write about, or if you feel strongly towards a certain topic, feel free to leave a comment with your idea and I will get back to you! I look forward to hearing from all of you.

• What is Applied Behavior Analysis
• Positive strategies for parents and caregivers
• Jackpot-Positive Reinforcement
• Visual Structures and Routines
• Tooth Brushing- Does It Have To Be a Nightmare?
• Self Management for my Teen
• Homework Help
• Behavior Contracting
• Token Economy
• Parents as Active Partners in Fostering Social Skills 
• ADHD-Is medication my only resort?
• Applications of Applied Behavior Analysis
• ABA sessions at home: What to expect?