Manding Beyond Basic Wants: Teaching Locations and Directions

Thoughts on these statements:

Manding is important.

Duh.

Manding is a fundamental skill in communication development—especially for kiddos with autism and other verbal delays.

Please, you’re insulting my intelligence.

Manding helps kiddos express their desires and—in doing so—empowers them with a sense of agency.

Preach! But, I already pretty much know this. I’m a BCBA.

Ok. So why do we teach functional communication for attention from a therapist, access to toys or edibles, and maybe a mand for esape…and then stop teaching mands?

Hmmm.

Think about it this way: how stressed would you be if you couldn't communicate your wants and needs? The ability to effectively communicate reduces stress levels and enhances overall quality of life. So, it's essential to expand manding skills beyond just basic requests.

We know this.

But too often, I see BCBAs start by teaching manding for access to preferred items or activities with success…but without proceeding toward any kind of iteration once that communication is mastered.

We don’t simply want to give the learner communication to access a preferred item or activity. We also want to give them more language. And we want to give them more control of their environment. We do that by teaching them to mand for the context in which they experience that reinforcer.

You see, if a reinforcer is powerful enough, its reinforcing nature permeates into the people, places, things, and time spaces that are paired with it.

It’s why your mom won’t get rid of the Teddy bear you slept with when you were a kid—you are her reinforcer, but the bear is heavily paired with you. For her, it symbolizes your youness (as it were).

It’s why Fridays are so reinforcing to us. The weekend is the reinforcer, but Friday is heavily associated with the weekend and means the weekend is on its way.

So, once our kiddos have nailed down manding for those preferred items and activities, we need to teach mands for the context related to those things—the people, places, things, and spaces in time (given that they are, in fact, reinforcing).

One area that tends to be overlooked is manding for locations where the reinforcer is accessed and enjoyed.

Teaching children to request specific places or directions opens up a whole new realm of possibilities. For instance, in a therapy center, a child might be reinforced by watching movies or by playing on a jungle gym.

However, what if both of you were at an entirely different part of the center and your learner wanted to access the jungle gym or the television?

By teaching manding for a location, we empower children to express where they want to go, beyond just requesting specific activities. For example, instead of simply asking for the jungle gym, they can request to go to the playroom where the jungle gym is located. This not only expands their communication skills but also exposes them to a variety of reinforcing stimuli available in different locations.

Moreover, teaching directions adds another layer of complexity to manding. Asking a child which way they want to go or prompting them to point towards their desired destination gives them more control over their immediate environment and the context in which they access the reinforcer. This increased sense of agency can significantly enhance their quality of life.

For example, as you progress toward the movie room or the jungle gym, you might stop and ask them a question or prompt a mand on where they want to go or which direction they want to take to get there.

“Do you want to go through the kitchen or down this hallway?”

‘Do you want to go to the bathroom? Or do you want the movie room?”

This method also helps kiddos understand the concept of “space”. They can grasp the concept of places like the kitchen, living room, playroom, and movie room more easily. I particularly like to prompt a mand in doorways as it provides a clear stimulus between one location starting and the other ending.

As children develop fluency in manding for locations, we can further expand their repertoire for self advocacy regarding preferred contexts. This level of communication sophistication not only facilitates social interactions but also promotes a great deal of independence and autonomy.

If you found this topic intriguing and want to learn more, feel free to leave a comment below. I'm always eager to engage in discussions and share insights. Check out BxMastery.com for 4,000+ target ideas for $2.50/month. All are SEQUENCED, with ideas on where to start (pre-requisite/component skills) and where to go next (composite skills). And the database is growing each day.

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Thank you for reading, and until next time, keep empowering those around you through effective communication!

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Martin Myers is a BCBA with a passion for helping improve the field of ABA. He is the creator of BxMastery, with over 4,000 goal ideas, sequenced, to inspire your programming. With 10+ years of experience in the field, he’s dedicated to empowering others and fostering positive change through effective leadership and communication. Connect with Martin on LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok for more insights and updates.