62 Janice K. Lee, Jaclyn Joseph, Phillip Strain and Glen Dunlap
Effective models for social inclusion
Multiple effective models that promote the social inclusion of young children
with ASD exist. In this section, three of these models (i.e., Learning Experiences
and Alternative Program for Preschools and Their Parents [LEAP]; Project DATA
[Developmentally Appropriate Treatment for Autism]; Walden Early Childhood
Program) with research support are discussed. Although a comprehensive discussion
of these three models is outside the scope of this section, resources are provided for
additional information.
Learning Experiences and Alternative Program for Preschoolers
and Their Parents (LEAP)
The LEAP preschool model is designed to teach children with ASD social, com-
munication, cognitive, and pre-academic skills. Typically developing peers play a
key role in the targeted social experiences of a LEAP classroom and receive com-
prehensive training in facilitating social and communication skills with children
with ASD in order to capitalize on the natural social opportunities that exist in an
inclusive setting. The goal in a LEAP classroom is for a child with ASD to have a
minimum of 100 natural and planned social interactions each school day with peers
and adults. Although instruction in LEAP programs is organized with the assistance
of established curricula (e.g., Dodge, Colker and Heroman, 2002; McCord, 1995),
objectives for children with ASD are individualized and data are collected to mon-
itor progress towards those objectives. LEAP also includes a Family Skill Training
component that teaches families the strategies to teach their children new skills and
manage challenging behaviors in home settings.
A LEAP classroom typically includes 3-4 preschool-aged children with ASD
with 8–10 typically developing preschool-aged peers. A co-teaching arrange-
ment with an early childhood teacher and an early childhood special education
teacher is recommended, although a variety of teaching arrangements exist in
replication sites. A minimum of three adults must be present in LEAP classrooms.
Typically, the third adult is a speech and language specialist, occupational thera-
pist, or classroom assistant. The LEAP staff share instructional responsibilities in
a planned and purposeful way on a daily basis, using a transdisciplinary model
of service delivery. This allows all staff members to interact with the children in
similar ways to promote the generalization of skills and capitalize on the max-
imum number of learning opportunities available throughout the school day.
LEAP preschools typically have morning and afternoon sessions for three hours
each, five days per week.
Parents and caregivers of children with ASD are also included in this
transdisciplinary team and deliver instruction at home and throughout the com-
munity. Family skill training begins with nine modules of behavioral teaching strat-
egies and continues with families participating in intervention throughout the day