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Before the Talking Happens - Strategies for Increasing Nonverbal Engagement

CE Hours 1

About this course

Many webinars and training for Selective Mutism focus on strategies to increase speaking in the classroom and other social settings. Especially when a child is in school and not yet verbal, there can be a steady stream of questions asked to the child, resulting in either no response or a nonverbal response (nodding, pointing). Even when adults are asking the child well-formed questions or using effective prompts for speech, the child may not yet be able to respond. At times, having the ability to do a proper fade in to facilitate speech may not be possible for a variety of reasons. Thus educators, school psychologists, counselors, speech/language pathologists and others may be perplexed in terms of how to engage the child in the most effective way. In this webinar, Dr Busman will specifically talk about ways to increase nonverbal interaction without negatively reinforcing that the child is not yet talking. She will offer the attendee very specific strategies and tips that can increase the child’s participation. Dr Busman will also discuss how to use shaping strategies to promote child engagement.

Learning Objectives

  • Describe 2 skills to help build comfort for a child with SM.
  • State how to prompt for a nonverbal response without reinforcing non speaking.
  • Describe the process for shaping sounds to words.

Learning Levels

  • Intermediate

Target Audience

This educational activity is intended for treating professionals, psychologists, social workers, counselors, educators, school psychologists, and speech/language pathologists. Caregivers are also welcome! .

Course Instructor(s)

  • Rachel Busman, PsyD, ABPP

    Rachel Busman, PsyD, is a clinical psychologist specializing in the evaluation and treatment of anxiety and mood disorders in children and adolescents. She is the Senior Director of the Child & Adolescent Anxiety & Related Disorders Program at Cognitive Behavioral Consultants (CBC), where she runs Voices Rising, an intensive group based program for children with SM. Prior to joining CBC, she ran Brave Buddies, an internationally recognized SM program at the Child Mind Institute. She has extensive experience providing cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) to children, teenagers, and young adults struggling with psychiatric disorders, school difficulties, and behavioral problems. Dr. Busman is certified in Parent Child Interaction Therapy for SM (PCIT-SM) and is an interagency trainer. She is the past president of the SMA and continues to actively serve on the board.

Disclosure

DISCLOSURE OF RELEVANT FINANCIAL RELATIONSHIPS CE Learning Systems adheres to the ACCME’s Standards for Integrity and Independence in Accredited Continuing Medical Education. Any individuals in a position to control the content of a CE activity ― including faculty, planners, reviewers, or others ― are required to disclose all relevant financial relationships with ineligible entities (formerly known as commercial interests). All relevant conflicts of interest have been mitigated prior to the commencement of the activity. The following relevant financial relationships have been disclosed by this activity’s planners, faculty, and the reviewer: PLANNERS AND REVIEWER The planners of this activity have reported that they have no relevant financial relationships. FACULTY The faculty of this activity have reported that they have no relevant financial relationships.

References

  • Bergman RL, Gonzalez A, Piacentini J, Keller ML. Integrated Behavior Therapy for Selective Mutism: A Randomized Controlled Pilot Study. Behavior Research and Therapy. 51(10), 680- 689 (2013).
  • Carpenter AL, Puliafico AC, Kurtz SM, Pincus DB, Comer JS. Extending parent-child interaction therapy for early childhood internalizing problems: new advances for an overlooked population. Clin Child Fam Psychol Rev. 2014 Dec;17(4):340-56.
  • Catchpole R, Young A, Baer S, Salih T. Examining a novel, parent child interaction therapy-informed, behavioral treatment of selective mutism. J Anxiety Disord. 2019 Aug;66:
  • Kotrba, A, & Saffer, S.J. (2018). Overcoming Selective Mutism: A Parent’s Fieldguide. Summit & Crest
  • Oerbeck, B., Stein, M. B., Pripp, A. H., & Kristensen, H. (2015). Selective mutism: follow-up study 1 year after end of treatment. European Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, 24(7), 757-766.
  • Ruiz, C.E., Klein, E.R., & Chesney, L.R. (2022). ECHO: A vocal language program for easing anxiety in conversation. Plural Publishing.

CE Process Info

Content

  • Materials
    1 parts
    • Webinar Recording
  • Joint Accreditation

    Joint Accreditation (JA)

    In support of improving patient care, CE Learning Systems is jointly accredited by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME), the Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education (ACPE), and the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC), to provide continuing education for the healthcare team.

  • American Psychological Association (APA)

    Continuing Education (CE) credits for psychologists are provided through the co-sponsorship of the American Psychological Association (APA) Office of Continuing Education in Psychology (CEP). The APA CEP office maintains responsibility for the content of the programs.

  • New York Education Department's State Board for Social Work (NYEDSW)

    CE Learning Systems, LLC  (d/b/a impactce.com) is recognized by the New York State Education Department's State Board for Social Work as an approved provider of continuing education for licensed social workers. #0060.

  • New York Education Department Board of Creative Arts Therapy (NYSEDCAT)

    CE Learning Systems, LLC  (d/b/a impactce.com) is recognized by the New York State Education Department's State Board of Creative Arts Therapy as an approved provider of continuing education for licensed creative arts therapists. #CAT-0008

  • New York Education Department for Licensed Mental Health Counselors (NYSEDLMHC)

    CE Learning Systems, LLC  (d/b/a impactce.com) is recognized by the New York State Education Department's State Board for Mental Health Practitioners as an approved provider of continuing education for licensed mental health counselors. #MHC-0072.

  • New York Education Department Board for Licensed Psychoanalysts (NYSEDLP)

    CE Learning Systems, LLC  (d/b/a impactce.com) is recognized by the New York State Education Department's State Board for Psychoanalysts as an approved provider of continuing education for licensed psychoanalysts. #P-0031.

  • New York State Education Department's State Board for Psychology (NYEDPSY)

    CE Learning Systems, LLC  (d/b/a impactce.com) is recognized by the New York State Education Department's State Board for Psychology as an approved provider of continuing education for licensed psychologists. #PSY-0016.

  • New York Education Department's State Board for Marriage and Family Therapy (NYEDMFT)

    CE Learning Systems, LLC  (d/b/a impactce.com) is recognized by the New York State Education Department's State Board for Marriage and Family Therapy as an approved provider of continuing education for licensed marriage and family therapists. #MFT-0045.

Before the Talking Happens - Strategies for Increasing Nonverbal Engagement
You Have Completed This course
$20
You are enrolled
  • CE Hours
    1
  • Type
    Self-Paced
  • Publication Date
    Aug 27th, 2026

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