Studying for the BCBA exam can feel overwhelming—but what if you could approach it with more confidence, better strategies, and a deeper understanding of the science instead of simply trying to memorize everything?

On this episode of the ABA MOM Podcast, hosts Allie Langan, BCBA, and Erica Mendes, RBT sit down with Nick Ostosh, MA, BCBA, founder of Understanding Behavior, to talk all things BCBA exam prep. Nick shares his journey in behavior analysis, his passion for teaching, and what he has learned from helping future BCBAs prepare for one of the biggest tests of their careers. Whether you're currently studying for the BCBA exam, working toward certification, supervising future BCBAs, or just love talking about the science of behavior analysis, you won't want to miss this conversation. 💬 QUESTION FOR YOU: If you're studying for the BCBA exam right now, what topic gives you the MOST trouble? Drop it in the comments! 👇 👨‍🏫 Learn more about Nick Ostosh & Understanding Behavior: https://understandingbehavior.shop/pages/meet-the-team 🎧 Subscribe to ABA MOM for conversations about ABA, becoming a BCBA, parenting, clinical practice, and the real-life side of behavior analysis. 👍 Like this episode 💬 Comment your toughest BCBA exam topic 📲 Share it with a future BCBA 🔔 Subscribe so you don't miss the next episode! #BCBA #BCBAExam #BCBAExamPrep #BCBATestPrep #BehaviorAnalysis #ABA #AppliedBehaviorAnalysis #FutureBCBA #BCBAStudent #BCBAStudy #BCBACandidate #ABACommunity #BehaviorAnalyst #ABAMOM #BCBAStudyTips

Social skills don’t stop being important when childhood ends. In this episode of the ABA MOM Podcast, Allie Langan, BCBA, talks about how we can adapt social-skills teaching to better support teenagers and adults in ways that are practical, age-appropriate, and meaningful to their everyday lives.

We explore what social skills can look like beyond traditional childhood goals—including navigating conversations, building friendships, handling disagreements, participating in group activities, advocating for yourself, and developing greater independence in the community.

In this episode, we discuss:

✨ Modifying social activities so they are age-appropriate ✨ Moving beyond traditional “play skills” for teens and adults ✨ Conversation and cooperative communication skills ✨ Waiting, turn-taking, and flexibility ✨ Self-advocacy and communicating wants and needs ✨ Practicing social skills during real-life activities ✨ Community participation and independence ✨ Choosing goals that are meaningful to the individual ✨ Using interests and preferred activities to make social learning more natural

The goal isn’t to make someone appear more “typical.” It’s to help individuals develop communication, self-advocacy, relationships, and independence in ways that improve their quality of life.

Whether you’re a parent, caregiver, RBT, BCBA, educator, or support professional, this episode offers practical ideas you can use when supporting teens and adults.

💬 Join the conversation: What social or independence skill do you think is most important for teens and adults to learn?

👍 Like this episode if you found it helpful 💬 Leave us a comment 🔔 Subscribe to the ABA MOM Podcast for more conversations about ABA, parenting, advocacy, and real-life support.

#ABAMOM #ABA #AppliedBehaviorAnalysis #SocialSkills #Autism #AutismSupport #BCBA #RBT #TeensWithAutism #AdultsWithAutism #LifeSkills #IndependentLiving #SelfAdvocacy #SpecialNeedsParenting

🎙️ ABA MOM Podcast: Accountability & Problem Solving

In this episode of ABA MOM, we’re talking about what accountability really looks like—and why it shouldn’t be confused with blame, shame, or forced apologies.

Accountability is a skill. Just like communication, coping, and social skills, it may need to be taught, practiced, reinforced, and generalized.

We break down how to help children, clients, and even adults learn to recognize:

• What happened?
• What was the problem?
• What was my part in it?
• What can I do to repair the situation?
• What could I try differently next time?

We also discuss why problem solving shouldn’t only happen in the middle of a difficult moment, how role-playing can build flexible thinking, why “I don’t know” may actually mean a learner needs more support, and how reinforcing honesty can make accountability more likely in the future.

In this episode, we cover:

✨ Accountability vs. blame ✨ Teaching problem-solving skills ✨ Using choices, modeling, and role play ✨ Repairing mistakes instead of staying stuck in them ✨ Why forced apologies may miss the point ✨ Reinforcing honesty and accountability ✨ Teaching flexible responses instead of simple compliance ✨ How parents, teachers, RBTs, and BCBAs can model accountability too ✨ A simple five-question framework you can start using right away

One of the biggest takeaways:

Making a mistake isn’t the problem. The skill is learning what to do after the mistake happens.

Accountability isn’t about proving who was wrong. It’s about helping someone recognize what happened, understand their role, repair what they can, and move toward a better solution next time.

If this episode was helpful, share it with a parent, caregiver, teacher, RBT, BCBA, or anyone else who could use the reminder that accountability is something we teach—not something we shame someone into.

🎧 Subscribe to ABA MOM for more conversations about ABA, parenting, behavior, and what these concepts actually look like in everyday life.

#ABAMOM #ABA #AppliedBehaviorAnalysis #ParentTraining #RBT #BCBA #BehaviorAnalysis #ProblemSolving #Accountability #Parenting #AutismSupport #BehaviorSupport #SocialSkills #LifeSkills