Writing Meaningful AND Measurable Communication Goals for Autistic Learners

LIVE COURSE AVAILABLE FOR ASHA CEUS · FOR SPEECH-LANGUAGE PATHOLOGISTS

.1 ASHA CEUs · Introductory Level

Presenter: Nicole Casey, M.S., CCC-SLP
Date: Wednesday, November 11, 2026
Time: 12:30 PM – 1:30 PM EST
Location: 3300 Henry Ave, Philadelphia, PA 19129
Cost: $0 (Small Talk internal Staff event)

Register Here

ABOUT THIS COURSE

Writing Meaningful AND Measurable Communication Goals for Autistic Learners

“80% accuracy across three consecutive sessions.” Most of us can write that goal in our sleep, and most of us have felt the uneasy moment when a child meets it and nothing about their communication actually looks different. This session is for clinicians who want goals that hold up to data and still mean something to the child and the people who love them.

We’ll look at why traditional percent-accuracy goals so often miss real communication growth for autistic learners, and what to write instead. You’ll learn how to choose targets from what the child is already doing across every mode (speech, AAC, gestures, gestalts, and more), how to build rubric-based goals that measure growth in independence and meaning, and how to score progress from naturally occurring, child-led interactions. You’ll leave with goals that are fully measurable, defensible in your documentation, and recognizable to families.

LEARNING OUTCOMES

Participants Will Be Able To:

  • Identify at least two limitations of percent-accuracy goals for measuring communication growth in autistic learners.

  • Describe how to select meaningful communication targets based on a learner’s current communication across multiple modes.

  • Compare a percent-accuracy goal and a rubric- based goal written for the same communication skill.

  • Demonstrate how to score progress on a rubric-based goal using data gathered during naturally occurring, child-led interactions.

INTENDED AUDIENCE & LEVEL

Who Should Attend

This course is designed for speech-language pathologists on the Small Talk team (internal staff event). Course content is presented at an Introductory instructional level.

COURSE OUTLINE

Time-Ordered Agenda

Time

12:35 – 12:45 PM

12:45 – 12:55 PM

1:10 – 1:22 PM

Topic

12:30 – 12:35 PM

12:55 – 1:10 PM

1:22 – 1:30 PM

Welcome, speaker introduction, and financial and nonfinancial disclosures

Limitations of percent-accuracy goals for measuring communication growth in autistic learners

Selecting meaningful communication targets based on a learner’s current communication across multiple modes

Comparing percent-accuracy goals and rubric-based goals written for the same communication skill, with case examples

Scoring progress on rubric-based goals using data from naturally occurring, child-led interactions

Summary, questions and answers, and next steps

YOUR PRESENTER

Nicole Casey, M.S., CCC-SLP

Nicole Casey, M.S., CCC-SLP, is a speech-language pathologist with 12 years supporting autistic children and the professionals who work with them. She is the founder of The Child-Led SLP, where she teaches child-led, neuroaffirming practice through The Child-Led Collective, the Let Them Lead podcast, and the annual Child- Led Autism Summit, which reached more than 25,000 clinicians.

Financial Disclosures

  • Nicole Poncia SLP LLC (The Child-Led SLP) — Owner and founder. Ownership interest; revenue from courses, trainings, and digital resources, including Rubric Reset and Goals Week, which teach rubric-based goal writing.

  • The Child-Led Collective — Owner. Ownership interest; membership revenue (membership includes goal-writing content and resources).

  • Aligned Practice — Owner and developer. Ownership interest; subscription revenue from a goal-writing, data, and progress-report app for clinicians.

  • Child-Led Therapy Center — Owner (sale in progress). Ownership interest; income from clinical services and monthly payments from the sale of the practice.

Non-Financial Disclosures

  • American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA) — Member; holds the Certificate of Clinical Competence (CCC-SLP).

  • Let Them Lead podcast — Host; produces educational content on child-led, neurodiversity-affirming practice with autistic children.

  • The Child-Led SLP (social media and email education) — Professional advocacy; creates and shares content promoting neurodiversity-affirming communication practices.

SATISFACTORY COMPLETION

Course Completion Requirements

To be eligible to receive .1 ASHA CEUs, participants must:

  • Sign in and out on the official attendance record

  • Attend the entire 1-hour session in full

Partial Credit: ASHA CEUs are awarded only for full attendance of the 1-hour session. Partial credit is not available for late arrival, early departure, or incomplete attendance.

No processing fee applies to submit for ASHA CEUs.

Policies

  • Requests for accommodations should be directed to education@clubsmalltalk.com at least two weeks prior to the course date.

  • Small Talk Therapeutics reserves the right to cancel or reschedule the course due to low enrollment or unforeseen circumstances; registered participants will be notified and fully refunded. Participants who cancel less than 7 days before the course are not eligible for a refund but may transfer registration to another individual.

  • Full refunds are available for cancellations made at least 7 days before the course. No refunds will be issued within 7 days of the course date.

  • Complaints regarding course content or administration may be submitted in writing to education@clubsmalltalk.com and will be addressed within 10 business days.