The Effects of the Big 6 + 6 Skills Training on Daily Living Skills for an Adolescent With Intellectual Disability

One teen with intellectual disability practiced six hand and six foot movements every day. The team counted how fast the moves were done and how many were correct.

After two weeks of drills, they tested real-life tasks the teen had never practiced. They timed buttoning a shirt, tying shoes, and putting toothpaste on a brush.

The teen’s finger and foot speeds jumped by 30 to 50 percent. Errors in the drills dropped to almost zero.

On the new daily-living tasks, the teen finished 20 to 40 percent faster and made fewer mistakes. The gains stayed one month later.

Yakubova et al. (2021) also helped an adolescent master daily tasks, but they used home-made videos instead of speed drills. Both studies ended with quicker, cleaner skills, showing two roads to the same goal.

Mulder et al. (2020) worked with older students with ID for two full school years. Their long view adds weight to Vascelli’s short burst: even brief motor timing can slot into bigger self-care plans.

Gureasko-Moore et al. (2006) used a similar single-case design with ADHD teens. The pattern is the same—track, teach, test—no matter the label.

You can add five-minute Big 6 + 6 timing sheets to any session. No extra toys, just a clipboard and a timer. If a teen’s fingers move faster on drills, everyday tasks like dressing or cooking can also speed up without direct teaching.