Using stimulus equivalence‐based instruction to teach young children their caregivers' contact information

LaFond et al. (2021) taught preschoolers to say and match their caregiver’s phone number and name.

They used stimulus equivalence-based instruction: match-to-sample games, dictation, and quick tests.

Kids practiced until they could say the info aloud and pick it from new pictures or voices.

After training, every child could state the phone number and name without prompts.

The skills stayed strong two weeks later and worked with a new adult and with spoken questions.

Hewett et al. (2024) tried the same logic with autistic kids. Tact training alone helped only one child say the new words; adding multiple-exemplar instruction worked for the rest.

Fahmie et al. (2013) got similar spill-over with adults who have intellectual disabilities: match-to-sample created untaught spelling and listing.

Tavassoli et al. (2012) showed that a short warm-up with echoic or tact prompts cuts later intraverbal teaching time. Together, the four studies say: equivalence sets can spring-board new verbal skills, but some learners need extra exemplars or prompt priming first.

You can teach safety facts like phone numbers through quick matching games instead of rote drill.

If a child masters the matching but can’t say the info aloud, add multiple exemplars or brief prompt warm-ups before more trials.

Try the protocol in preschools, daycare centers, or early-elementary classrooms to give kids a voice if they get lost.