Rehabilitation
At Home Rehabilitation Exercises
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41- Deductive Reasoning
This game can be played with household objects as described below. It is available in stores as MasterMind ®, or on the internet at: http://www.industrious.com/mastermind/jburke_mastermind.html. )
LEVEL 1 - Select 3 small objects of varying color (buttons, candy, etc.) and show them to the student. Have available colored pencils or crayons that match the color of the objects. Out of sight of the student select two of the objects and place them in your closed hand. Ask the student to figure out the color of the objects in your hand. Give immediate feedback about whether the student has selected the correct colors. If the student has not made the correct choice, provide specific feedback (for example, “Blue is correct, green is not correct.”). Ask for another selection by the student. Assist him or her with the reasoning involved if necessary. Repeat this until the student is able to generate a correct response within two turns consistently.
LEVEL 2 - Proceed as in Level 1, but provide less specific feedback if the student is in error. Say only that one of the colors selected is correct, but do not indicate which color. The student must then make a second selection of two colors (by necessity, substituting one of the two colors in the first selection). Provide feedback again and allow a third selection if necessary. Review the reasoning involved with the student and play again. Repeat the game until the student can consistently generate a correct response within three selections.
LEVEL III - Same as Level II, but using objects of four colors. Out of sight of the student place two objects in your closed hand and ask the student to guess the colors. This becomes much more challenging and many selections may be required. Begin with general feedback but proceed to specific feedback (indicating that a particular color is correct) if the student is becoming frustrated.
LEVEL IV - Same as Level III, but instruct the student that you might be holding objects of a different color or the same color in your hand.
LEVEL V - Same as Level IV, except that you place 3 objects in your closed hand and the student must select three colors each time. Because this process may become lengthy, it is a good idea to keep track of the students selections by making marks with colored pencils or crayons corresponding to the colors of the 4 objects you are using. Ask the student to make colored marks corresponding to his or her color selections each time. Each row of marks can represent a different turn. Next to each row write down the response received (for example, “Two correct.”). Assist the student with reviewing previous responses so that selections are made in a logical fashion.
Taken from Tasks for Home-Based Cognitive Stimulation Program, the Traumatic Brain Injury Model System at the University of Alabama at Birmingham, Dept. of P M & R, Birmingham, AL. © 1998-2003 University of Alabama at Birmingham