The Tree House International

We are pleased to share that our Director, Dr Anton James, has been featured in the Sri Lankan media following his election as a Fellow of the Psychological Society of Ireland.

Professional psychological bodies elect distinguished psychologists as Fellows in recognition of their superior psychological knowledge and sustained contributions to the advancement of psychological knowledge and practice.

Dr Anton is the first Sri Lankan to be elected a Fellow of the Psychological Society of Ireland. Two years ago, he was also elected a Fellow of the British Psychological Society, making him the first Sri Lankan to be elected as a Fellow of both professional bodies.

We also take this opportunity to recognise the many Sri Lankan psychologists working tirelessly across mental health, education, disability, research, and other areas of psychology. We hope recognitions such as these contribute to the growing international visibility of Sri Lankan psychologists and the important work they continue to do.

Read the newspaper article here:

https://bizenglish.adaderana.lk/dr-anton-james-first-sri-lankan-fellow-of-the-psychological-society-of-ireland/

🧩 Is your child struggling to learn PECS?

Have you been teaching PECS but feel your child is making little progress?

Many people immediately begin by teaching "I want..."

But is that where PECS begins?

According to the PECS Protocol, the first step is not teaching "I want..."

PECS begins with a preference assessment.

Do you know how to conduct a preference assessment? Which type of preference assessment is best suited to the child you are working with?

Learn the science behind evidence-based communication intervention from an IBAO Subject Matter Expert in Behaviour Therapy through our IBAO Pre-Approved Behaviour Therapist Training.

📍 Register today:
https://www.thetreehouseinternational.com/btt-training

📱 Questions? WhatsApp Desiree on +94 71 400 4153

🎉 Good News for Teachers, Educators and Shadow Teachers!

We are offering LKR 30,000 OFF our upcoming IBAO Pre-Approved Behaviour Therapist Training.

This is your opportunity to learn the science behind teaching new skills, understanding behaviour, and reducing challenging behaviours through evidence-based behavioural science, taught by a Subject Matter Expert in Behaviour Therapy.

Offer conditions:

•⁠ ⁠Only for new registrations
•⁠ ⁠Available only to teachers, educators and shadow teachers
•⁠ ⁠Offer valid for registrations made on 19 August 2026 only

Develop your understanding of behavioural science and begin your journey towards becoming a certified Behaviour Therapist.

📅 Course starts: 19 September 2026

📍 To register, visit:
https://www.thetreehouseinternational.com/btt-training

📱 For enquiries, WhatsApp Desiree:
+94 71 400 4153

The Tree House International

🧸 Could you be accidentally reinforcing the wrong type of interaction?

Imagine this.

You are playing with a child to teach interaction and joint attention.

The child repeatedly grabs your hands...

Makes funny faces to get your attention...

Or keeps saying "Mum... Mum... Mum..." over and over again.

It may look like interaction.

But is it the type of interaction you want to strengthen?

Behavioural science tells us that not every social behaviour should be reinforced simply because it involves interaction.

Understanding why the child is interacting is just as important as how they are interacting.

Do you know the difference?

Learn the science behind behaviour from an IBAO Subject Matter Expert in Behaviour Therapy through our IBAO Pre Approved Behaviour Therapist Training.

📍 Register today:
https://www.thetreehouseinternational.com/btt-training

📱 Questions? WhatsApp Desiree on +94 71 400 4153.

📱 You say "No"... but the grandparents give your child the phone.

Sounds familiar?

Before long, your child stops asking you and goes straight to the grandparents.

Coincidence?

Behavioural science says no.

This is known as the Matching Law, one of the fundamental principles of behavioural science.

Do you know why this happens and how to address it?

Learn the science behind behaviour from an IBAO Subject Matter Expert in Behaviour Therapy through our IBAO Pre Approved Behaviour Therapist Training.

📍 Register today:
https://www.thetreehouseinternational.com/btt-training

📱 Questions? WhatsApp Desiree on +94 71 400 4153.

📱 Has your child's crying and nagging become worse after you refused to give them your phone?

Imagine this.

Your child cries and nags because they want your phone.

You decide that you are no longer going to give them your phone when they become upset.

But instead of improving...

The crying becomes louder.

The nagging becomes more persistent.

Your child tries even harder to get the phone.

Did you make the behaviour worse?

Not necessarily.

When a behaviour that was previously reinforced no longer produces the desired outcome, it may temporarily become more intense, more frequent, or last longer before it starts to decrease.

This is known as an extinction burst, a well-established principle in behavioural science.

Understanding what to expect can help you remain consistent and avoid accidentally strengthening the behaviour.

Learn the science behind behaviour from an IBAO Subject Matter Expert in Behaviour Therapy through our IBAO Pre-Approved Behaviour Therapist Training.

📍 Register today:
https://www.thetreehouseinternational.com/btt-training

📱 Questions? WhatsApp Desiree on +94 71 400 4153.

🎉 Good News for Parents and Siblings of Children with Special Needs!

We are offering LKR 30,000 OFF our upcoming IBAO Pre Approved Behaviour Therapist Training.

This is your opportunity to learn the science behind teaching new skills, understanding behaviour, and reducing challenging behaviours through evidence based behavioural science, taught by a Subject Matter Expert in Behaviour Therapy.

Offer conditions:
•⁠ ⁠Only for new registrations
•⁠ ⁠Available only to parents or siblings of a child with special needs
•⁠ ⁠Registration must be completed on 12 August 2026

Take the first step towards understanding behavioural science and begin your journey towards becoming a certified Behaviour Therapist.

📅 Course starts: 19 September 2026

📍 To register, visit:
https://www.thetreehouseinternational.com/btt-training

📱 For enquiries, WhatsApp Desiree:
+94 71 400 4153

🧠 Do you really have to teach everything separately?

Example

Imagine you teach a child:

🟢 The spoken word "ball" refers to a real ball.

🟢 A picture represents a real ball.

Now ask yourself...

Do you also have to teach that the spoken word "ball" refers to the picture of the ball?

Not always.

When concepts are taught in the right way, the brain can sometimes learn new relationships without direct teaching.

This is called Stimulus Equivalence, one of the most fascinating principles in behavioural science.

Learn how concepts such as symmetry, transitivity, and equivalence can help children acquire new learning more efficiently.

This is one of the many additional behavioural science concepts discussed during our IBAO Pre-Approved Behaviour Therapist Training.

📍 Register today:
https://www.thetreehouseinternational.com/btt-training

📱 Questions? WhatsApp Desiree on +94 71 400 4153

🚨 What if removing a child from the classroom is actually making the behaviour worse?

Imagine this.

A child shouts, throws objects, or refuses to participate in class.

The teacher asks the child to leave the classroom, or the Shadow Teacher takes the child out so that the lesson can continue without disrupting the other students.

The classroom becomes calm again.

Problem solved?

Not necessarily.

Now ask yourself this question.

What if the child wanted to leave the classroom in the first place?

Behavioural science tells us that behaviour is often communication.

If the child's behaviour was an attempt to escape a difficult or overwhelming lesson, and the consequence was being removed from the classroom, the behaviour has achieved its goal.

As a result, the child may be more likely to use the same behaviour again in the future.

This is called negative reinforcement, one of the most important principles in behavioural science.

The most important question is not:

"How do I stop this behaviour?"

It is:

"Why is this behaviour happening?"

Understanding the function of behaviour changes everything. Instead of reacting to behaviour, you learn to understand it and teach more appropriate ways for the child to communicate their needs.

This is just one of the many evidence-based principles taught in our IBAO Pre-Approved Behaviour Therapist Training, delivered by an IBAO Subject Matter Expert in Behaviour Therapy.

Whether you are a Shadow Teacher, teacher, parent, psychologist, therapist, or support worker, this programme will change the way you understand behaviour.

📍 Register today:
https://www.thetreehouseinternational.com/btt-training

📱 Questions? WhatsApp Desiree on +94 71 400 4153.

The Tree House International