AREAS OF INSTRUCTION We teach social competence through the use of: role-playing and modeling, direct instruction, discussion, dramatic play, comic strips, contrived situations, in-vivo situations, literature, video reviews, pictures & maps/graphic organizers, carry-over activities for home/school, utilizing strength areas and self-monitoring strategies.
The goals for a particular group are determined according to individual needs as well as general areas of need for all students with perspective taking challenges and/or difficulty with executing social skills in context. Student profiles are developed through a meet & greet appointment (interview & history form) ongoing observation of students and communication with family and other care-givers. Our program addresses the following areas:
Conversation- introduction, maintenance (turn-taking, topic saliency ~ saying enough/not saying too much), repair, topic switching, closing and purpose of conversation based on relational levels and context. Lessons and practice are included for use and comprehension of indirect questions, figurative langauge, when to "think it, not say it" and active listening.
Physical Setting - using the setting, event, activity or scene to determine appropriate conversational and interactional elements.
Relationships - between speaker and listener, knowledge and experience base of the listener, understanding levels of closeness between people and social roles.
Non-Verbal Communication - tone of voice, gestures, posture & orientation, movement, facial expressions and physical distance between communication partners.
Perspective Taking/Social Thinking Participation in our program develops Theory of Mind with emphasis on the following core areas:
Knowing- personal experience, common knowledge, social memory and social history.
Preferences - learning to infer others' preferences andhow this helps predict others' behaviors.
Thinking- learning how to think and then respond well in situations and conversations, learning about judgements, fact versus opinion and increasing flexibility of thought ~ critical thinking skills for predicting and understanding cause/effect relationships.
Beliefs- understanding that different people have varying beliefs based on their experiences and that they are neither true or false.
Intentions-learning about how to read the intentions of others and to respond appropriately. Making smart guesses, reading hidden social rules based on setting, roles, gender, past history and current/future circumstances. Recognizing and using age appropriate figurative langauge.
Problem Solving - we offer a cognitive - behavioral approach to awareness of self & others, self-advocacy, assertiveness skills, organizational skills (prioritizing, planning, chunking), adaptive vs. self-defeating beliefs, cognitive coping & relaxation skills. Practice in inferencing, understanding part/whole relationships and how they apply to real life interactions and the printed word.
Social Skills Relatively stable rules for keeping behavior "expected". Making smart guesses, reading hidden social rules based on setting, roles, gender, past history and current/future circumstances. Recognizing and using age appropriate figurative langauge.
joining and leaving a group
asking for help ~ assertion
how and when to apologize
how to recognize and accept an apology
friendly vs hurtful teasing
active / whole body listening
giving and accepting compliments
how to disagree in expected ways
keeping cool enough during heated moments
accepting a "no" / negotiation
tone of voice
dealing with the opposite gender
safety concerns ~ how to respond (or not) to a bully
Emotions We facilitate the student's recognition of and response to basic and complex emotions, why those emotions are felt and how they are expressed verbally and through body posture and facial expression. Our programs help students identify the thought processes underlying emotions and teach strategies to achieve emotional regulation. In a program based on social cognitive growth, drawing a cause and effect relationship between thoughts, actions and emotions is a core focus. This involves understanding the relationship between these three phenomenon in ourselves and between ourselves and others. Lessons explore Big vs Little problems, degrees of emotion vis a vis circumstances, and many other areas.
Individualized programs/behavior/sensory needs and community services >>>> Social Strides can assist parents and caregivers to develop Individual Education Plan goals and objectives together with their child's school. Depending on the child's level of development, we focus on specific goal areas or relevant prerequisite skills. Our therapists understand how to work with students who have behavioral and sensory motor/input differences. We collaborate with professonals in the field of autism and applied behavioral analysis to address compliance and motivation in therapy sessions. Help is available to families seeking assistance with managing peer-dates and behavior in other settings. In response to a need in the community, we also offer hour long workshops for regular education students and your child's classmates on the nature of neurodiversity which include suggestions for understanding and interacting positively with included peers with these types of challenges. Speaking dates and fees are arranged on a case by case basis .... please contact us to discuss your needs.