Social Groups

Group Times:

During the school year groups are after school.

Groupings:

Children are grouped based on age but most importantly based on their social/emotional needs. Groups are designed so that each children can engage with each other and make connections. 

​Group Size:

Groups contain 4-6 kids and 2-3 RBTs or SLPs/SLPAs. 

Prerequisites: 

• The child must be able to mand for (request) at least 100 items and at least 25 actions from familiar and novel adults. 
• The child must be able to follow 1-2 step novel directions from familiar and novel adults. Example: "Throw it away and come sit down." "Clean up and wash your hands."
  
• The child must be able to exhibit 3-4 play schemes with at least 5 activities. 
  
• The child must be able to learn novel social/pragmatic skills in a 2:1 ratio
  

**Children who do not meet these prerequisites can still access social skills instruction in either a 1:1 or dyad setting. Please contact our offices for more information. 

Description of Social Groups: 

Confidence Connection uses basic principles of Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) to targets social skills by making social interactions with peers FUN and reinforcing positive social behavior. When being around other peers is exciting children begins to learns that social interaction is valuable. 

At Confidence Connection children not only learn beginning social skills, but those ready to also learn how to analyze why someone is saying hello in the first place, multiple responses s/he could use, and how to choose the most appropriate response based upon the person's non-verbal cues and inference of the message. In this sense, our children learn to communicate more naturally and with more inherent understanding. Below are some of the goals and objectives targeted at Confidence Connection: 

Basic Learner Skills: 
                
                 Greetings
                 Initiating conversation
                 Topic maintenance
                 Turn-taking
                 Following directions
                 Structured play
                 Pretend play
                 Accepting “no” and waiting
                 Transitioning to activities
                 
Identification of Feelings:
                 Labeling emotions based upon facial expressions, tone of voice, and body  posture
                 Responding appropriately to “Why?” questions in regard to feelings they are experiencing

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Coping Skills:
                 
                 Recognizing signs of stress/anxiety in themselves and others
                 Learning 5 coping skills to draw upon in times of stress
                 Learning to better regulate his/her sensory systems
                 Increasing knowledge of problem solving skills
                 
General Socialization & Communication:
                 
                 Initiating, monitoring, maintaining, and disengaging from conversations
                 Joining conversations or joining games already in progress
                 Spontaneous greetings to adults and peers
                 Using a combination of questions and comments when interacting with peers and adults
                 Cooperation, compromise, and negotiation with peers and adults
                 Describing events and Story Telling
                 Maintaining a peer's attention
                 
Non-Verbal Cues:
                 Identifying non-verbal cues based on tone of voice, facial expressions, body language, and posture
                 Recognizing emotions of both peers and adults
                 Maintaining eye contact for an appropriate length of time
                 Using and recognizing body language