Supporting Social Learning Challenges through Group Therapy & Exposure
Ages 5 through Grade 5
group THERAPY FOR NEURODIVERSE CHILDREN IN THE BALTIMORE AREA
Your child may be having difficulty experiencing success and confidence on an academic level due to interfering behaviors.
Or their learning may be impacted due to executive functioning difficulties.
They may be experiencing some level of isolation and/or loneliness due to internalization of behaviors and lack of awareness of certain higher level social norms.
After getting a referral from an individual therapist, school counselor, or psychologist following psychoeducational testing and feedback, you’re looking for your child to start group therapy.
Your child wants to feel seen, heard and understood. They want someone who can relate to them, see their strengths through the struggle and unconditionally support them (especially on their worst days).
They want someone who is interested in what they are interested in, who doesn’t talk at them but talks with them. They want to meet others that are like them so they do not feel like “the only one.” They want to connect authentically and feel appreciated for who they are.
Our Approach
We place an emphasis on providing content and exposure to the children in our groups through hands-on and arts-based activities that appeal to their strengths.
We consider our work to be client-centered. We lesson plan for the group of children we have enrolled in our groups as opposed to curriculum driven (placing children in a group and going through a curriculum).
That being said, we pull from evidence-based methodology and programs such as Michelle Garcia Winner’s Social Thinking, MindUp, Zones of Regulation, and Story Grammar Marker. Our primary goal for our groups is to help your child/teen meet their social goals.
Although our groups are commonly referred to as "social skills groups," the scope of our work within groups reaches far beyond that of just social skills and social behavior.
While we inherently work on social competencies, such as social norms and expectations (since they are essential to creating a cohesive group therapy environment), our groups include work on: coping strategies, perspective taking, problem solving, fixed vs. growth mindset, teambuilding, and therapeutic recreation.
We encourage the use of movement, games, art, building, journaling, drama, and technology to engage our groups in creative processes and to enhance participation through hands-on learning. Our mission in group therapy is to target treatment goals by calling upon the use of our participants' strengths, whenever possible.
Group Therapy Details
Duration
Each group session is 45 minutes long. We create our group calendars based on an entire academic year, as all of our groups are open enrollment, meaning there is no fixed start or stop date.
Within this calendar are "breaks" which typically coincide with school breaks; for example, winter break or spring break. We require a six-week commitment up front; however, most of our clients participate in group therapy for much longer.
Ready to Get Started?
Maybe you are interested in services for your child or maybe you just want to stay connected with us for yourself! We'd love to connect with you and better understand how we can support your journey as a parent.