Social Skills Groups Spring 2023

We offer several evidence-based social skills groups for children and youth at Launch Behavioural Services. All groups are offered in-person at our clinic located at 250 Carlaw Ave, Unit 102, Toronto, ON. 

Facing Your Fears (Ages 7-14)

March 28th, 2023 – June 27th, 2023 | Tuesdays from 5:00pm – 6:30 pm

14-week group program, in-person at our clinic in Leslieville, Toronto. An intake assessment is required.

Fee is $1500 and may be covered by your extended health care benefits or Ontario Autism Program (OAP) funding.

Facing Your Fears (FYF) is a group intervention program for children and youth with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) or anxiety who need assistance managing anxiety symptoms that interfere with daily life. FYF uses a cognitive-behavioural therapy (CBT) approach for the reduction of anxiety symptoms and management of worries and phobias.

Why is this useful?

  • FYF addresses specific fears and worries that interfere with daily life at home and school
  • Regular parent involvement for part of each session ensures progress and support for participants
  • Teaches children important skills for managing fears and worries

Who can participate?

Children and youth ages 7-14 and their caregivers can participate in FYF. Children should have intellectual functioning within the average range, read at a Grade 2 level, and have an anxiety or ASD diagnosis.

An intake interview will be scheduled prior to the program to ensure suitability of participants and to review expectations. 

PEERS® Youth Social Skills Group (ages 13-17)

March 29th, 2023 – June 28th, 2023

Wednesdays from 5:00pm - 6:30pm

14-week group program, in-person at our clinic in Leslieville, Toronto.

An intake assessment is required. Fee is $1200 and may be covered by your extended health care benefits or Ontario Autism Program (OAP) funding.

We also offer social skills groups based on the PEERS®(Program for the Education and Enrichment of Relational Skills) Curriculum (Laugeson, 2014) for adolescents. PEERS® is an evidence-based friendship training program for middle school and high school students who are diagnosed with ASD or related disabilities and have primarily difficulties with making and keeping friends. During weekly sessions, skills are taught in a small-group lesson format with opportunities to practice with the peers in the group.

An eligibility assessment, including an interview with your teen, will be conducted in order to determine if your teen meets the pre-requisite criteria to join the social skills group. This assessment is essential to identify if your child displays the prerequisite skills to learn within a group setting. Your child should also display motivation to learn the skills for making and keeping friends.

The sessions will be conducted in a small group format with 1 lead instructor and 1 assistant instructor. 

The goals of the program include:

  • Trading information
  • Conversational skills
  • Electronic communication
  • Choosing appropriate friends
  • Appropriate use of humor
  • Peer entry and exit strategies
  • Get-togethers
  • Good sportsmanship
  • Handling teasing, bullying, and bad reputation
  • Handling arguments and disagreements
  • Handling rumours and gossip

What we offer:

  • One 90-minute sessions weekly, for 14 weeks
  • 60-minute parent meetings via Zoom
  • Curriculum based learning plan
  • Opportunities to connect and interact with all youth within the program
  • Supervision from a BCBA, BCBA-D

Commitment from parents:

  • Attendance at parent group meetings
  • Participation in homework or parent training opportunities
  • Provide coaching in socialization opportunities during the week
  • Ongoing communication about challenges, concerns or progress

Contact Us to Register or to Learn More

Launch Behavioural Health

Delivering evidence-based services that build skills for children and youth, including those with Autism Spectrum Disorder and other neurodevelopmental disabilities, to thrive at home, school, and in their community.

250 Carlaw Ave., Unit 102

Toronto, ON

M4M 3L1

 

Clinic Hours

Monday – Friday

8am – 5pm