MORE ABOUT OUR TOPICS:

• JANUARY 11, 7PM (live) - Introductory Parent Session. This session will be recorded and the link distributed for those who cannot attend the live session.

• JANUARY 20/21 - Social Attention: Learning to Read Social Cues. Social attention is when we “attend to others”.  It allows us to infer the mental states of others and then respond in a context-appropriate manner.  This includes identifying and understanding non-verbal language (in simple terms like comfortable and uncomfortable).  Reading social cues is essential in any group setting.  In this session, we will discuss and practice how to understand (and give) social cues as we highlight that this starts with paying attention to the people around us!

• FEBRUARY 17/18 - Understanding the Group Plan: Becoming a Social Detective! Talking about discovering what the group plan is helps children know what is expected (how to think, act, and participate).  We can become “social detectives” and “read the room” to look for clues to understand what’s expected from us.  We can also learn to gauge if we are following the group plan (or our “own plan”) and how it’s impacting others by using our social attention skills (Jan) to determine if others are comfortable or uncomfortable. From this, we also learn that we have the power to change our actions so that we can contribute more successfully to be a part of the group plan.

• MARCH 16/17 - Social Problem Solving: How Can I Get Unstuck? We all get stuck and that's okay! By first establishing social attention (Jan) and understanding the group plan (Feb), we are able to then teach and support children to: 1) Identify what the problem is; 2) Think about solutions; 3) Think about what will happen if I do this and how the other child will feel if I do this?; and 4) Try the solution. 5) Sometimes, it doesn’t work and we are still STUCK.  In this final step, we will dig deeper in understanding when/how to ask for help. We will focus on the concepts of the size of the problem as well as flexible thinking.

• APRIL 27/28 - Self Regulation: How to Listen to My Body. Practicing the skill of listening to our body helps kids build on their capacity to be mindful, self-regulate, and develop emotional resilience so that they can get better at showing care and kindness for themselves, especially when they experience strong emotions. The first step is to actually learn what “listening to our body” means and the second step to develop a “sensations” vocabulary so that they can express what they are experiencing. This session will focus on tools for knowing when and how to take a break.

• MAY 18/19 - SPRING HIKE (location TBA) Believing in Me: Building Self-Confidence and Honoring Differences. There is plenty of research that shows us there is a strong  relationship between self-esteem/self-confidence and our social skills success. Children with low self-esteem feel no empowerment; they feel that no matter what they do, they can’t make a difference. If good things happen to children with low self-esteem, they believe it was a fluke. When bad things happen to them, they think it was bad luck or someone else’s fault. This stems from so many environmental contributions of teaching children they are “not enough”.  I could write a book on how much this fast-paced world is negatively impacting our children’s sense of themselves, particularly those who struggle with social skills!  On our hike, we will practice affirming reminders that difference is what makes life beautiful and each of us matters, just as we are.

These groups are limited in size and they fill up VERY quickly so please take this into consideration when you register!
***Cancellations must be done within 7 DAYS for you to move the deposit to another program. By registering for this program, you agree to these terms. Thank you for your understanding!