8 Saturdays Starting in February
(as soon as there are enough participants to form a group) running through April.
Saturday afternoons (Starting on the hour between 1-4pm) , 60 minutes in length
Cost: $70 per group session
Group Therapist: Chelsey Brooks, Licensed Professional Counselor & Licensed School Counselor
Initial Assessment with parent and child and one parent consultation will be included to provide feedback on your child’s progress - each is 30 min
Optional parent group - 5 weeks, one weeknight (pending interested individuals’ schedules)
~Parent group will be on Emotional Coaching and how to support your child through their social world
Cost: $70 per group session
Group Therapist: Chelsey Brooks, Licensed Professional Counselor & Licensed School Counselor
Initial Assessment with parent and child and one parent consultation will be included to provide feedback on your child’s progress - each is 30 min
Optional parent group - 5 weeks, one weeknight (pending interested individuals’ schedules)
~Parent group will be on Emotional Coaching and how to support your child through their social world
Why Teach Social Skills?
We navigate our worlds through our social relationships. We need to communicate effectively to get through our day, get our needs met and to be a part of a social community. For some children, learning social skills does not happen naturally. These children may struggle in social settings, have difficulty making and keeping friends, present to others as “annoying” or “disrespectful,” have low self-confidence and low self-esteem and not seem to know how to hold a conversation. They may dread school, extra-curricular activities, unstructured play time i.e. recess or birthday parties and may choose to play alone. Often children who struggle with social skills will isolate, rather than face the frustration and rejection of trying to join a group when they just don’t know how. Most children do want to have friends; they want to be able to participate in their social world and they want to feel the acceptance of their peers. Just one solid friendship can make a world of difference for a child’s feelings of self-worth. Having poor social skills and lacking relationships with peers has been linked to difficulties later in life as well.
Why the Group Setting is the Ideal Learning Environment:
Children are in group settings in school and in most extracurricular activities. This is a natural and familiar learning environment for them. Groups provide learning and practice opportunities in a safe and comfortable environment. It is in the role plays, conversations with group members and in the moment coaching by the group therapist that children can put their sills to use and gain the confidence to try them in their everyday lives.
Learning Objectives for the Social Skills Group:
Each session will build on the last, which is why attending all sessions is so important!
Session 1: Introductions – how to introduce myself to someone new, what/how to share my interests and how to respond to another child who introduces themselves to me, setting group rules and expectations and building a trusting “team”
Session 2: Body Language Basics, verbal versus nonverbal behavior, eye contact, posture and how to read subtle cues
Session 3: Communication and Social pragmatics – how to start or join a conversation, what to say when…, why we use different tones, volumes and words when we speak to a teacher or adult versus when speaking to a friend, showing interest, how to
Session 4: Building Self-Confidence and Self-Esteem – helping one another practice the skills and set an attainable goal for trying out a new behavior outside of group
Session 5: Focusing on Self-Awareness – what messages am I sending? What behaviors do I exhibit that might be contributing to my social road blocks?
Session 6: Dealing with Peers – how to handle teasing, bullying and rejection, how to advocate for myself, when to seek the help of an adult and how to make myself less vulnerable
Session 7: Conflict Resolution: Managing my emotions, stress and frustration when things aren’t going my way, learning how to go with the flow, letting go of past hurts and grudges, accepting imperfections and adapting to changes
Session 8: Skills Review- what we have learned, how have we practiced and setting future goals to continue learning. What have we learned from the relationships we have built in group and how can we use these new skills with new or existing friends, supporting and encouraging one another to continue to practice their skills and saying goodbye
Learning social skills take time and practice!! Just like learning any new subject, every child learns at a different pace and requires different amounts of reinforcement. Your child may benefit from attending another group after this one to continue their practice. This is an introduction to get them started down a new path where they feel more confident and have the skills to build healthy relationships with peers.
Session 1: Introductions – how to introduce myself to someone new, what/how to share my interests and how to respond to another child who introduces themselves to me, setting group rules and expectations and building a trusting “team”
Session 2: Body Language Basics, verbal versus nonverbal behavior, eye contact, posture and how to read subtle cues
Session 3: Communication and Social pragmatics – how to start or join a conversation, what to say when…, why we use different tones, volumes and words when we speak to a teacher or adult versus when speaking to a friend, showing interest, how to
Session 4: Building Self-Confidence and Self-Esteem – helping one another practice the skills and set an attainable goal for trying out a new behavior outside of group
Session 5: Focusing on Self-Awareness – what messages am I sending? What behaviors do I exhibit that might be contributing to my social road blocks?
Session 6: Dealing with Peers – how to handle teasing, bullying and rejection, how to advocate for myself, when to seek the help of an adult and how to make myself less vulnerable
Session 7: Conflict Resolution: Managing my emotions, stress and frustration when things aren’t going my way, learning how to go with the flow, letting go of past hurts and grudges, accepting imperfections and adapting to changes
Session 8: Skills Review- what we have learned, how have we practiced and setting future goals to continue learning. What have we learned from the relationships we have built in group and how can we use these new skills with new or existing friends, supporting and encouraging one another to continue to practice their skills and saying goodbye
Learning social skills take time and practice!! Just like learning any new subject, every child learns at a different pace and requires different amounts of reinforcement. Your child may benefit from attending another group after this one to continue their practice. This is an introduction to get them started down a new path where they feel more confident and have the skills to build healthy relationships with peers.
How do I Talk to my Child About Joining a Social Skills Group?
When I talk to children about social skills groups, I often will call them “Friendship Groups.” The way you phrase your words is very important. We want to send the message that we think this is an opportunity to learn some new skills and make some new friends, and be careful not to send the message that there is something they are doing wrong, or there is something wrong with them.
Here’s an example:
“Katy, I saw a flyer for a Friendship group that I would like you to try!” The group is small, a few kids your age who get together once a week to play games, talk about friendship and school stuff and do some cool projects together.” “I know we have talked in the past about how you wish you had some more friends to play with, and that you would like to feel better about playing at recess, this group could really help with that!”
Each group session will include some type of role-playing, interactive games, video modeling, group practice, art or creative materials, and lots of participation!
If you are interested in your child participating, please contact Chelsey Brooks, LPC directly by email or phone. You can leave your name, your child’s name and grade in school, a phone number and email address and I’ll contact you to set up the assessment! Please call or email with additional questions as well.
Phone: (518) 573-9007
Email: chelsey@familytherapynova.com
Here’s an example:
“Katy, I saw a flyer for a Friendship group that I would like you to try!” The group is small, a few kids your age who get together once a week to play games, talk about friendship and school stuff and do some cool projects together.” “I know we have talked in the past about how you wish you had some more friends to play with, and that you would like to feel better about playing at recess, this group could really help with that!”
Each group session will include some type of role-playing, interactive games, video modeling, group practice, art or creative materials, and lots of participation!
If you are interested in your child participating, please contact Chelsey Brooks, LPC directly by email or phone. You can leave your name, your child’s name and grade in school, a phone number and email address and I’ll contact you to set up the assessment! Please call or email with additional questions as well.
Phone: (518) 573-9007
Email: chelsey@familytherapynova.com