Program/Workshops

Group Structure and Themes | Positive Reinforcement System | Weekly Social Skills Themes | Workshops

While each group is tailored to fit the particular children who are participating in the group, each Friendship Group is generally broken out into short activities. A typical one-hour group will look something like this:

• Check-in and snack (10 to 5 minutes): This is a time for each child to share about him or herself, participate in show and tell, and ask questions. Children and staff talk about any questions and issues that come up.
• Group project or activity (30 to 40 minutes): The children work on a creative project or engage in an activity tied to the social skills theme
• Check-out and adding up points to earn a prize (10 to 15 minutes): Each child shares one thing he or she liked and one thing he or she did not l like about the group and compliments another group member about something they did well during the group. A child must earn at least ten points to receive a prize.

The Friendship Groups utilize a positive reinforcement system to support each child's individual goals and the group's overall goals. The facilitators encourage each child to focus on the following behaviors rewarding these behaviors when exhibited during the group:

• SAFETY: Be safe with self and others. The children are taught to respect others' physical boundaries (for example, to use words to express themselves rather than grabbing, pushing, or hitting). This includes staying in their own personal space and being aware of their bodies during activities so that there is no physical conflict (for example, pushing, hitting, or threatening looks).
• FRIENDLY: Be friendly and cooperative. The facilitators reward the children for positively contributing to the group experience. This includes raising hands to ask questions, not interrupting, sharing about oneself, sharing materials, communicating feelings without putting down another child or adult, and supporting others and the group.
• ON-TOPIC: Stay on-topic. The children are encouraged to listen and respond to the topic or activity at hand, which includes staying focused on the group activity or conversation, tracking the topic at hand, following directions, and participating in the group activity.

Group members earn positive points for showing awareness of the above behaviors throughout the group. The focus is on each child's positive strides and their response to being redirected when getting off track. This system is designed to foster self-esteem and make each child feel successful in learning new social and coping skills.

To help each child continue to practice these behaviors outside of the group environment, we recommend that parents use the above terms to prompt and reward their child at home and at school (SAFE, FRIENDLY, ON-TOPIC).

Each week, the children focus on different social skills themes. Various modalities are incorporated into the group setting including drama, visual arts, music, movement, and verbal discussion. A typical ten-week program looks something like this:

WEEK 1: Introduction: meet the group members and review group structure and rules

WEEK 2: Active listening (eye contact, mirroring, body boundaries, on-topic communication)

WEEK 3: Sharing (compromise, recognizing and communicating needs)

WEEK 4: Expressing emotions and feelings to self and others

WEEK 5: Anger (verbal and non-verbal communication, self-tracking, healthy expression)

WEEK 6: Disagreements (conflict resolution, negotiation, dealing with bullies, emotional expression)

WEEK 7: Conversation (initiating, listening, feedback)

WEEK 8: Body Boundaries (permission, distraction of self or others, self-soothing)

WEEK 9: Self-esteem

WEEK 10: Closure: say “goodbye” and review group experience

• Parenting Workshops focus on teaching parents strategies in parenting a variety of issues in the home and in the school. The focus is on positive reinforcement for the child or children that involve incentives and consequences that are motivating for each child. These workshops provide practical and specific programs which can be implemented on a daily basis.
• Educational Workshops focus on assisting teachers and staff in schools to support each child in meeting their educational goals with the development and implementation of social, emotional and behavioral interventions.
• Social Skills Training for interns and other professionals interested in promoting social skills reinforcement for children and teens.
• Children and Teen Workshops focus on fostering communication skills, conflict resolution, self-esteem, and the ability to work with a group as a team.