Toddlers 2-3 YEAR OLDS

Research has now confirmed how critical therapy can be during the early years of development. During this precious stage, children need to develop in a range of areas such as play skills, social and emotional skills, learning to follow routines, language and gross and fine motor skills.

Toddlers best learn these skills through social interactions, modelling from other children and adults during play-based activities. Our staff work in collaboration with parents to provide them with advice on things they can do at home to help promote these skills on a daily basis at home.

For groups suitable for Toddlers look for this icon

Kinder Years

The Kinder years (3 & 4 year old Kindergarten) are when your child will develop all of the skills necessary to move into primary school. There is a HUGE amount of development learning that occurs during these years.  For children with additional needs, these are the years we recommend intensive therapy (group and individual therapy) in order to prepare them for their schooling years.

Starting three year old kinder is an exciting time! It is the start of their preparation and journey to school. 3 year olds are at a developmental stage that makes them explorers! During our groups we encourage your 3 year olds learning and self-exploration of play and learning.

4 year old Kinder children start to become independent learners. These groups are designed to expand their learning across all areas and aid in transition to school. We encourage them to become more self directed and rely less on adult direction and place a strong emphasis on following school routines and transitioning from different activities. Children are encouraged to explore their behaviour choices and how this impact on their friendships.

Our Kinder groups are designed to get your child ready for school. Using fun and creative ideas your child will be encouraged to use their social skills to play with other children, listen to instructions and directions, use their words in sentences, practice fine and gross motor skills and behaviour management.

For groups suitable for Kindergarten Children look for this icon

Primary

As your child begins the school years journey there are lots of new experiences that they will encounter. During this stage of development many skills being to come together for many children. School will push your child to deal with daily events that require their social and emotional development to be strong. For children with additional needs, starting a mainstream school can be very stressful and confronting. Some children who have never had strong friendships often form their first friendship within the group program and then transfer this over to school.

Parents can also feel very over-whelmed and stressed wondering if their child is coping in the classroom and the playground. Our Therapists will ensure they have communication with classroom teachers to give them advice on strategies.

During Prep – Grade 3, our groups teach children about basic social and friendship skills using various activities. Children learn about making friends, initiating friendship and skills needed to be a good friend. They also learn about topics such as; empathy, team sports, dealing with rejection, comprising, winning and losing, dealing with anger and stress.

During Grades 4-6, our groups move your child through more advanced social skill situations. Children will participate in fun activities and discussions each week on a topic that will encourage them to understand social situations better and work on strategies that can help them through an interaction. There is a strong emphasis on the children learning about themselves; their personalities & behaviours so that they can understand why they react a certain way in different situations. Topics of discussion include; empathy, flexibility, conflict resolution, perspective, positive self talk, anger management, dealing with anxiety and stress, dealing with bullies, choosing the right friend.

Our Primary groups are UNIQUE as we use a number of different techniques including video segments from the Model Me Kids social program, role playing (including video feedback).  Children also receive therapy from our Creative Arts Academy team (Drama or Art Therapy). Evidence shows, linking traditional Speech Therapy and Occupational Therapy with a ‘Creative Arts’ therapy, increases a child reaching their goals and especially helps with anxiety.

Parents will notice that we have split up our groups into girls and boys.  This has occurred because over the last 15 years of being at the forefront of running social skill programs for children in Australia, our therapists have observed that each gender has different issues and different ways of learning. Since splitting our groups into gender – our children have been reaching their goals quicker.

For groups suitable for Primary School Children  look for these icons

Teens (12+)

The Teen years (11- 12yrs and onwards) are when adolescents begin a transitional period in their development when many physical and psychological changes.  This time can be stressful and confusing, particularly for teens who have additional needs.

Many students diagnosed with an ASD, ADHD, anxiety and other learning disabilities experience low self-esteem plus social and academic frustration.

Our Teen groups at Chatterbox evolved when children who we treated from the early childhood years – progressed through our group therapy programs and were reaching high school age.  Our Chatterbox team noticed that they were hardly any services that were offered for this age range and as a result researched and constructed our Teen therapy groups.

Our Teen groups have been designed to work towards developing independence in daily routines and life skills. It will focus on the individual skills required to complete everyday tasks and routines such as; gross and fine motor skills, communication skills, organisation, and executive functioning skills as well as developing strategies and resources to complete daily routines more independently.

These skills will be targeted whilst engaging in daily activities such as, mealtimes, including; hygiene, meal preparations, setting the table, cooking the meal, cleaning up and group conversations.

As well as functional skills, our groups provide an environment where our Teens have the opportunity to build self-confidence, experience new friends, and develop tools and strategies to many situations such as; anxiety, stress, friendship management, bullying and more. Our students have enjoyed learning these skills with friends and sharing their achievements and experiences with each other.

In conjunction with traditional social skill training with a Speech Pathologist, our Creative Arts Academy drama teacher, Emma Callaghan provides the students with an environment where they can be free to express themselves, grow in confidence and interact within a fun and nurturing environment.

During the school holidays, our teens have the opportunity to join our Voyage program. Our Voyage program is designed to introduce the community to our teens with organised excursions to various places.  During these excursions, the students are taught life skills such as catching public transport, reading a bus schedule, going to the movies and buying a ticket, going to a shopping centre and purchasing items independently.  Our therapy team guide them through these processes every step of the way.

The other important part of our Teen program is communication and teaching parents/carers/teachers etc how to identify areas of need for their child, learn strategies to strengthen specific skills and to help the transfer of skills learnt in group therapy to occur across environments.

Parents will notice that we have split up our groups into girls and boys.  This has occurred because over the last 15 years of being at the forefront of running social skill programs for children in Australia, our therapists have observed that each gender has different issues and different ways of learning. Since splitting our groups into gender – our children have been reaching their goals quicker.

For groups suitable for Teens  look for these icons