Center Based Sessions are Held Monday through Friday, 9am-2pm.
Our 1:1 center-based therapy is geared for pre-school age children with an autism diagnosis. We focus on communication, social skills, play skills, growing independence, daily living skills, toileting, and kindergarten readiness activities.
To help your child develop skills identified in the assessment process, our schedule provides a variety of individual and peer collaborative events. Your child will enjoy morning greeting, music and movement, lunch, focused play, and targeted instructional time.
In addition to highly trained staff in the field of applied behavior analysis, GBS also has the only Turn Autism Around™ (TAA) staff in the area. Your child will enjoy playing, learning, and making friends at GBS!
Why Center-Based 1:1 ABA Therapy?
Each family has to choose what type of therapy works with their lifestyle, and what is medically necessary for their child. Therapy may take place in the home, in the center, or in the community.
What are some benefits to having Center-Based Therapy?
- Controlled environment: more control over materials, how things are stored, what is available, seating, tables, schedule, etc.
- Fewer distractions: because of the routine and control over materials centers often have fewer distractions than home
- Generalizes skills: being in a center can generalize skills outside the home, and help children get used to being somewhere other than the home (such as preschool or daycare)
- Routine: centers often have schedules and routines, and being in a center program gives your child a chance to practice routines, much like they would have in school
- Exposure to various “teachers/therapists”: in a center, children get to know all the therapists, and when there is a staff change, there is minimal transition because of this prior relationship
- Transitions: in a center children can learn to transition from activity to activity, as well as from a 1:1 setting to a setting with several peers, all while having the support of their therapist
- Reinforcers: a center will have a variety of reinforcers, possibly different or more reinforcers than may be found in home or other locations, in addition to peers and other staff who will also occasionally become reinforcing to your child
- Supervision: center therapy allows for increased interaction with and oversight by a clinical supervisor
- Peers: your child will interact with peers daily through focused play, peer collaborative activities, sharing, and turn taking games as well as participation in routines and social gatherings
- A more consistent therapy experience: your child will most likely have more consistent therapy sessions if enrolled in a center
- Resources: centers may have more resources than are found in some homes, and be able to provide the child with a wider range of opportunities to learn
- Parent training: parent/caregiver training is an important part of any therapy your child is involved in, whether it be home, center, or community. In the center you may be able to watch your child in a session while remaining unobserved by your child, or jump into a session, “hands on”, with the therapist or consultant.
While your child may receive the majority of his/her therapy hours in our centers, our therapists will also provide home hours to model interventions at home, help generalize the child’s skills to home, and transition intervention techniques to the parents.
As your child advances, we will recommend part- or full-time placement in preschool/daycare/pre-k with support and will fade out GBS support as your child demonstrates independence in other environments. Our goal is your child’s success and independence!
