SMALL GROUP PROGRAMS
WESTMEAD FEELINGS PROGRAM
Key Facts
The Westmead Feelings Program (WFP): Emotion-based Learning for Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (and other social difficulties) is an evidence-based clinical intervention program, researched over the past 10 years.
This group-based intervention program helps children (6-12) to understand the feelings of themselves and others, to problem solve, and to regulate their feelings. The full program includes 3 modules of 5 student sessions. 2 parent sessions per module and 2 teacher sessions per module.
SEASONS FOR GROWTH
Change, Loss and Grief Peer Support Program
Seasons for Growth is an innovative, evidence-based change, loss and grief education program that draws on the metaphor of the seasons to understand the experience of grief. It builds the knowledge and skills necessary to strengthen social and emotional wellbeing following significant loss by:
Exploring the impact of change and loss
Learning about effective ways to respond and adapt
Participants learn that they are not alone in their experience of change, loss and grief, and are able to build their communication, decision making and problem solving skills within the context of a safe and supportive peer group learning environment.
All Seasons for Growth programs are grounded in sound, person-centred educational principles.
As such, this program has been shown to be a very effective education intervention. The program does not provide counselling or psychotherapy.
Riding the Waves of Change
1 hour sessions designed to support young people to understand and manage the social and emotional impacts of the pandemic.
PEERS® FOR TEENS AND YOUNG ADULTS
Available face to face or tele-health
PEERS® for Teens/Young Adults program details
PEERS® is a 16-week program for teens aged 13-17 or young adults aged 18-30 who experience social challenges and are interested in learning new ways of making and keeping friends.
In weekly 90-minute small group sessions, teens/young adults are taught important social skills and given the opportunity to practise these skills during socialisation activities in the session.
Parents/caregivers attend small group sessions separately to their teens/young adults and are taught how to become a social coach for their teen/young adult to support them in practicing their new skills at home, coaching them during their weekly socialisation homework assignments and providing feedback.
Sessions are relaxed & fun whilst using evidence-based skill-teaching methods …
* Small group (6-10 participants)
* Safe environment where everyone finds success
* Didactic instruction (concrete easy to follow rules & steps)
* Socratic questioning method (a question/answer dialogue to draw out ideas)
* Teaches ecologically valid skills (skills that socially successful people use)
* Correct/Incorrect role play examples
* Role-playing and modelling practice of correct skills (behaviourial rehearsal)
* Perspective-taking questions targeting social cognition
* Social coaching from both course facilitators & parent(s)/carer(s)
* Homework exercises (with parent/carer assistance)
* Each session builds upon the previous week