Services
Who Can Benefit?
Our Social Learning groups are designed for children, teens, and adults with average to above-average verbal abilities who experience challenges with social communication and social thinking.
Participants may include individuals with:
- Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD)
- ADHD or ADD
- Nonverbal Learning Disability (NLD)
- Social communication challenges without a formal diagnosis
Common Challenges
Participants may experience difficulties such as:
- Making and maintaining friendships
- Understanding nonverbal communication
- Reading facial expressions and body language
- Perspective taking and empathy
- Organization and executive functioning
- Planning and time management
- Flexible thinking
- Conversational skills
- Reading comprehension and interpreting figurative language
- Cooperation, negotiation, and problem solving
- Navigating school, work, and everyday social situations
Why Social Learning Instead of Traditional Social Skills Training?
Traditional social skills programs often teach specific behaviors through repetition and reinforcement. While these approaches can be helpful, they may not address the thinking behind successful social interactions.
Our Social Learning approach teaches participants how to interpret social situations, understand the perspectives of others, and make informed decisions in real time. By developing these underlying cognitive skills, students are better able to generalize what they learn across new environments and situations.
How We Form Groups
Groups are carefully organized based on:
- Age
- Social cognitive abilities
- Perspective-taking skills
- Language abilities
- Executive functioning
- Behavioral compatibility
This thoughtful placement encourages meaningful interaction and supports the success of every participant.
What We Teach
Early Elementary
- Social interaction through play
- Observation and imitation
- Nonverbal communication
- Making “smart guesses” about others
- Understanding expectations across settings
Upper Elementary
- Building friendships
- Organization and homework routines
- Flexible thinking
- Perspective taking
- Social problem solving
Middle School
- Self-confidence
- Organization
- Reading body language
- Hidden social rules
- Managing increasingly complex peer relationships
High School and Adults
- Self-advocacy
- Social networking
- Friendship development
- Reading social situations
- Conversation skills
- Executive functioning
- Appropriate decision making in school, work, and community settings
Individual and Group Therapy
Sessions are typically 50 minutes and are scheduled once or twice each week based on individual needs. A brief parent consultation follows each session to discuss progress, answer questions, and support carryover at home.
Schedule a Consultation
Choosing the right therapy program is an important decision. We invite parents and prospective clients to schedule an introductory consultation to discuss goals, ask questions, and determine whether Think Social East Bay is the right fit.