In-clinic therapy offers the advantage of being able to teach a variety of foundational skills in a controlled environment. Skills are taught in a 1:1 setting in order to maximize the teaching opportunities throughout the child’s session. As children get older, entering school for the first time can sometimes be challenging for the learner who is accustomed to the 1:1 approach. A classroom has a much larger student-to-teacher ratio, and students are expected to independently play, transition, and respond to group instructions without specific prompts to do so.
In order to ease the transition into the school setting, BCOTB offers the School Readiness Program (SRP) as part of the Child Advancement Track. SRP is offered to all learners between the ages of 3.5 to 5 years old. In comparison to the Toddler Achievement Program (TAP), SRP offers the following components:
The learner’s session will include more Discrete Trial Teaching (DTT) at the table to continue targeting skills intensively.
- More DTT will get the learner accustomed to sitting and working for longer periods of time.
Natural Environment teaching will continue to be incorporated into the learner’s day.
- Specifically targeted social skills such as requesting to peers, initiating conversations, and joining in will be included in the learner’s program if they have the prerequisite skills.
- Daily living skills such as brushing teeth, washing hands, and dressing become more important to teach so that independence can be promoted during the child’s daily life.
Centers and Group will continue to occur for 60-minutes per session.
- Centers will now include more opportunities for independence and leadership. For example, learners may be assigned to pass out materials or collect games from their peers at the beginning/end of a center.
- Active student responding will be more prominent in SRP group so that learners learn how to answer questions about the calendar, weather, season, topic of the day, their interests, etc.
BCOTB strives to teach skills that positively impact all aspects of the learner’s life as he/she transitions through different phases of development. If you think your child would benefit from enrolling in the School Readiness Program, contact BCOTB at (813) 814-2000 to schedule a complementary meet and greet to learn more!
