Weekly Update June 30, 2023
Strive Center for Autism
LONG WEEKEND - NO THERAPY JULY 3RD AND 4TH
Just a friendly reminder that we will be CLOSED on Monday, July 3rd and Tuesday, July 4th for Independence Day. Services will resume Wednesday, July 5th.
Monday, Jul 3, 2023, 07:00 AM
Brighton and Burton
Air Quality Index
With the recent warnings for air quality in our area, we have decided to stay indoors for recess time when the air quality index in either area is "very unhealthy."
Very unhealthy is defined as: Health effects will be immediately felt by sensitive groups and should avoid outdoor activity. Healthy individuals are likely to experience difficulty breathing and throat irritation; consider staying indoors and rescheduling outdoor activities. (Accuweather.com)
When we stay inside for recess, we still take a fun motor break and have opportunities to climb, swing, and play.
We are hoping to get back outside as soon as possible. Please let us know if you have any specific concerns for requests for your child related to air quality.
Summer Fun Fridays
Each Friday in the summer, we plan for an extra fun activity and a dress up day. All the dress up days are designed to be simple ones you can do with things you have at home, please don’t feel obligated to buy anything to make these happen. Staff and children will both participate in dressing up! We'll send home a calendar with all of the dates for the summer, or you can check here for weekly details.
One of our recurring dress up days is School Spirit Day, where we all wear Strive shirts. We will provide Strive shirts for each of the children to wear.
Upcoming Fun Fridays
7-7-23
Make your own flag snack - we use graham crackers, frosting or cool whip, and strawberries and blueberries for this festive snack. Please let us know of any allergies or dietary needs that would prevent your child from participating. A lot of the kids will just make the flag, and not eat it - that's ok too!
Hat Day - just wear any hat you like.
7-14-23
Water balloons - we will have a great time tossing water balloons outside! Be sure to send a change of clothes or a bathing suit if you'd rather your child wear it. Sandals or crocs or water shoes are totally appropriate to send for this activity, just make sure we have tennis shoes for the rest of the day.
School Spirit Day - wear your Strive shirt!
7-21-23
Reading Buddies
Mismatch Day - Just wear your most mismatched outfit! Stripes with polka dots, crazy colors, socks that don't match, anything goes!
7-28-23
Fireworks Science Experiment - this is a fun activity with oil, water, and food coloring to make "fireworks" in a jar!
Super Hero Day - Wear a super hero shirt or hat, or go all out and dress as your favorite super hero! Capes are welcome :)
Get to know Greta!
For 2023, instead of just sharing our background info, we are going to share some of our team's answers to a recent survey. We asked staff what they enjoy most about their jobs overall, what they like to teach the most, and what they would tell other people considering working here. We'll share answers from a new staff member each week!
This week, we'll hear from Greta, one of our amazing RBTs.
What is your proudest moment at Strive so far? "Seeing a client using the scripts I used daily with him when talking to his parents and other people."
What is Greta's favorite skill to teach? "I love running SBT trials because I have been able to see it's incredible results." ** See our term of the week below for more information on SBT **
What is your favorite part of working for Strive as a company? "The work/life balance we have and the hours of operation. As a Mom I feel like I have enough time to share with my kids after work. Also I love PD days."
ABA Term of the Week
One addition to our newsletter this year will be some definitions of terms we use most often in ABA. We know we use a lot of lingo and we want to help families understand it better. All of these terms will also be on our website in a glossary, so you can check them out anytime.
This week's term is SBT, or Skill Based Treatment. "Skill Based Treatment consists of progressively teaching communication, toleration, and contextually appropriate behaviors (CABs)." (Source)
Our BCBAs began researching this approach a few years ago, and we have put it into practice with a number of children. The definition above comes directly from the FTF Behavioral Consulting website, where Dr. Greg Hanley has piloted this approach and the research into it.
The definition sounds pretty technical, but when you break it down, skill based treatment involves teaching a child first to communicate - we give LOTS of opportunities for a child to request to do what he wants to do.
Once our child is good at communication, we move into toleration, which means handling being told "no." What's great about this is that kids start hearing the words "no" or "not now" right away, and since we all know that caregivers and teachers will need to tell kids "no" at some point, this is a very important early lesson. We teach children that when they are told "no", they should respond by saying "ok" or giving a thumbs up.
After toleration, we teach the contextually appropriate behaviors (or CABS.) This is a fancy way to say that we teach the child to do what needs to be done in the moment. Some very common things we teach here are relinquishing (giving up a toy), transitioning to a work area (like a table), completing work tasks, or playing independently.
As Greta mentioned above, we see incredible results with this approach to challenging behavior. We see children who struggled to follow simple directions become cooperative and willing learners. This approach can help parents at home as well - talk to your BCBA to find out how.
Vacations and other time off
We'll just keep this link right here, for your convenience. For any absences scheduled in advance, please use this form to report the dates. You may take an entire day or half day, depending on your needs.
Here are some additional dates that the centers will be closed:
Monday, July 3rd and Tuesday, July 4th - Independence Day
Friday, August 25th - Professional Development Day
If your family is planning a longer absence around one of those dates, or at another time, please let us know as soon as you are able!
About Us
Email: info@sc-centers.com
Website: www.sc-centers.com
Location: Burton and Brighton, MI
Phone: 810-344-8082