Social Skills Training for Autism

It means directly teaching the skills that make social interaction work, things like sharing, taking turns, reading facial expressions, starting a conversation, and understanding another person's perspective. For many children, these skills need to be broken down and practiced explicitly rather than picked up automatically through observation.

At Autism Pediatric Therapy, this typically happens in small group settings where your child can practice these skills with real peers, under the guidance of a trained therapist who can prompt, model, and reinforce in the moment.

Social skills training is not separate from ABA, it is a focused application of it. General ABA therapy might address a wide range of goals, from daily living skills to communication, while social skills sessions zero in specifically on peer interaction and relationship-building.

For many children, social goals are woven directly into their broader ABA program rather than treated as a standalone service, so progress in one area tends to support progress in the other.

We work with children from 18 months through 12 years old, and social goals look very different across that range. A toddler might be working on parallel play and basic turn-taking, while an older child might focus on group conversation or navigating disagreements with friends.

There is no single age where social skills training becomes appropriate. It simply gets tailored to whatever stage of social development your child is currently working through.

No. While many of the children we see have an autism diagnosis, a formal diagnosis is not required to begin services. If you have specific concerns about your child's social development, our team can talk through those concerns on a first discovery call.

Waiting for a diagnosis before addressing social skill gaps often means losing time during years when those skills are especially responsive to targeted teaching.

Both, depending on your child's specific goals. Foundational skills sometimes start in a one-on-one setting before your child is ready for group practice, while more advanced social goals almost always benefit from real peer interaction.

Our team determines the right mix based on your child's initial assessment and adjusts that balance over time as skills develop and confidence grows.

We break broad social goals down into specific, observable behaviors, like initiating a greeting, waiting for a turn, or responding appropriately when a peer says something unexpected. Each of these can be tracked with real data over time.

Goals are reviewed and updated every six months, so you get a concrete picture of growth rather than a vague sense that things seem to be going better.

That carryover, often called generalization, is one of the biggest focuses of our approach. Skills practiced only inside a clinic do not automatically show up at recess or a birthday party without deliberate effort to bridge that gap.

Weekly parent coaching and, when appropriate, coordination with your child's school are both part of how we work to make sure skills learned in session actually get used in the settings that matter most to your family.

When woven into your child's broader ABA program, social skills work is generally covered under the same insurance plans that cover ABA therapy. We work with most major employer plans, including United Healthcare, Blue Cross, Aetna, Cigna, and Anthem.

The one exception is Medicaid, which we are not currently able to accept. Our team manages the entire approval process on your behalf, so insurance details do not become one more thing on your plate.

It begins with a discovery call, where we learn about your child's current social skills and any specific concerns you have. From there, we move into a behavioral assessment that helps shape exactly what your child's plan should prioritize.

Once insurance is confirmed, our team works to get your child started as quickly as possible, so real practice with peers can begin sooner rather than later.