Social Skills Group for Teens and Young Adults with ASD

Navigating social situations can sometimes be difficult and confusing. Community Autism Resources has created a space where we can figure things out together in a non-judgmental setting.

In our PEERS® Sessions, our highly-skilled staff team will work with each group to focus on the strengths and uniqueness that everyone brings. We bring many years of experience working with autistic individuals navigating through the nuanced world of making and keeping friends. The curriculum we use to create our groups is from PEERS®, which is an evidence-based social skills intervention for motivated individuals diagnosed with ASD who are interested in learning skills to make and keep friends and develop romantic relationships. This is an internationally acclaimed program that was originally developed at UCLA by PEERS® Clinic Founding Director, Dr. Elizabeth Laugeson.

During each group session, the staff will do a role play where they make a common “social error”, then we talk about how that could have gone better. Next everyone is given the opportunity to practice these skills in a judgement-free space with staff there to help prompt until confidence is built.

- Dating  (flirting, asking someone on a date, going on dates, etc)

- Handling Disagreements

- Handling Bullying (Indirect and Direct)

- Conversational Skills  (starting, maintaining and ending)

- Staying safe online

- Hosting or attending get-togethers

Topics this group will cover:

This is not your average “autism social skills” group. We truly play off of the strengths, interests and goals of each individual that attends. We have fun with it because, after all, making friends should be fun!

We do ask that each person that attends brings a social coach with them. A social coach is any trusted adult that plays a role in the individual’s life. It could be a parent, sibling, relative, friend, job coach, etc. The social coaches are not in the same room as the rest of the group. They go in a different room with another staff member and talk about the best ways they can support you in the community to reach your social goals (not the goals that anyone else has for you!)

We are offering this in a few different ways. Option 1 is the full 8-week sessions where we will meet for two hours over an 8-week span. Option 2 is a bootcamp where we meet once for a longer period.

Please reach out to Mary Fox with any questions or to register. We look forward to meeting you and help you achieve your goals. MFox@community-autism-resources.com 508-379-0371 ext. 25