peers®
SOCIAL SKILLS GROUPS
PEERS® program
he Program for the Education and Enrichment of Relational Skills (PEERS), developed at UCLA, is a highly effective, evidence-based intervention designed to teach social skills to neurodivergent adolescents and young adults. Specifically tailored for individuals with ADHD , Level 1 Autism and other social challenges, PEERS provides participants with practical tools for navigating social interactions. The program focuses on critical social competencies, such as initiating and maintaining conversations, making and keeping friends, decoding and responding to social cues of others', handling teasing or bullying, and more. Sessions are structured around role-playing, modeling, and real-world practice, ensuring that participants not only learn but also apply their skills in meaningful contexts.
By addressing both the "what" and "how" of social interactions in a clear and systematic way, PEERS demystifies social situations for neurodivergent tweens and teens, helping them build confidence and establish fulfilling relationships. Its evidence-backed approach and emphasis on real-world application make it a transformative experience for participants and their families alike.
In addition to structured lessons, our groups incorporate unstructured, purely socializing time, which is a vital component of social learning. This freeform interaction allows participants to practice the skills they’ve learned in a more organic and dynamic environment, fostering spontaneity and adaptability in social exchanges. By engaging in unscripted conversations and collaborative activities with peers, participants have the opportunity to build genuine connections and refine their understanding of social cues and norms. This naturalistic practice is critical for developing confidence and fluency in real-world interactions, bridging the gap between structured lessons and everyday social experiences. It also creates a sense of community and belonging, which is especially important for neurodivergent individuals who may struggle with isolation or feelings of exclusion.
HOW'S THIS WHOLE THING WORK?
FIRST- WE MEET YOUR FAMILY AND CHILD TO GET A BETTER UNDERSTANDING OF WHAT PEER GROUP WILL BE MOST APPROPRIATE
THEN WE WILL PLACE YOUR CHILD IN A GROUP WITH DEVELOPMENTALLy, AGE AND SOCIALLY APPROPRIATE PEERS
DURING GROUP YOUR CHILD WILL BEPROVIDED INSTRUCTION & GUIDANCE AND ALSO OPPORTUNITIES TO ENGAGE WITH PEERS.
YOU ARE AN INTEGRAL PART OF THEIR SUCCESS AND WILL HAVE A ROLE TO PLAY AS WELL WITH HOMEWORK/ PRACTICE AND ENCOURAGEMENT!
WHAT DOES A SOCIAL GROUP AIM TO HELP WITH?
KIDS STRUGGLING TO MAKE OR KEEP FRIENDS
SOCIAL ANXIETY OR SOCIAL AVOIDANCE BEHAVIORS
DIFFICULTIES ENGAGING IN PLAY OR CONVERSATIONS
CHALLENGES IN READING THE SOCIAL CUES OF THOSE AROUND THEM
THOSE WHO ARE INFLEXIBLE WITH PEERS
DIFFICULTIES WITH PERSPECTIVE TAKING OF OTHERS
MEET THE TEAM
Curtis Valvo,B.S.
PEERS® Certified Provider & Social Skills Program Director
Anna Fogle, OTR
DIR Floortime®
Certified Provider
Maria Vorel, M.A.
Laura Labus, COTA/L
Social Coach
Social Coach
QUICK FAQ'S
GROUPS MEET WEEKLY AT THE SAME TIME AND PLACE.
GROUPS ARE ONLY RUN OUT OF OUR EDMOND LOCATION
GROUPS COST $40 PER WEEKLY SESSION.
GROUPS RUN YEAR ROUND
How will my child’s placement in a group be determined?
We have a well-earned reputation for taking care to match students with like-minded & developmentally appropriate peers. Our own experience — as parents and as professionals — informs our belief that students learn best about satisfying social interaction with peers they are can identify and connect with. We take the time to learn about each child and his or her family before we determine whether we can offer placement in a group. After careful review of each applicant, if we potentially have a good group to offer, we schedule an intake meeting with each child and their family. We discuss the family’s goals, the student’s learning needs, and potential group placements to determine the best fit. Only then do we offer placement in a social group.
What do you do in your groups? How exactly how do you teach them?
We all continually fine-tune our working understanding of the social world, including the hidden social rules of relationships, and how to read and respond to others in adaptive ways. But our students come to us because they need explicit, clear teaching of the social concepts and strategies necessary for navigating the social world. So, we often use visuals like drawings, photos and videos. We also use clear and descriptive but neutral vocabulary from PEERS® & Social Thinking® to describe social cognitive skills we are working on.In our groups, all of this social learning — concepts, vocabulary, strategies and tools — is paired with opportunities for practice and actual socializing in a natural way. Our students do a wide variety of age-appropriate, collaborative, engaging activities that are selected based on group members’ interests and preferences as often as possible. We intentionally model flexibility in the curriculum in order to support our students’ investment in in their own social learning process.
Parent education and support?
To help a child with social learning challenges grow and flourish, parents need to know when to take a different approach, try out new skills, or shift their thinking in some way. Sometimes our children’s social learning differences mean that they don’t learn social lessons as readily from conventional parenting approaches. Along with every lesson your child learns in their group, parents are provided education and guidance for how to help their child learn, practice and generalize these skills in their homes and communities. We provide hands on/digital materials for the content, provide social stories, video modeling and much more to every parent who attends.