If your child has been diagnosed with Autism, it’s never too late or too early to begin making progress with behavior therapy. The earlier the intervention, the better the results. Your child learns differently than others, but with the right treatment and encouragement they will be able to make academic and social achievements in their own unique way. Our program can facilitate these achievements.

     We provide children with the most sensory friendly natural environment we can. We don't have florescent lighting in our building. Our building is not stark and clinical it has a warm cabin feel with reclaimed wood ceilings, wood book shelves dividing the learning areas, an indoor cowhide rock-wall and tractor seat stools. 

 

     We have use of our 25 horses, cows, goats, donkey, pigs, rabbits, and chickens for positive reinforcement as well as sensory work. There are nature trails and a sensory arena. 

 

     We feel children should get to be children and one of the most important ways children learn is through play and having fun. We believe in the old school methods of learning and having fun. Nature walks, digging in the dirt to make a garden, watering the animals as well as playing in our playground. Playing allows  opportunities for reinforcing motor skill, hand-to-eye coordination, an increase in cognitive and expressive language, imagination, all the while increasing their social skills.

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     In our program we work with students with a range of special needs, including Asperger’s, Autism, Speech Delay, and other developmental and intellectual disabilities. A diagnosis is not required to apply for admission. We are a private pay clinic, and we have helped a wide range of children with different developmental disabilities. If you feel your child could benefit from our program, please give us a call today. We will develop a personalized treatment plan that will help your child to reach their full their potential. We work with children ages 18 months to 12 years old. 

     Along with a sensory friendly setting and animals, trails, playing , and gardening we do use the  principles of Applied Behavior Analysis to decrease inappropriate behaviors while increasing functional skills.  We collect and analyze data on a daily basis to determine progress:
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• Positive Behavioral Supports

• Natural Environment Teaching

• Discrete Trial Training

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Applied Behavior Analysis

  Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) is the application of behavioral principles to solve problems of social significance. It is not one procedure, or even a handful of procedures or therapeutic techniques. It is an entire discipline, with success in developmental disabilities, education, business, and medicine, to name just a few. ABA is behavioral technology; the principles that are applied to solve meaningful problems are derived from research results in basic behavioral science (such as the experimental analysis of behavior). Applied behavior analysts are analogous to physicians, who develop treatments for biological problems based on basic medical research. Early and intensive ABA is by far the most effective approach for establishing language, self-help skills, and reducing unwanted behavior with children diagnosed with autism and other developmental disorders.
 

1. ABA is a data-driven discipline. Behavior, goals, and treatments are defined objectively and specifically. This allows reliable data to be collected. Decisions about what treatment to use, and whether or not the treatment actually works, are made by analyzing reliable behavioral data. ABA therefore is a scientific enterprise, and all conclusions must be supported by reliable changes in behavior. Compare this aspect of ABA with other approaches that rarely, if ever, involve extended, direct observation of the individual’s behavior and collection of reliable data.

2. ABA is effective. Over 40 years of research demonstrates that the techniques of applied behavior analysis are effective in creating and sustaining meaningful changes in the behavior of individuals. These techniques have been used to teach new classes of behavior (as in verbal and nonverbal communication, self-help skills, etc.), to reduce or eliminate classes of behavior (problem behavior such as self-injury, aggression, etc.), and to modify existing classes of behavior to better suit the individual’s environment. One of the most powerful and meaningful conclusions to be drawn from applied research in behavior analysis is that these techniques are extremely effective across clinical diagnoses, co- morbidities, level of functioning, race, gender, and socioeconomic status.

3. ABA treatments and strategies are individualized. Each individual’s behavior is analyzed and modified according to their specific needs and abilities. There is no treatment or strategy that will work with every person; applied behavior analysts therefore tailor treatment approaches and teaching strategies so that they are effective for that individual. Compare this aspect to most other psychological and pharmacological approaches that have been shown to produce average improvements in a group of people. These approaches are used with many individuals at once, even though it may not have the intended effects on many of the people within the group.

4. ABA involves the entire family unit. ABA places emphasis on the context in which behavior occurs. It is not enough to simply teach a child to speak; ABA involves parents, teachers, siblings and extended family members whenever possible to create and maintain an environment in which the child will speak on a day-to-day basis. In addition, goals for the child’s learning are influenced heavily by the input of family members. This is done to help target classes of behavior that will foster a loving, happy and productive family environment for the child and for all people involved.

 

Health and Behavior Intervention
   

     Behavioral approaches are used to affect appropriate change or maintenance of a client's behavior for their health and safety, include the following treatment areas:

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1. Communication – Ability to request items and/or activities in the natural environment necessary for his/her survival and well being (eating, drinking, sleeping, toileting, bathing, vocational, leisure)

2. Language – Receptive and Expressive

   1. Receptive – Understanding spoken language in order to function within all environments safely and with all stimuli incorporated in those environments.

   2. Expressive – Ability to communicate effectively using various components and methods to enable client to have basic needs (ie. Hunger, thirst, healthcare, etc) met for his/her safety and well being.

3. Motor Skills

   1. Gross – Skills that involve the large muscle groups of the body necessary for coordination, speed, balance, etc involving walking, sitting upright, standing, climbing, etc.

   2. Fine – Skills that involve the hands and fingers allowing a client to grasp and manipulate objects for skills such as feeding, drinking, toileting, writing, dressing, communication, etc.

   3. Oral – Skills that involve the mouth, tongue, teeth, etc allowing a client to eat, drink, swallow, and communicate verbally.

4. Cognitive – Ability to understand various concepts that affect health and behavior as well as to make appropriate choices for ones safety and well being.

5. Independence Skills – Ability to care for one’s self in areas such as: feeding, drinking, dressing, toileting, hygiene, grooming, safety, etc.

6. Behavior – Acquire skills that allow a person to effectively maintain or improve his/her health and wellbeing while exhibiting appropriate behaviors necessary to function in all environments from a health, well being and safety standpoint for self and others.

7. Social – Ability to tolerate as well as interact with others across all environments in order to maintain health and safety.