Community Integrations
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Community Integrations
Delivering support in the “real world” to assist the family to function as a whole and work on social skills. Having your child demonstrate a skill for one or two people (such as their therapist or even all caregivers), is a great beginning but not enough. It will be crucial for your child’s independence to generalize skills across a variety of people, settings, and scenarios. Your child may know your phone number, but if they got lost, would they recognize a police officer as a community helper and be able to tell it to them? They may now be able to demonstrate coping strategies when anxious in the home setting, but are they equipped to implement these strategies at the doctor or dentist’s office?
Perhaps they are now remaining seated for meals at home; can they carry this skill over when taken to a new, unfamiliar restaurant? They are now displaying school-readiness (staying seated, following most directions from familiar adults, etc.), so it may be the time to take these skills to the next level at a school (working on skills such as group instructions, taking turns and waiting, following novel adult instructions), which in turn can prepare your child for being successful at a job one day. Your child being successful in the community not only sets them up for success, it can greatly reduce strain on the family in a variety of ways (social isolation, sibling issues, marital strain, parental stress and mental health, family dynamics, financial strain, quality of life for all family members).
