Ensuring Skills are Maintained During the Summer

Why? I’m not in school anymore…

For one young boy, summer meant no more work. No more staying organized, no more keeping track of what he was doing, no more homework assignments, and most of all, no more responsibilities. His mother did not fight him on this during the summer, allowing her son to run around, play, and not do any cleaning, organizing, or chores on his own because he worked so hard during the school year. Yet, after doing this, she didn’t realize it would cause her son to begin to lose these skills. Since he was not practicing them, his ability to stay on task, clean his room regularly, stay organized, and more all quickly became weakened.

This then caused the boy to become frustrated, since all the hard work he did during the school year was now practically gone because he did not continue to practice them during the summer. His mom tried to get him back on his normal routine as the summer came to an end, but she received a lot of push back and avoidant behavior from her son who was too overwhelmed. He simply could not jump right back into his responsibilities like they had thought he would, because he did not maintain, utilize, strengthen, or develop the age-appropriate executive functioning skills over the summer. When school started again, he also struggled because he was now not only regressing personally, but behind his classmates and peers, causing even more stress on the boy who now didn’t want to attend school, work on his executive functioning skills, or do anything at all because he was too overwhelmed.

Due to this struggle, the mom reached out to the Support for Students Growth Center. There, they got the support they needed to help her son start to not only regain his executive functioning skills but be confident in his ability to use them because they maintained them over the summer by joining their intensive program. While there, he was able to continue to learn and develop these skills so he could not only be prepared for the school year ahead, but in life as well.

Executive functioning skills are important because they do more than just help us with schoolwork. It helps us keep our rooms, personal lives, and even our minds clean, organized, and relaxed so we have the time to focus on other things. Planning and organizing, time management, working memory, task imitation and completion, and so much more are just a few of the skills needed to be successful in both school and personal life. Without them, we would have unneeded stress, anxiety, clutter, and discouragement that can set us back.

Not practicing these skills over the summer creates a cycle of gaining and losing the same fundamental skills over and over, leaving no time or room for growth or advancement in these skills. One source explains how according to research published in the American Educational Research Journal “Children can lose up to 40% of the learning gains they have made over the school year if stimulating learning opportunities halt over the summer months. There’s extensive neuroscience research evidence that taking an extended break from learning during the summer can impact students’ retention and engagement for the next school year.” With such a high percentage of knowledge risking being lost, it is important to strengthen it anytime, and anywhere you can, and the Support for Students Growth Center is the place to do it.
At the Support for Students Growth Center, we provide Summer Intensive Programs. We additionally offer social, behavioral, educational, emotional, and executive functioning skills services children, teens, young adults, and their families, who may be Neurodivergent or not need for a happy and successful life in and out of school settings. Our team of professionals offers individualized and family coaching/counseling and social skills groups to help teach skills such as how to remain organized to ensure parents do not have to worry that their kids will be unable to make and maintain a functioning independent life on their own. So, if your child is struggling with skills like the ones listed above and much more, the SSGC is equipped with the tools to help.

Click here and call now to schedule your FREE 20-minute individualized screening

Dr. Eric J. Nach, Ph.D., M.Ed., A.S.D.C., is a Developmental and Behavioral Specialist who specializes in Autism, ADHD and related disorders. Dr. Nach is the founder of the Support for Students Growth Center and College Life Skills Program where he and his team of professional’s help develop the Emotional Maturity, Executive Functioning, Life Skill and Social Abilities of children, teens, young adults and college students and those high school students preparing for college.
 
Curtailing your child’s Summer Brain Drain by Samantha. CADDAC. (n.d.). https://caddac.ca/curtailing-your-childs-summer-brain-drain-by-samantha/ 

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Keeping Productive During Winter Break

But I just got situated…
For one young man, coming home from college was always stressful. The moment he got home he no longer wanted to do any chores, maintain his hygiene, pick up after himself or act like the adult he was at college. He believed that since he was home, he didn’t have to do any of that, so he didn’t. As time went on, the young man began to smell, the house and his room was dirty and unorganized, and all of those life skills he learned while away at college began to fade.

The young man’s parents decided to let their son be because he was on break, yet this caused their own break to become difficult as well. They were constantly cleaning up after their son, dealing with his emotional outburst due to being told to do chores, and more, so they were unable to relax as well. Yet, despite thinking everything would go back to normal come January, the young man returned to college before immediately wanting to drop out, claiming “independent life was just too difficult.”

This is when the parents reach out to the College Life Skills Program for help. There they ensured that the young man would regain his skills before trying to keep them during breaks by utilizing a planner, keeping a chore sheet with his parents, and setting timers to remind him to do chores/shower. As the young man continued this, they realized they had more time for actives, family time, and relaxing during break, causing what was once a negative event to become a positive one.

Winter break can be stressful not just for the parents, but for kids too. Whether they are college aged or in kindergarten, the long winter break can cause stress for them. It can;

  • Completely disrupt their routine
  • Cause them stress/anxiety because of the change
  • Isolation due to stressors/missing their peers
  • Not wanting to return to school
  • Not maintaining their skills, they have achieved (Washing their own laundry, doing the dishes, cleaning their room, etc.).
  • Not maintaining their hygiene because they feel as if they don’t have to at home
  • Emotional outburst/fighting with their siblings
  • And more!

All of these factors can cause the both the child and parents stress, depression, isolation, avoidant behaviors, and overall make what is supposed to be a great experience a difficult one. However, there are skills that can be learned to avoid this.

  • Preparing them before break/coming home
  • Maintaining a schedule that worked for them (Eating, getting up, showing, etc., all at the same time still).
  • Breathing exercises can help when trying to deescalate a situation as well as with emotional support
  • Utilizing a calendar/planner so they know what the weeks ahead are like.
  • Ensuing they are still receiving enough peer interaction
  • Communication skills to ensure they are advocating for themselves and voicing what they need.
  • Actively ensuring they are managing their time properly.
  • Not allowing them to spend too much time on devices
  • And more!

Children, teens, and young adults can begin to lose those skills once coming back from school, causing the cycle of stress to repeat once they have to go back, but the Support for Students Growth Center and College Life Skills Program can help ensure that pattern breaks.

At the Support for Students Growth Center, we provide social, behavioral, educational, emotional, and executive functioning skills services children, teens, young adults, and their families, who may be Neurodivergent or not need for a happy and successful life in and out of school settings. Our team of professionals offers individualized and family coaching/counseling and social skills groups to help teach skills such as how to remain productive during winter break to ensure parents do not have to worry that their kids will be unable to make and maintain a functioning independent life on their own. So, if your child is struggling with skills like the ones listed above and much more, the SSGC is equipped with the tools to help.

Click here and call now to schedule your FREE 20-minute individualized screening

Dr. Eric J. Nach, Ph.D., M.Ed., A.S.D.C., is a Developmental and Behavioral Specialist who specializes in Autism, ADHD and related disorders. Dr. Nach is the founder of the Support for Students Growth Center and College Life Skills Program where he and his team of professional’s help develop the Emotional Maturity, Executive Functioning, Life Skill and Social Abilities of children, teens, young adults and college students and those high school students preparing for college.

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8-Week Social Skills Intensive

8-Week Social Skills Intensive-Version 3

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Ensuring We Can Regulate Our Behavior and Emotions

I didn’t mean it; I am just so stressed out…

For one young woman, controlling her emotions has never been easy. As a child, she would lose her temper whenever someone wouldn’t want to play with her, or the family ate something she didn’t want that day. Then, as she got older, she thought that her ability to handle her emotions would change, when in reality, only the stressors did. She would find socializing, getting all of her schoolwork done, going to work, and interacting with others stressful, so when something didn’t go her way, she would lash out.

When she was younger, she would hit, scream, and have melt downs, and as she got older, she would shut down, exhibit avoidance behaviors, refuse to get a job and become independent, and more all because she couldn’t emotionally regulate and control her behavior. Even when she did move out, her inability to react in an age-appropriate way caused her relationships with her roommates to become strained before disintegrating completely.

This then led to the young woman to start what felt like an endless cycle of becoming independent and moving out before being unable to regulation her behavior and emotions on her own and ending back at square one to start again until her and her family realized there needs to be a change.

Do you too, see a need for change?
Does your child…

  • Have a meltdown at a small inconvenience?
  • Withdraw socially?
  • Fidget in appropriate ways/times (ex: Yelling out in class, playing with loud toys, etc.)?
  • Lash out often (physically and emotionally) (screaming, hitting, etc.)?
  • Speak poorly about themselves?
  • Exhibit avoidance behaviors?
  • Show a risk for Failure to Launch or is currently experiencing it?
  • And more?

Well, at the Support for Students Growth Center we can help by…

  • Teaching them breathing and other calming techniques in moments they may find it hard to relax
  • Techniques to avoid physical and verbal lashing out
  • Ways to help them advocate form themselves that is not only beneficial for them mentally but is effective for every party involved.
  • How to deal with the other things in life that may be adding onto the stress causing them to lash out.
  • How to continue to use these techniques every day/as often as needed
  • How to prevent outburst, and if they do happen, how to deal with them appropriately afterwards
  • And more!

At the Support for Students Growth Center, we provide social, behavioral, educational, emotional, and executive functioning skills services children, teens, young adults, and their families, who may be Neurodivergent or not need for a happy and successful life in and out of school settings. Our team of professionals offers individualized and family coaching/counseling and social skills groups to help teach skills such as how to remain organized to ensure parents do not have to worry that their kids will be unable to make and maintain a functioning independent life on their own. So, if your child is struggling with skills like the ones listed above and much more, the SSGC is equipped with the tools to help.

Click here and call now to schedule your FREE 20-minute individualized screening

Dr. Eric J. Nach, Ph.D., M.Ed., A.S.D.C., is a Developmental and Behavioral Specialist who specializes in Autism, ADHD and related disorders. Dr. Nach is the founder of the Support for Students Growth Center and College Life Skills Program where he and his team of professional’s help develop the Emotional Maturity, Executive Functioning, Life Skill and Social Abilities of children, teens, young adults and college students and those high school students preparing for college.

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Ensuring Students Have Age-Appropriate Social Skills

But what if they don’t like me…

As the school year starts to settle and students are found their friend groups; socializing can be made exceptionally harder for some students. They may feel as if no one wants to socialize with them now because they all have their own friends or that they waited too long to make friends. This can then discourage them from making friends at all, which may lead to isolation and an unhappy school life.

Friends help make school fun. They help encourage us when an assignment or task may be too hard, work on projects with us, hang out with us at lunch and after school, and are a companion to help us through life. Without them, school can feel scary. Kids can feel like they are alone, leading them to lack self-advocacy skills and hold all their negative emotions inside.

This can then lead to emotional outburst, causing them to become even more socially isolated since almost no one wants to hang out with someone who screams at them all the time. They may then try to avoid school all together, causing their grades to also slip, and if they do not work on these skills now, these issues will follow them into adulthood, causing them to become at risk for “failure to launch.” However, the Support for Students Growth Center had the tools to help with that.

 At the Support for Students Growth Center, we offer social, behavioral, educational, emotional, and executive functioning skills services children, teens, young adults, and their families, who may be Neurodivergent or not need for a happy and successful life in and out of school settings. Our team of professionals offers individualized and family coaching/counseling and social skills groups to help teach skills such as how to socialize to ensure parents do not have
to worry that their kids will be unable to make and maintain a functioning independent life on their own. So, if your child is struggling with skills like the ones listed above and much more, the SSGC is equipped with the tools to help.

Schedule your FREE 15-minute individualized screening

Dr. Eric J. Nach, Ph.D., M.Ed., A.S.D.C., is a Developmental and Behavioral Specialist who specializes in Autism, ADHD and related disorders. Dr. Nach is the founder of the Support for Students Growth Center and College Life Skills Program where he and his team of professional’s help develop the Emotional Maturity, Executive Functioning, Life Skill and Social Abilities of children, teens, young adults and college students and those high school students preparing for college.

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Ensuring Students Have Executive Functioning Skills

But I just can’t do it all…

Managing life is hard. Keeping up with schoolwork, chores, extracurricular activities, and a social life can be stressful for children, teens, and young adults. They may find that completing a task so they can go out with their friends to be too daunting, or school itself to be too demanding when paired with at home responsibilities. This can then cause them to exhibit avoidance behaviors. They may spend more time doing a homework assignment, so they don’t have to clean their room, or simply just avoid the task all together because it is too overwhelming. They may also find it hard to figure out how not only to start a task, but how to follow through and finish a it, or simply manage the task itself, which is where our executive functioning skills come in.

Executive functioning skills help us manage these tasks and our environment in a way that makes us feel confident in our ability to complete things rather than just feeling anxious or stressed out by it. Managing your time so you don’t feel rushed, keeping an organized space to minimize stress, being able to not only begin a task, but finish it, using a planner to keep track of your time, and so much more are all executive functioning skills and techniques that we need in order to be successful in life. If we do not have age-appropriate skills, then everyday life can become stressful. We may feel as if we always have too much to do and never enough time to do it, but if you have strong executive functioning skills, not only completing the task at hand, but completing it well will be much easier. This can then also prevent anxiety, emotional regulation issues, and avoidance behaviors that can prevent them from reaching their fullest potential in life, and the Support for Students Growth Center is equip with the tools needed to help them develop these much-needed skills.

At SSGC, we provide the social, behavioral, educational, emotional, and executive functioning skills children, teens, young adults, and their families need for a happy and successful life in and out of school settings. Our team of professionals offers individualized and family coaching/counseling and social skills groups to help teach skills such as how use their executive functioning skills to ensure parents do not have to worry that their kids will be unable to make and maintain a wonderful life on their own. So, if your child is struggling with skills like the ones listed above and much more, the SSGC is equipped with the experience and tools to help.

Click here and call now to schedule your FREE 20-minute individualized screening

Dr. Eric J. Nach, Ph.D., M.Ed., A.S.D.C., is a Developmental and Behavioral Specialist who specializes in Autism, ADHD and related disorders. Dr. Nach is the founder of the Support for Students Growth Center and College Life Skills Program where he and his team of professional’s help develop the Emotional Maturity, Executive Functioning, Life Skill and Social Abilities of children, teens, young adults and college students and those high school students preparing for college.

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Ensuring Neurodivergent Students Can Actively Compromise

No! I don’t want to play that game!

From a young age, we learn how to compromise with others. Whether it be with our siblings, parents, and/or friends, compromising is an important skill to be able to use. It allows for us to be able to handle situations that could otherwise be stressful in a way that is age-appropriate and effective. By doing so, students can avoid emotional outbursts, anxiety, strains in their relationships with their friends, peers, and family, and more. This then allows for them to be productive both in and out of school settings, and make and nourish friendships easier in situations that may otherwise be difficult for them to do so, especially for those who are neurodivergent.

Without strong compromising skills, everyday life can be difficult. Not everything will go their way every moment of every day, so being able to stop, think, and compromise can prevent issues that may isolate the student from their peers. Almost no one wants to socialize with someone who only wants to get their way. If students refuse to compromise, they may struggle to not only make friends, but maintain the friendships they do create because they always have everyone do what they want to do. They may then also do this at home, causing a strain between them and their siblings. If they are not taught how to compromise, they may have an outburst to try and get things their way, creating a flurry of bad habits that may follow them all the way into adulthood. Having a meltdown to get their way can promote avoidance behaviors and prevent the ability to take responsibility and compromise. After a while, they may find that they do not have many, if any, friends, and as they get older. Holding down a job, getting into and staying in college, and becoming independent may be too difficult for them to achieve, especially if they cannot compromise.

Playing a game everyone wants to play, choosing a project topic everyone likes, watching a tv show or movie everyone wants to see, emotionally regulating, avoiding rejection sensitive dysphoria every time someone wants to do something different from you, utilizing breathing techniques so they can have a clear thought process, and splitting the work that must be done with your siblings and/or peers are ways students compromise on a daily basis. Compromise is used almost constantly, even if we don’t realize it, and without it, students can begin to fall behind academically, socially, and in life, which is why the Students Growth Center has created a program to help.

At the Support for Students Growth Center, we offer social, behavioral, educational, emotional, and executive functioning skills services children, teens, young adults, and their families, who may be Neurodivergent or not need for a happy and successful life in and out of school settings. Our team of professionals offers individualized and family coaching/counseling and social skills groups to help teach skills such as how to compromise to ensure parents do not have to worry that their kids will be unable to make and maintain a functioning independent life on their own. So, if your child is struggling with skills like the ones listed above and much more, the SSGC is equipped with the tools to help.

Click here and call now to schedule your FREE 20-minute individualized screening

Dr. Eric J. Nach, Ph.D., M.Ed., A.S.D.C., is a Developmental and Behavioral Specialist who specializes in Autism, ADHD and related disorders. Dr. Nach is the founder of the Support for Students Growth Center and College Life Skills Program where he and his team of professional’s help develop the Emotional Maturity, Executive Functioning, Life Skill and Social Abilities of children, teens, young adults and college students and those high school students preparing for college.

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Ensuring Neurodivergent Children Can Make Friends

But what if they don’t like me…

As we get older, it seems like when we look back, we have made friends every step of the way. Whether it be in school, sports, camp, or other kids around the neighborhood, we as people tend to make connections even without realizing it, but for those with neurodivergent traits, making friends can be difficult. Between the anxiety of not knowing if they will like what you like and having to talk and open-up to a stranger, making friends can be difficult for many. Yet, if they don’t, their lives can be filled with isolation, anxiety, depression, and so much more. Without friends, children, teens, and young adults may find going to school, events, and even just daily life to be difficult to manage. Friends help us feel comfortable in situations we may not be used to, and they are there to talk to us and help us get through things, but if we cannot make, nurture and maintain these friendships, life can quickly become lonely.

Without the effective social skills, making friends can seem impossible. Knowing what they like and dislike, how to talk to certain people in specific situations, reading body language, emotional regulation, listening, and so much more are ways we make and keep friends. These skills help us understand what our friends are thinking so we can be there for them and vice versa, which can make school and general life a much better experience. Friends are there to experience life with us and to help us through tough times, which is why having them is so important, yet neurodivergent individuals may find it more difficult to know when to use these skills than their neurotypical peers, but the Support for Students Growth Center can give them the tools they need to do so.

At SSGC, we provide the social, behavioral, educational, emotional, and executive functioning skills children, teens, young adults, and their families need for a happy and successful life in and out of school settings. Our team of professionals offers individualized and family coaching/counseling and social skills groups to help teach skills such as how to make friends to ensure parents do not have to worry that their kids will be unable to make and maintain a functioning independent life on their own. So, if your child is struggling with skills like the ones listed above and much more, the SSGC is equipped with the tools to help.

Click here and call now to schedule your FREE 20-minute individualized screening- $150 value

Dr. Eric J. Nach, Ph.D., M.Ed., A.S.D.C., is a Developmental and Behavioral Specialist who specializes in Autism, ADHD and related disorders. Dr. Nach is the founder of the Support for Students Growth Center and College Life Skills Program where he and his team of professional’s help develop the Emotional Maturity, Executive Functioning, Life Skill and Social Abilities of children, teens, young adults and college students and those high school students preparing for college.

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Ensuring Neurodivergent Students Know When to Listen, and When to Speak

Shhhh…
For one neurodivergent young boy, trying to adapt back to a school environment after summer was proving to be very difficult for him. He hadn’t seen most of his friends all summer, so he wanted to tell them all about his experiences, yet, when he tried, he would often get in trouble. Since he would be story telling while his teacher was speaking or giving instructions, he would not only disrupt the class but miss important information as well. This would then cause him to struggle to complete assignments, know how to solve whatever worksheet was given, and overall begin to already fall behind because he was always talking when he was supposed to be listening.

Not being an active listener also made socializing hard for the young boy. Since he was constantly doing the talking rather than listening what others had to say, it made the other kids not want to interact with him since they could never get a word out. This then caused the young boy to become isolated alongside his academic struggles, and as time went on, he began not wanting to attend school at all. He would avoid it by pretending to be sick, “forgetting” things at home like his projects, homework, and backpack, and even having meltdowns, which caused his parents to reach out to the Support for Students Growth Center for help.

There, he learned tools such as how to identify when it is and is not appropriate to be speaking, how to focus and be attentive to what others are saying, writing down his thoughts on a piece of paper so he won’t forget what he wanted to say when the proper time comes, how to control and regulate his emotions to prevent him from having an outburst and speaking anyway, patience, breathing techniques, and so much more. These tips then helped prevent him from simply blurting things and speaking when it is inappropriate to do so, making school a much more enjoyable experience for him.

If children, teen, and young adults do not have the ability to differentiate between when to speak and when to listen, they will find not only school, but overall life to become difficult to manage. They may be unable to follow directions, be a good friend, complete assignments whether it be for school, chores, or a job, and so much more, all of which will set them back in life. Being able to know when to listen and when to speak can also prevent them from being emotionally overwhelmed with the stress of not being sure when it is appropriate to talk, alongside giving them the confidence, they need to succeed, which the Students Growth Center can help them achieve.

At the Support for Students Growth Center, we provide the social, behavioral, educational, emotional, and executive functioning skills services children, teens, young adults, and their families, who may be Neurodivergent or not need for a happy and successful life in and out of school settings. Our team of professionals offers individualized and family coaching/counseling and social skills groups to help teach skills such as how know when it is time to listen versus when to speak to ensure parents do not have to worry that their kids will be unable to make and maintain a functioning independent life on their own. So, if your child is struggling with skills like the ones listed above and much more, the SSGC is equipped with the tools to help.

Click here and call now to schedule your FREE 20-minute individualized screening

Dr. Eric J. Nach, Ph.D., M.Ed., A.S.D.C., is a Developmental and Behavioral Specialist who specializes in Autism, ADHD and related disorders. Dr. Nach is the founder of the Support for Students Growth Center and College Life Skills Program where he and his team of professional’s help develop the Emotional Maturity, Executive Functioning, Life Skill and Social Abilities of children, teens, young adults and college students and those high school students preparing for college.

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Ensuring Neurodivergent Students Have Well Developed Organizational Skills

Eh, I’ll find it later…

As children, teens, and young adults go through life, it is important that they are able to be properly organized. Organization helps ensure that they are not stressed out due to their inability to find something, or their environment being cluttered, but this skill helps with more than just cleaning up after themselves. Being able to properly organize allows for them to plan out their weeks, make sure there is enough time to get everything done, as well as ensures they have time for both alone time and socialization. Without it, they may begin to procrastinate, not finish tasks and/or assignments, not have items they need for both school and life, as well as keep their environment clean.

If they are not actively using this skill, then their rooms and other areas may become messy, causing extra stress and anxiety because they cannot find anything. This can then lead them to not starting or completing a task at all because they find it too stressful, only adding to the stress they feel. However, if they are prepared and have everything organized, they can feel confident in their ability to handle tasks such as finishing a school project or making time for socializing on their own, encouraging independence. Yet, this can be hard for some, especially those who have neurodivergent traits, but the Support for Students Growth Center can help them learn how to incorporate and utilize these necessary skills in their everyday lives.

At the Support for Students Growth Center, we provide Summer Intensive Programs. We additionally offer social, behavioral, educational, emotional, and executive functioning skills services children, teens, young adults, and their families, who may be Neurodivergent or not need for a happy and successful life in and out of school settings. Our team of professionals offers individualized and family coaching/counseling and social skills groups to help teach skills such as how to remain organized to ensure parents do not have to worry that their kids will be unable to make and maintain a functioning independent life on their own. So, if your child is struggling with skills like the ones listed above and much more, the SSGC is equipped with the tools to help.

Click here and call now to schedule your FREE 20-minute individualized screening

Dr. Eric J. Nach, Ph.D., M.Ed., A.S.D.C., is a Developmental and Behavioral Specialist who specializes in Autism, ADHD and related disorders. Dr. Nach is the founder of the Support for Students Growth Center and College Life Skills Program where he and his team of professional’s help develop the Emotional Maturity, Executive Functioning, Life Skill and Social Abilities of children, teens, young adults and college students and those high school students preparing for college.

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