Thrive Town
Welcome to Thrive Town: Where Progress Flourishes
ThriveTown is our flagship Early Childhood full-day clinic-based program. Utilizing the tools of natural environment teaching, clients aged 2-5 spend their day with peers working on important social and communication skills in a play-based environment.
Individualized Growth Across All Areas
At Thrive Town, our commitment is clear: we are dedicated to helping our clients make meaningful progress in all areas of their lives. Whether it’s communication, social-emotional development, self-help skills, or countless others, we strive to foster growth and development in every aspect of a child’s life.
Progress with Peers
Thrive Town utilizes a dyadic model where 2 clients work with 1 Behavioral Health Technician. This combines the benefits of one-on-one support with the invaluable social learning that takes place in group therapy. Reciprocal communication, peer play, and socialization skills are maximized using this approach.
Client-Centered and Family-Focused Care
Our approach is rooted in individualized care and family involvement. Thrive Town is a place where we prioritize the unique needs of each child, and we understand the crucial role families play in the journey toward progress. This is achieved through daily communication, formal and informal parent training sessions, and family education.
Natural Environment Teaching
Natural Environment Teaching (NET) is a teaching strategy used in Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) therapy, particularly in the context of working with individuals, often children, with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) or other developmental disorders. The goal of Natural Environment Teaching is to integrate learning opportunities seamlessly into the individual’s natural environment, making the teaching context more relevant and meaningful. This approach contrasts with more structured or contrived teaching settings.
- **Learning in Real-Life Settings**:
NET takes place in settings where the individual naturally engages in daily activities, such as at home, in the community, or during playtime. This can enhance the generalization of skills, helping the individual apply what they’ve learned to various situations. - **Child-Led Interactions**:
Instead of strictly structured sessions, NET often involves following the child’s lead. The therapist observes the child’s interests and activities and uses those as opportunities to introduce and reinforce targeted skills. This can increase motivation and engagement in the learning process. - **Incidental Teaching**:
NET includes incidental teaching, where the therapist seizes naturally occurring opportunities to teach and reinforce skills. For example, if a child expresses interest in a toy or activity, the therapist might use that moment to encourage communication or social interaction. - **Functional Communication Training**:
NET often emphasizes functional communication skills, helping individuals express their needs, wants, and preferences in practical, real-world situations. This can include teaching communication through gestures, pictures, or words. - **Social Skills Development**:
Social skills are a significant focus in NET. Therapists work on enhancing a child’s ability to interact with peers and adults in various settings, fostering social communication and relationship-building skills. - **Natural Reinforcement**:
Positive reinforcement is an essential aspect of ABA, and in NET, natural reinforcement is used whenever possible. This means using naturally occurring rewards in the environment, such as access to preferred activities, to reinforce desired behaviors. - **Parent and Caregiver Involvement**:
Collaborating with parents and caregivers is crucial in NET. Therapists often provide training and support to parents, helping them integrate teaching strategies into daily routines and activities. - **Collaborative Approach**:
ThriveTown partners with Early Intervention to integrate related services into our program. ThriveTown has in-house speech therapy, occupational therapy, special instruction and mobile therapy and collaborates with those providers as well as others to ensure that the program we are providing is holistic and encompasses all aspects of your child’s development.
By incorporating teaching into the natural environment, NET aims to make learning more meaningful, increase the likelihood of behavior generalization, and promote the development of functional skills that individuals can use in their everyday lives. This approach aligns with the broader goals of ABA in addressing a range of behaviors and skills to enhance the overall quality of life for individuals with developmental challenges.
ThriveTown runs Monday through Friday, 9am-4pm with the option of before and after care available. The program is 12 months, with brief breaks throughout the year to mimic the extended school year calendar.
If you are interested in touring ThriveTown please email kelly@thrivetherapypa.com.
ThriveTown: 3502 Scotts Lane Philadelphia PA 19129