Supports we use · part of our primary school program
Children's Friendship Training.
Children’s Friendship Training is a structured therapeutic social skills program. It runs inside The Adventurers, our primary school program.
What we believe
We believe a skill that stays in the therapy room is not a skill.
Most providers believe social skills are something you teach to the child. The thinking is that if a child doesn't know how to join in or keep a friend, the answer is a group where a clinician shows them how, and they practise in the room until they get it right. Parents wait outside, and progress is judged by how the child does in the session. It makes sense, because the skills are the child's to learn, and a structured group is a controlled place to learn them.
In reality, the hour in the group isn’t where friendship happens. It happens at recess on a Tuesday and at a get-together on a Saturday, in rooms we aren’t in, and the skills have to survive the trip. A skill that only ever appears in front of the person who taught it hasn’t been learned, it’s been performed, and more sessions won’t change that.
That’s why we don’t try to do it all in the session. We train you alongside your child and hand you the coaching role between sessions. Your child learns the mechanics: joining a game already running, being a good sport when they lose, handling teasing, hosting a get-together that ends well. You learn how to set those situations up and how to talk about them afterwards without it becoming a lecture. The program runs over a set number of weeks and then stops, because the point is that you can do it without us.
What changes
From on the outside, to part of the game.
What it covers
The mechanics of friendship at primary school.
- Joining a game that's already running
- Being a good sport, including when they lose
- Telling teasing from bullying, and responding to each
- Hosting a get-together that ends well
- Repairing things after a falling-out
- For you: setting up those situations, and talking about them afterwards without a lecture
Who it's for
For children who want friends.
Who it's for
Primary school-aged children who want friends and aren't managing it, with a parent who can be involved each week.
Where it may not be the right start
A child who is genuinely content on their own, or a family who can't do the between-session work. If that's the case, we'll say so and talk about what fits. For a child who isn't yet comfortable in a group, our online gaming clubs often come first.
Where it fits
Part of our primary school program.
Children's Friendship Training sits inside The Adventurers, alongside online gaming clubs, holiday activities, LiftOff and functional assessment.
Common questions
What people usually ask.
Anything else, ask us on the call.
How involved do I need to be?
Every week. You're trained alongside your child and do the coaching between sessions. That's how the skills reach the playground.
Is it online?
Yes, so it works wherever you live.
What if my child won't join a group?
That's common. The online gaming clubs are often where we start, so your child gets comfortable in a group before anything structured.
Take the first step
Let's talk about your child.
Request a call back and one of our team will ring you at a time that suits. It takes about fifteen minutes, it's free, and you don't need anything worked out before we speak.