Trumpet Behavioral Health is committed to providing the highest-quality autism therapy for children of all ages, including teens and adolescents. Our team is especially skilled in serving individuals with autism in this age group, and we’ve published several peer-reviewed articles about targeting skills within this age range. Learn more about our world-class Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) therapy for teens and adolescents with autism.
Read More: Autism Treatment At All Ages
Targeted Skill Development For Teens With Autism
At Trumpet, we create every individual’s autism treatment plan to meet their specific needs. The ABA therapy plans we develop for our teens or adolescents are customized to target the skills that will make the biggest impact on their life.
Those plans may include some of the following skill areas:
- Abduction Prevention (i.e., “Stranger danger”)
- Navigating the outdoor world (e.g., crossing the street safely and responding to street signs)
- Shaving, showering, and other hygiene skills
- Nighttime routines
- Medical compliance (e.g., taking medications, wearing a hearing aid or glasses, dental procedures, etc.)
- Personal safety
- Time management
- Social Skills
Helping Adolescents With Autism Develop Social Skills
Many individuals with autism benefit from learning social skills, since it can be difficult to understand the nuances of social interactions. Using ABA teaching methods, Trumpet has developed an entire library of therapy programs that target social skills aimed at teens and adolescents. As experts in adolescent autism therapy, these programs have been developed internally and are unique to Trumpet Behavioral Health’s service offerings. Some of the most commonly-taught social skills from our internal library include:
- Accepting criticism
- Active listening
- Apologizing
- Disagreeing appropriately
How Trumpet Teaches Social Skills
Social skills are complex, but using ABA practices, our team is able to make a positive impact in the lives of teens with autism. We use a variety of methods to teach social skills, including Behavioral Skills Training (BST) which consists of describing behaviors, modeling, practicing, and providing feedback until the individual is able to use the skill under a variety of conditions and scenarios. We offer 1:1 training to help individuals understand the concept, as well as group therapy, which allows teens to role play situations and their responses with their peers.
Teaching Independent Living Skills To Adolescents With Autism
We use a similar method to teach independent living skills. By describing, modeling, prompting, providing real-world practice, and giving feedback and reinforcement, we’ve helped hundreds of adolescents become more independent. We’ve created over 200 programs focusing on independent living skills and self-help can be used to target your child’s unique skill level. Some of these programs include:
- Cooking
- Feeding pets
- Washing clothes
- Washing hands
- Getting dressed
- Brushing teeth
Trumpet is here to support your family in your journey with autism. Whether your child has grown up with us or comes to us as a teen, we’ll use our specialized experience to help them develop important skills and live their life to the fullest. To learn more about our ABA therapy services, contact us today or find an autism treatment center near you.