Autism Programs

Social ABCs: Parent-Mediated Early Intervention Program

Social ABCs is an evidence-based caregiver-mediated intervention for toddlers with suspected or confirmed autism or related social-communication challenges. Developed by a team of Canadian researchers, including Holland Bloorview’s own, Dr. Jessica Brian, it is considered to be a Naturalistic Developmental Behavioural Intervention (NDBI).

NDBIs are evidence-based interventions recommended for toddlers with autism, designed to be implemented in natural settings, that build on the child’s interests and motivation, make use of natural opportunities for learning, and use a variety of applied behaviour analysis (ABA) strategies to teach developmentally appropriate skills.

We offer a unique parent training experience where caregivers are viewed as the experts and are coached and supported by highly qualified parent coaches. The content of our service is developmental in nature and involves education and coaching around building communication skills, emotion regulation, managing challenging behaviours, sharing positive emotion with your toddler, how to encourage play and create social routines, as well as the importance of caregiver self-care.

Eligibility Criteria:

• Families of toddlers between the ages of 12-36 months

• Toddlers who have been flagged by a pediatrician, family doctor, or Psychologist as experiencing social communication delays or autism

• Toddlers must be able to move independently (e.g. scoot, crawl, walk, etc.).

• One parent/caregiver per child will be coached.  The same parent/caregiver must be available for all sessions. 

• Program delivery is in English-only at this time. Parents/caregivers must feel confident learning and communicating with their toddler in English, even if a different language is spoken at home.

The 6-week Virtual Social ABCs Program includes:

• 6 group parent/caregiver education sessions (1.5 hours each)

• 9 individual parent/caregiver-child live coaching sessions (1 hour each)

• 1 individual parent/caregiver introductory session (30 min)

Where: All group and individual sessions take online through the Zoom platform

When:

Group parent educations sessions: The group parent educations sessions (didactics) will take place weekly.

Individual parent-child virtual live coaching sessions: To be scheduled individually with Social ABCs parent coach, Mon-Fri during business hours

Cost: $2500

Parent Coaches: Kate Perry, Speech-Language Pathologist & Social ABCs Parent Coach, and Dr. Abbie Solish, Clinical Psychologist, Ph.D., C.Psych

Please contact Leah Wong (416-425-6220 ext. 3832) prior to registering for the program, and for further details/questions.

To register for this program, click here.