Younger Social-Emotional Group (Ages 5–8) 

Is your child still learning to identify emotions, maintain safety in community settings, and confidently engage with peers? 
Join us for a 7-week social-emotional group to help your child grow social awareness and emotional understanding through guided play and activities. Lead by 1 occupational therapist and 1 speech therapist. 

Focus Areas: 

• Reading body language 

• Identifying emotions 

• Safety awareness 

• Peer engagement & play 

Older Social-Emotional Group (Ages 9–12) 

Does your child find it hard to manage big emotions, confidently engage with peers, and struggle to participate in group activities? 
Join us for a 7-week social-emotional group to help pre-teens strengthen teamwork, communication, and self-advocacy skills. Lead by 1 occupational therapist and 1 speech therapist. 

Focus Areas: 

• Emotional regulation 

• Team building 

• Social conversation 

• Confidence & self-advocacy 

Is your child a picky eater or struggle with eating? 
Join us for a 7-week feeding group to explore food with your child to make mealtimes more positive, curious, and fun. Lead by 1 occupational therapist and 1 speech therapist.

Focus Areas: 

• Build curiosity about new foods 

• Create positive food experiences 

• Establish family mealtime routines 

• Learn strategies for home 

Frequently Asked Questions 

1. Where and when will group therapy take place? 
   • Group therapies will be completed in the Community Engagement Center and the barn. These therapies are currently expected to begin on March 2, 2026. Each session cycle will last 7-weeks, meeting for 1 hour each week. 
   • For Feeding Group ages 5-8, caregivers are expected to participate in sessions. 
2. How do I sign my kiddo up for group therapy? 
   • Currently, Children's TherAplay is collecting forms to gauge interest in our therapies, families are not yet able to officially sign up. If you are interested, please fill out the form here! 
   • Once group therapies become available, parents/caregivers will need to fill out an intake form for each kiddo they wish to sign up. Intake forms will then be reviewed by the Lead Therapist to ensure that your child is a good fit for the group. We will also require a script from a physician to participate. 
   • This is a first come, first serve opportunity. We will move through the waitlist for each group therapy session cycle. Children may go through the group therapy muliple times, but they will go to the bottom of the waitlist once they have completed the group once. 
3. Will horses be used in group therapy? 
   • Yes! Each group will complete 15 minute Theraputic Animal Assisted Groundwork (TAAG) sessions as part of their weekly group therapy. Due to space limitations in our arena, we will not be integrating our typical hippotherapy into group therapy. Nonetheless, kiddos will get to engage with the horses in a setting that is suitable for groups and offers the wonderful benefits of animal assisted therapy. 

Confirm It's A Fit

Before filling out the intake form, read through our critera for Group Therapy to confirm your child is a good fit. 

General:

• Child age is between 5-12 years old 
• Child is medically stable for outpatient group therapy 
• There are no medical contraindications to planned activities for group therapy
• Child does not demonstrate unsafe behavior near animals
• Child is able to maintain safe behaviors with self and others when provided minimal supports
• Child can follow simple directions with minimal to moderate supports (younger) 
• Child can follow directions with minimal to moderate supports (older) 
• Child does not require 1:1 supports to remain safe
• Team can support child’s communication method in a group of 5-6 children 
• Child can move between activities every 5-15 minutes with minimal to moderate supports (younger) 
• Child can move between activities every 5-15 minutes with minimal supports (older) 
• Child can engage in group activities for 50 minutes with minimal to moderate prompts and supports

Movement Group:

• Child has a medical diagnosis that impacts their motor and body awareness skills
• Motor and body awareness goals can be effectively addressed in a group setting
• Child has a medical diagnosis that impacts their motor and body awareness skills
• Transfers and positioning can be performed safely with available staff and equipment 
• Child can participate in group movement games, obstacle courses, or activities with minimal to moderate support

Social-Emotional Group: 

• Child has a medical diagnosis that impacts their social communication and/or emotional regulation
• Social communication and/or emotional regulation goals can be effectively addressed in a group setting 
• Child can tolderate sensory stimulation (visual, auditory, tactile, etc.) in a group of children

Feeding Group:

• Child has a medical diagnosis that impacts their feeding skills 
• Feeding goals can be effectively addressed in a group setting with caregiver involvement 
• Caregiver can attend and participate in sessions as required