Is there something like a life skills or a social skills coach for NT kids??

[Anonymous]

I recently had my tween evaluated and she came back as high IQ with generalized anxiety and no other diagnosis. She was okay socially at her old school, but has had social problems ever since she switched elementary schools a couple years ago. While she’s not the most socially apt, she’s within the range of normal for kids in her grade (5th). But she tends to get criticized for things other kids do not, or more harshly, because she’s too nice & doesn’t stand up for herself / doesn’t have the protection of a clique / other girls sense she’s weak, and so on.

DD confides in me and I try to help her by giving her advice, but I’m wondering if there are professionals out there who are trained in providing help to kids in social situations? DD goes to therapy, and while it is helpful for DD’s anxiety, I do not think it helps at all with the root cause of the anxiety, which is sticky social situations. The therapist tells me that she encourages DD to “maintain boundaries,” but I can tell that the therapist does not like getting into the weeds of these situations and how to react in this or that situation. While I’m not planning to drop therapy, I’m starting to feel that it is more a band-aid than anything else.

I remember hearing about a shyness institute for kids, and am wondering if they have something like this for kids who need social skills help in general. I talked to the psychologist who administered the neuropsych eval, and she said she knows only of social skills workshops to teach basic social skills to kids who are neurodivergent and that these would not be appropriate for DD.

I am happy to continue to support DD and be her confidante, but I think especially as she gets in to puberty, she may want advice from someone who is not her parent.

[Anonymous]

Check outschool for social skills classes. My DC liked those better than the books.

[Anonymous]

Your child is technically NeuroDiverse if they have anxiety. There’s all sorts of different classes around the DMV with all sorts of different kids. Make sure to talk with the facilitator in advance to get a sense of what they work on and if it’s a good fit. I would recommend PEERS off the cuff and I would move over to SN forum. Lots of social skills classes/options discussed there.

And regarding PP outschool has some great offerings, but it really depends on your kid. My anxiety kid needed in person – – the online classes really did not help. She just never really participated and it was easy to do so online.

[Anonymous]

The social thinking curriculum is good. I have used parts of it with many students

[Anonymous]

Cotillion.

[Anonymous]

I second PEERS but I think it may be tough to find a group that is tween-focused (I have heard of it mostly for high schoolers).

[Anonymous]

I think maturity and experiences will take care of this.

Signing your neurotypical kid up for a class like this is basically telling them they they aren’t normal. And the class will be filled with kids that are not neurotypical.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Your child is technically NeuroDiverse if they have anxiety. There’s all sorts of different classes around the DMV with all sorts of different kids. Make sure to talk with the facilitator in advance to get a sense of what they work on and if it’s a good fit. I would recommend PEERS off the cuff and I would move over to SN forum. Lots of social skills classes/options discussed there.

And regarding PP outschool has some great offerings, but it really depends on your kid. My anxiety kid needed in person – – the online classes really did not help. She just never really participated and it was easy to do so online.

I wasn’t aware that anxiety = ND, thanks for letting me know. Thank you for the advice! I will ask around about different class options.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Check outschool for social skills classes. My DC liked those better than the books.

My kid has read all sorts of books on social skills, so I think she knows what to do in theory, it’s more about putting the theory into practice. That’s why I think in-person would be better, but these classes are hard to find. Did you and your DC find the outschool classes very helpful despite not being in person?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The social thinking curriculum is good. I have used parts of it with many students

Thanks, I’ll look into it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Your child is technically NeuroDiverse if they have anxiety. There’s all sorts of different classes around the DMV with all sorts of different kids. Make sure to talk with the facilitator in advance to get a sense of what they work on and if it’s a good fit. I would recommend PEERS off the cuff and I would move over to SN forum. Lots of social skills classes/options discussed there.

And regarding PP outschool has some great offerings, but it really depends on your kid. My anxiety kid needed in person – – the online classes really did not help. She just never really participated and it was easy to do so online.

+1 Since when is a kid diagnosed with anxiety neurotypical?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I think maturity and experiences will take care of this.

Signing your neurotypical kid up for a class like this is basically telling them they they aren’t normal. And the class will be filled with kids that are not neurotypical.

My kid is gifted, which is considered a form of neurodivergence. The psychologist also explained that children with this level of IQ typically are behind socially. But that notwithstanding, I don’t talk to my kids about them or so-and-so being normal or abnormal. I do wonder though if I’ll be able to find a class that will be a good fit for her, given that they are probably geared towards more basic social skills teaching than my kid needs.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Your child is technically NeuroDiverse if they have anxiety. There’s all sorts of different classes around the DMV with all sorts of different kids. Make sure to talk with the facilitator in advance to get a sense of what they work on and if it’s a good fit. I would recommend PEERS off the cuff and I would move over to SN forum. Lots of social skills classes/options discussed there.

And regarding PP outschool has some great offerings, but it really depends on your kid. My anxiety kid needed in person – – the online classes really did not help. She just never really participated and it was easy to do so online.

+1 Since when is a kid diagnosed with anxiety neurotypical?

Google AI is telling me that anxiety is not considered a neurodivergent trait, but that it’s often intertwined with neurodivergence, which is what’s going on with DD.