EARLY CHILDHOOD PROGRAM (ECP)

Blue Arc’s Early Childhood Program (ECP) offers a safe and inclusive environment for children with special learning needs to grow, learn, and explore!

EARLY CHILDHOOD PROGRAM (ECP)

Blue Arc’s Early Childhood Program (ECP) offers a safe and inclusive environment for children with special learning needs to grow, learn, and explore!

Our learners receive one-to-one instruction and intervention in a group setting, allowing them to benefit from individualized attention, peer socialization, and classroom conditioning.

Early intervention is critical to a special needs child’s ability to cope with the ambiguity of the natural world around them. Beginning their learning journey with a one-on-one experience shaped to address their individual needs and bolster their individual strengths can be key to their motivation and success in school. It gives them the opportunity to catch up with their peers before falling behind!

With this level of individual attention, you can rest confident that your child will be able to start elementary with less restrictive supports in place than may have been necessary before your time with us.

Blue Arc’s Early Childhood Program (ECP) is directed and led by a passionate team of behavior analysts, each of whom are certified by the Behavior Analyst Certification Board and licensed by the Virginia Board of Medicine.

You may hear them referred to as your BCBA or LBA. Each child receives an individualized treatment plan designed and managed by one of our BCBAs and implemented by one of our board-certified Registered Behavior Technicians (RBTs).

Blue Arc’s Early Childhood Program (ECP) is directed and led by a passionate team of behavior analysts, each of whom are certified by the Behavior Analyst Certification Board and licensed by the Virginia Board of Medicine.

You may hear them referred to as your BCBA or LBA. Each child receives an individualized treatment plan designed and managed by one of our BCBAs and implemented by one of our board-certified Registered Behavior Technicians (RBTs).

We have full-day and half-day programs available for children ages 18 months to 6 years. We also offer enrollment to children 6-8 years of age who are homeschooled and have the flexibility to join us during the day.

Most families will opt to pursue an early education with us in lieu of a typical pre-K program. Our Early Childhood Program (ECP) looks a lot like preschool with a fun and educational curriculum that includes 1:1 teaching, group learning, lunch, recess, trips to the park, and art, music, and movement breaks!

Children with a formal DSM diagnosis (i.e. Autism, ADHD, PDD-NOS) can access our program with insurance coverage. For children without a formal diagnosis, please contact us to discuss private pay rates.

Keep reading to learn more about Blue Arc’s ECP!

“But let us not wait any longer to get on the right side of history.”

- Dr. Gregory Hanley

Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) is considered the Gold Standard for the treatment of Autism Spectrum Disorders. However, some of the common practices used in traditional ABA therapy have caused families of children with autism to lose hope in ABA as a moral, trustworthy, and reliable treatment option. And rightfully so.

Today’s ABA is a contemporary and compassionate version of Applied Behavior Analysis that starts with trust and understanding.

We do not dominate a child who is engaging in challenging behavior or coerce positive behavior from a child. Rather we listen, learn, guide, and coach.

And because it is not enough to merely redirect and manage, we instead find ways to understand, share, and shape. Safety, rapport, and the televisability of what we do is our utmost priority.

“The themes of I see you, I hear you, I understand you, and I am here for you persist throughout the entire process.”

- Dr. Gregory Hanley

Today’s ABA is the cornerstone of our Early Childhood Program. We invest ourselves in discovering everything a child loves and using what a child chooses to share with us to create a safe space where it is, dare I say, easy to be happy, relaxed, and engaged.

By teaching from joy, we empower each child to reach their greatest potential on their own terms.

Once we understand what a child loves about the world around them, we use Skill Based Treatment (SBT) to facilitate the functional communication, tolerance, coping and cooperation skills that are foundational to learning in a mainstream classroom surrounded by same-aged peers.

“The path to a joyous lifestyle for families with autistic persons is paved with skills. The big pavers are play/leisure skills, communication, toleration, and cooperation.”

- Dr. Gregory Hanley

“The path to a joyous lifestyle for families with autistic persons is paved with skills. The big pavers are play/leisure skills, communication, toleration, and cooperation.”

- Dr. Gregory Hanley

Once we understand what a child loves about the world around them, we use Skill Based Treatment (SBT) to facilitate the functional communication, tolerance, coping and cooperation skills that are foundational to learning in a mainstream classroom surrounded by same-aged peers.

"Once these are set, the branching paths are endless."

- Dr. Gregory Hanley

With the foundational skills required for a joyous life firmly established, we begin to use Discrete Trial Instruction (DTI), Natural Environment Teaching (NET), and Pivotal Response Treatment (PRT) to strengthen the pre-academic and social-communication skills which help children to be successful both in elementary school and outside of the classroom.