Crossroads Center For Children

PRESCHOOL

Crossroads Center for Children offers five integrated preschool classrooms that operate five and one-half hours each day, Monday through Friday. Children are placed in classrooms based on their individual strengths and needs. Each classroom provides unique learning opportunities that are matched to the skills of the students. Each classroom offers a continuum of services suited to meet the spectrum of needs that students with autism present with. For example, the kindergarten readiness room focuses on academics, social skills and self-management. Students in this room receive instruction mainly in small and large groups with zero to one hour of individualized instruction. This is in contrast to another preschool room that focuses on behavior management and functional communication. The latter example, students are less prepared to learn incidentally and instead, receive greater practice and repetition through two to three hours of individualized instruction and a lower frequency of small groups. Although the intensity varies from classroom to classroom, each works on the development of language skills, small group instruction, social skills, academic skills and self-management. The goal of Crossroads Center for Children is to transition preschoolers into their home school district. As such, our program aims to prepare students for typical school activities such as learning to buy lunch and attending field trips so that they may be prepared for a less restrictive placement.

Crossroads Center for Children has an open door policy to encourage parents to observe their child while in program. The program also encourages parents to visit school for parent trainings. Parents can watch their child participate in related services sessions as well as daily classroom activities. At the same time therapists will teach parents the skills necessary to implement programs. This carryover promotes the generalization of skills.