PEERS® Social Skills Program
PEERS® for Adolescents is an evidence-based social skills intervention for motivated teens in middle and high school who are interested in making and keeping friends and/or handling conflict and rejection. Teens and parents attend 12-weekly group sessions for 90 minutes per week.
The Program for the Education and Enrichment of Relational Skills (PEERS®) is world-renowned for providing evidence-based social skills treatment to preschoolers, adolescents, and young adults with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), anxiety, depression, and other socio-emotional problems.
The PEERS® social skills program for adolescents and young adults utilizes strategies such as direct didactic instruction, role-play to learn new skills, and increased awareness and management of cognitions. The innovation of PEERS® to other programmes is the intensive training of parents/carers, use of Socratic method, provision of real-world opportunities to develop skills and gain feedback in naturalistic settings, use of integrated role play/demonstration, behaviour rehearsal and experiential learning.
PEERS® groups focus on obtaining core social skills such as developing and maintaining friendships, improving conversational skills, entering and exiting group interactions, and handling teasing as well as losing when playing competitive games. Studies have demonstrated significant improvements in social ability following participation in the PEERS® intervention.
Teens will learn about:
What are the participation requirements?
How can I apply to participate?
When do groups meet?
Where do groups take place?
Who are the presenters?
The Program for the Education and Enrichment of Relational Skills (PEERS®) is world-renowned for providing evidence-based social skills treatment to preschoolers, adolescents, and young adults with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), anxiety, depression, and other socio-emotional problems.
The PEERS® social skills program for adolescents and young adults utilizes strategies such as direct didactic instruction, role-play to learn new skills, and increased awareness and management of cognitions. The innovation of PEERS® to other programmes is the intensive training of parents/carers, use of Socratic method, provision of real-world opportunities to develop skills and gain feedback in naturalistic settings, use of integrated role play/demonstration, behaviour rehearsal and experiential learning.
PEERS® groups focus on obtaining core social skills such as developing and maintaining friendships, improving conversational skills, entering and exiting group interactions, and handling teasing as well as losing when playing competitive games. Studies have demonstrated significant improvements in social ability following participation in the PEERS® intervention.
Teens will learn about:
- Developing and maintaining friendships
- Conversational skills
- Entering and exiting conversations
- Electronic communication
- Using humour appropriately
- Organising get-togethers
- Being a good sport
- Handling disagreements
- Changing a bad reputation
- Handling teasing and bullying
What are the participation requirements?
- Have friendship problems
- Teens in middle school or high school
- Teens must be interested in attending the program
- Teens must agree to participate in the program voluntarily
- Teens must consistently attend the program
- Parent must be willing to participate
How can I apply to participate?
- Contact our office at 0466 341 420 or [email protected] to complete a 15-minute phone screen with a member of our staff, and subsequently receive an enrolment packet.
- Complete and return your enrolment packet.
- Come to NQ Family Therapy Centre (parent and teen) for a 1.5-hour intake appointment with one of our clinicians to determine if our program is appropriate for you and your teen
When do groups meet?
- Duration: 12 weeks
- Planned Days: Mondays
- Planned Terms: Year Round
- Planned Frequency: Monday sessions: 4:00pm to 5:30pm
- PEERS 2025 begins on the Monday 3rd March and finishes on Monday 23rd June (2025)
- With no sessions on 24th March, 7th April, 14th April, 21st April, 19th May
Where do groups take place?
- NQ Family Therapy Centre - 140 Ross River Road, Mundingburra, Townsville
Who are the presenters?
- PEERS® Program will be presented by registered psychologists, provisional psychologists and educators.
To learn more
To find out more about PEERS Social Skills Programs, please contact our office via phone 0466 341 420 or email [email protected]