What to Expect

Learning through meaningful, everyday experiences.

ABA therapy doesn’t have to look like sitting at a table completing worksheets or running through flashcards. Depending on your child’s needs and goals, sessions may include play, conversation, movement, structured learning activities, and practice with everyday routines.

Our team uses a combination of teaching approaches to help children develop skills that are meaningful to their lives.

Sessions may include:

• Play-based learning: Practicing communication, turn-taking, sharing, flexibility, and social interaction through toys, games, and activities.
• Structured teaching: Breaking new skills into manageable steps and providing individualized instruction, prompting, and reinforcement.
• Natural environment teaching: Teaching skills during naturally occurring opportunities, such as requesting a snack, asking for help, or participating in play.
• Daily living activities: Practicing skills such as dressing, hygiene, cleaning up, and completing routines when appropriate to the child’s treatment plan and approved by insurance.
• Communication practice: Supporting children in expressing their wants, needs, preferences, feelings, and boundaries using their individual communication methods.
• Caregiver collaboration: Helping parents and caregivers understand strategies that can support their child’s progress beyond therapy sessions.

Each session is guided by your child’s individualized treatment plan. Our team monitors progress, adjusts teaching strategies as needed, and works toward helping skills generalize to everyday life.

Our goal isn’t simply to help a child succeed during therapy. It’s to help them use what they learn in the places and situations that matter to them.

The right schedule depends on the individual child.

There is no single schedule or minimum number of hours that is right for every child. Recommended service hours depend on the child’s assessment results, treatment goals, individual needs, family priorities, and the level of support clinically indicated.

Some children may benefit from more frequent, intensive services, while others may have different treatment needs. Your BCBA will work with you to develop recommendations based on your child’s circumstances and clinical needs.

When determining a schedule, we consider factors such as:

• Family routines, caregiver participation, and practical scheduling considerations.
• Your child’s current skills and treatment goals.
• The areas of development or daily functioning that need support.
• Your child’s tolerance for and response to treatment.
• Insurance requirements and authorized service hours.
• Progress over time and the need to adjust treatment.

We believe families deserve an individualized conversation about service recommendations. We will explain the clinical reasoning behind our recommendations and work with you to discuss a schedule that is appropriate for your child and family. As such, we do not require a minimum number of hours to receive services at SSABA.

Our focus is on providing effective, individualized treatment—not assuming that every child needs the same number of hours.

ABA therapy involves collaboration between trained professionals and the people who know your child best. At Stepping Stones ABA, each team member plays an important role in supporting your child’s progress.

Board Certified Behavior Analyst (BCBA)

Your BCBA is responsible for the clinical direction of ABA services. They assess your child’s skills and needs, develop and oversee the treatment plan, analyze progress data, provide clinical supervision and caregiver training, and adjust treatment strategies when needed. Your BCBA also collaborates with caregivers to ensure goals remain meaningful and individualized.

Registered Behavior Technician (RBT)

Your RBT works directly with your child to implement the individualized treatment plan under BCBA supervision. RBTs teach targeted skills, create opportunities for learning, collect data, and help children practice skills through structured activities and everyday interactions.

Caregivers and Family Members

Parents and caregivers are essential partners in the treatment process. You know your child, your family’s routines, and your priorities better than anyone. Your involvement helps us select meaningful goals, understand what works at home, and support the use of skills across people and settings. Caregiver participation is individualized to your child’s treatment plan and clinical needs.

Administrative and Support Staff

Our administrative team helps coordinate communication, scheduling, intake paperwork, and other operational needs. They help keep the process organized so families know whom to contact when questions arise.

Together, the team works toward a common goal: helping your child build skills that support greater independence, communication, participation, and quality of life.

Skills that make a meaningful difference in everyday life.

ABA therapy can support many different skills, depending on a child’s individual strengths, needs, preferences, and treatment goals. At Stepping Stones ABA, we focus on skills that are meaningful, socially significant, and relevant to the child’s everyday experiences.

Examples include:

• Communication
  • Expressing needs, feelings, choices, and preferences
  • Answering and asking questions
  • Using vocal speech, gestures, sign language, or augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) to communicate to others
• Social Interaction
  • Participating in games and shared activities
  • Developing friendships and navigating peer interactions
  • Understanding personal boundaries, consent, and other people’s perspectives
• Daily Living and Independence
  • Dressing and personal hygiene
  • Completing daily routines
  • Building age-appropriate independence across settings
• Emotional Regulation and Coping
  • Communicating frustration or discomfort
  • Navigating changes in routines
  • Developing individualized strategies for managing difficult situations safely and effectively
• Learning and Functional Skills
  • Developing attention and engagement with meaningful activities
  • Learning new skills through structured and naturalistic teaching
  • Building problem-solving, flexibility, and decision-making skills
• Safety and Self-Advocacy
  • Identifying trusted people and asking for help
  • Learning to express refusal, preferences, and boundaries
  • Developing appropriate safety skills for home and community settings

Not every child needs support in every area. Goals are selected through individualized assessment and collaboration with caregivers. We prioritize meaningful skill development, respect for the child’s communication and autonomy, and strategies that support dignity and quality of life.