Q: Can you tell me about your services?

A: We specialize in providing Applied Behavior Analysis services to children with autism, PDD or other developmental disabilities, as well as children with behavioral difficulties.

We have several different programs for different needs. We have a behavioral service department and a private school. Through the behavioral service department, we provide home and community based services as well as clinic-based services. The therapist can work with your child 1:1 while providing parent or caregiver training. We can provide the services in the settings where your child needs them the most such as at home, at his or her school and in the community. You child can also come to our clinic for 1:1 therapy. At our clinic, we also offer social and play skills groups. The focus of the social skills training program is to teach social interaction and communication.

Our school is a full time school using ABA as the teaching method. We use a verbal behavior approach with a focus on teaching language and other beginning learner skills (learn how to learn). We work on language, cognitive, academic, social skills, self care and motor skills. Our main curriculum is ABLLS (Assessment of Basic Language and Learning Skills) and we also use other curriculums such as Reading Mastery, Touch Math, etc. Each student has an individual education plan that addresses his/her unique needs.

Q: What is ABA?

A: ABA stands for Applied Behavior Analysis. It is the scientific study of human behaviors. It emphasizes on the careful observation and measurement of behaviors of interest, and the environmental factors that affect the behaviors. ABA focuses on explaining behaviors in terms of external events that can be manipulated rather than internal constructs that are beyond our control. Behavior means anything we do or say, which includes talking, reading, writing, social interaction, etc. It does not just mean negative behaviors. A vast amount of research studies have documented the effectiveness of ABA across a wide range of populations, interventionist, settings and behaviors.

ABA is effective in teaching a variety of skills such as academics, social skills, communication, eating, toileting, dressing, personal self-care, domestic skills, food preparation, money and value, home and community orientation, and work skills.

ABA is also the most effective approach in reducing many problem behaviors such as aggression, oppositional behaviors, disruptive behaviors, self-injurious behaviors, and stereotyped behaviors.

Q: How long has your company been established?

A: Interventions Unlimited was established in 2000. At the request of many parents, Interventions Unlimited Academy opened in 2007.

Q: My child has autism and my doctor recommended ABA, how does it work with my child?

A: It is the most effective intervention proven by research for children with autism. It is recommended by CDC, surgeon general and endorsed by many credible organizations. It is the only treatment that has been endorsed by the New York State Department of Mental Health as having sufficient research to be recommended as a method for children under three who have been diagnosed with autism.

Behavior analysts know how to utilize your child’s motivation effectively to help them to become more motivated learners. Children with autism can learn many skills, but they are usually challenging to teach. Behavior Analysts have the tools to teach them effectively by using many effective teaching methods, such as reinforcement, shaping, breaking skills into small manageable units, using prompts and fading prompts effectively, etc.

We use a behavioral approach to teach many skills such as language, cognitive, social, self care and motor skills. We have been very effective in working with these children. We focus heavily on teaching language and beginning learner skills using a verbal behavior approach.

Many children with autism have problem behaviors that can interfere with their learning. We will analyze these behaviors and develop a behavior intervention plan to decrease these behaviors. We train the caregivers in using these behavioral strategies so that the behaviors will decrease across all settings.

Parents are a big part of the ABA therapy. We strongly encourage parents to be active participants during the therapy process and follow through with our suggestions.

We carefully measure the progress through data collection and use data to guide our treatment approach.

Q: My child does not have autism and is a typically developing child, can ABA be effective with him?

A: ABA has very wide applications. It has been effectively applied in many areas such as helping people stop smoking, increasing safe driving, increasing worker productivity, etc. Behavior Analysis is especially useful helping children reach their full potential. It offers tools to help improve parent-child interaction, improve children’s behaviors in various settings, and improve school performance. ABA can be an effective approach for children with or without disabilities.

Q: My child has seen a counselor for a long time. How is your therapy different?

A: We are very different from traditional counseling. Counseling usually focuses on the child and the counselors talk to the child during most of the treatment process to get the child to change his mind, attitude and personality, etc.

We focus on the behavior itself and the environment in which it takes place. The environment includes the physical environment and the social environment. The behaviors are learned and shaped by the environment and the people who interact with the child. We analyze how other people respond to the behaviors and how the behaviors work for the child. We then design strategies and intervention plans to teach caregivers how to interact with the child in a different way that promotes positive behaviors and discourage negative behaviors, so that negative behaviors stop working for your child and will decrease. Parents and caregivers are a huge part in changing the child’s behaviors. For the child’s behaviors to change, the people who interact with the child have to change their behaviors first. If we keep doing things the same way, we always get the same results.

We treat a variety of problem behaviors such as aggression, tantrums, noncompliance, disruptive behaviors, self injurious behaviors, eating problems, etc.

Q: Can the therapist work with my child in his school?

A: Yes, as long as the school is open for us to provide services there, we will work with your child and the teacher at the school.

Q: How do I get started with your services?

A: First, we do an evaluation. It is a preliminary evaluation which allows us to assess your child’s strengths and weaknesses and your main concerns. It gives us an idea where we need to start with your child and recommend which one of our programs will best suit his/her needs and how many hours of therapy per week will be appropriate to achieve the outcomes you desire.

During the evaluation, the therapist will interact with your child and ask you many questions. After the evaluation, the therapist will discuss the recommendations with you and send you a written report. If you would like to start services after the evaluation, we will set up the schedule for therapy with you. The therapy is usually on a weekly basis as we know consistency is the key to success.

Q: How do I set up an evaluation?

A: Please call our office to set up the evaluation.

Q: I’m interested in the play and social skills group, can you tell me something about it?

A: The groups meet once a week for 1 hr. The children are grouped by their age and functioning levels. The groups focus on social interaction such as initiating interaction and responding to interactions from peers, playing cooperatively with peers, turn taking, accepting winning and losing appropriately, attending to nonverbal cues from peers, and responding to nonverbal cues appropriately, etc.

Q: What’s the qualification of your therapists?

A: Majority of our therapists are Board Certified Behavior Analysts or Board Certified Assistant Behavior Analysts with extensive experience in working with children with various needs. Our therapists receive on-going training and supervision to ensure that we provide high quality services.

Q: Do you accept insurance?

A: Yes, we do accept many insurance plans and will file claims on your behalf. Please call Jing at our office if you have questions regarding insurance coverage and state mandates on coverage for children on the Autism Spectrum.

Q: Why is your agency highly referred?

A: The quality of our services speaks for itself. Over the past 10 years, we have grown to be a leader in providing Applied Behavior Analysis services in the central Florida area. However, our focus is always on the quality and will never suffer our quality for the sake of growth. We give tremendous amount of care to every child and family that we work with. From our therapists to office staff, we maintain a high level of professionalism in our interaction with the children and their parents. We have high customer satisfaction ratings. Many children have been receiving services from us for many years and parents always return to us when they need our expertise. Our therapists are highly skilled professionals and receive on-going training and supervision. We are strongly referred by other professionals in the community such as developmental pediatricians, pediatric neurologists, neuropsychologists, school psychologists, speech therapists, and occupational therapists.

Questions About Our School:

Q: How can I apply for McKay scholarship for my child?

A: You can find out eligibility information and how to file an intent from the McKay website www.floridaschoolchoice.org or you can go to our website, click “school”, then click on “McKay,” which will take you to the McKay site. Please pay attention to the “important deadlines” regarding McKay scholarship.

Q: Are the teachers certified?

A: Our teachers and assistants are all trained in ABA and most of our teachers are also certified exceptional education teachers. As our school is an ABA school, training in ABA is required for all of the personnel working with our students. They also receive on-going training and supervision.

Q: Is there an open communication between your school and parents?

A: We maintain an open communication with the parents through daily notes, quarterly progress reports, parent teacher meetings, emails, etc. Parents can always call their child’s teacher during non-instructional time to discuss their concerns. They are also welcome to discuss concerns with our Principal or the Director if they can not address their concerns with the child’s teacher. Parents can also schedule observations of their child’s instruction. As we are a small private school, we are able to give a lot of attention to each student and to the parents as well.

Q. Do you run background checks and/or fingerprinting on all staff members working at your facility?

A: Yes, all of our employees, interns and volunteers undergo background checks.

Q. What are the program components of your school?

A: Our programs are highly individualized. It focuses on the child, rather than fitting the child to a certain program. If the child is not learning, we are not teaching. If a child is not making progress, we look into how we can teach differently to ensure progress. Each child has a comprehensive educational plan which addresses skills in language, social interaction, academic and independent functioning. Our program is also data driven. We constantly collect data on student performance which allows us to make decisions that are objective.