Services

Out of our knowledge, competency and love, we proudly offer the following services for you and your children:

Developmental
Assessments- (click here)
Cornerstone Autism Program (CAP)-
The behavior department uses only scientifically proven intervention. This program is designed as an early intervention program for children under 3 years of age who may or may not have a formal diagnosis of Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). The program is founded on the principles of the science called Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA). This method of intervention is scientifically validated and research based. Children receive intervention delivered by a behavior therapist utilizing a 1 to 1 ratio and incorporating research-based behavior strategies and methodologies. Supervisors monitor the child’s progress towards goals and observe individual behavior sessions to ensure quality programming and to determine any modifications or adaptations that are warranted. Services are provided in multiple settings depending on the unique needs of the child and family. Programming may be performed in the child’s home, community environments, preschool, and/or clinic. Cornerstone’s CAP intervention has a strong family focus with a comprehensive parent education component. Parents meet weekly with the child’s program supervisor to review behavior strategies, goals, progress, and parental concern. Parents are provided formal training in behavior strategies in order to become proficient in extinguishing less desirable behaviors while reinforcing socially appropriate alternative behaviors.

Behavioral Intervention Offered:
- Instructional Methodology and techniques based on the science of Applied Behavior Analysis to include:
  - Discrete Trial Training (DTT)
  - Pivotal Response Training
  - Early Start Denver Model
  - Other naturalistic ABA methods
- Assistance with the transition at age 3
- Staff attendance to the school district IEP meeting
- Constant interdisciplinary collaboration between speech/language therapists, occupational therapists, physical therapist, and behavior therapists.
Specific Features of the CAP Program:
The Early Start Denver Model:
Many treatments exist for young children with autism. The large majority of research conducted in interventions has been conducted on children over the age of three. Therefore, it is difficult to find empirical research proving the efficacy of intervention for toddlers. A new treatment model utilizing principles of the science of Applied Behavior Analysis (“ABA”) grew out of the limited research on toddlers. This treatment approach is called The Early Start Denver Model. It was developed by Dr. Sally Rogers, a leading researcher in early childhood cognitive, social, emotional, and behavioral development at the UC Davis M.I.N.D. Institute, and Dr. Geraldine Dawson, a developmental psychologist, autism researcher, and the Chief Science Officer of Autism Speaks. The Early Start Denver Model draws extensively from previous work in two well-known models for autism intervention: the Denver Model and Pivotal Response Training.

There are three main goals of treatment for young children with autism in the Early Start Denver Model:
1. Bringing the child into coordinated, interactive social relations for most of their waking hours, so that social attention, imitation and communication can be developed and learning through social experiences can occur.
2. Increasing the reward value of social engagement with others by choosing materials, activities, and routines that are enjoyable and interesting for children, by reading children’s cues and following children’s interests as we choose activities, and by developing play routines that add meaning and predictability for children.
3. Developing play activities into joint activity routines designed to build skills and “fill in” current learning deficits. The main skills that we focus on include teaching imitation, developing awareness of social interactions and reciprocity, teaching the power of communication, teaching a symbolic communication system, teaching more flexible, conventional and creative play with toys, and making the social world as understandable as the world of objects. Just as the typically developing toddler and preschooler spend virtually all their waking hours engaged in the social milieu and learning from it, the young child with autism needs to be drawn into the social milieu - a carefully prepared and planned milieu that the child can understand, predict, and participate in.
Our approach to young children with autism is based on the following empirically-validated set of beliefs and practices:
- Families should be at the helm of their children's treatment.
- Each child with autism and family is unique. Therefore, goals, interventions, and approaches must be individualized.
- Children with autism can be very successful learners. Lack of progress generally signals problems with the design and implementation of the educational activity rather than the inability of the child to learn.
- Autism is at its core a social disorder. Treatment for autism must focus on the social disability. This requires that relationships be at the core of treatment of children with autism and their families.
- Children are members of families and communities and need to have a role in family life and family and community activities.
- Children with autism have minds, opinions, preferences, choices, and feelings. They have a right to self-expression and some control of their world.
- Autism is complex disorder affecting virtually all areas of functioning; interdisciplinary professional guidance is needed to address the wide range of challenges that autism presents.
- Children with autism are capable of becoming intentional, effective, symbolic communicators and most children with autism can have useful, communicative speech when provided with appropriate interventions of sufficient intensity during the preschool years.
- Systematic instruction is a powerful tool for young children with autism. It involves concrete, well-written objectives that are accomplished through pre-planned instructional activities. Progress is measured through ongoing data collection on each targeted objective.
- Several intervention approaches for children with autism have demonstrated their effectiveness in certain instructional methodologies. A comprehensive, contemporary treatment approach must be able to draw from all the expertise available in the field.
- Play is one of the young child’s most powerful cognitive and social learning tools. Building play skills in young children with autism will maximize their capacity for independent learning.
- Intervention delivered in various settings and by various people.
- Intensity (i.e., number of hours of intervention by trained staff) must be individualized. There is no one best formula for all children.
- Ingredients for successful intervention:
  
  (a) Many opportunities for 1:1 intervention
  (b) Intervention provided by staff and family members skillful at delivering interventions
  (c) Careful delivery of target objectives
  (d) Use of progress data and ongoing assessment to adjust interventions in order to maximize rate of gain.
From http://www.ucdmc.ucdavis.edu/edsl/esdm

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Relevant research showing evidence-based treatments used by ABA staff:

Bondy, A.S., & Frost, L.A. (1994). The picture exchange communication system. Focus on Autistic Behavior, 9, 1-19.

Bristol, M.M., & Schopler, E. (1989). The family in the treatment of autism. In American Psychiatric Association (Ed.), Treatments of Psychiatric Disorders; a task force report of the American Psychiatric Association. (pp. 249-293). Washington: APA.

Dawson, G., & Osterling, J. (1997). Early intervention in autism. In M. J. Guralnick (Ed.), The effectiveness of early intervention: Second generation research. (pp. 307-651). Baltimore, MD: Brookes Publishing Co.

Koegel, L.K., Koegel, R.L., Shoshan, Y., & McNerney, E. (1999). Pivotal response intervention II: Preliminary long-term outcome data. Journal of The Association for Persons with Severe Handicaps, 24, 186-198.

McGee, G.G., Almeida, M.C., Sulzer-Azaroff, B., & Feldman, R.S. (1992). Promoting reciprocal interactions via peer incidental teaching. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 25, 117-126.

McEachin, J.J., Smith, T., and Lovaas, O.I. (1993). Long-term outcome for children with autism who received early intensive behavioral treatment. American Journal on Mental Retardation, 97, 359-72.

Ozonoff, S., & Cathcart, K. (1998). Effectiveness of a home program intervention for young children with autism. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 28(1), 25-32.

Rogers, S.J. (1998). Empirically supported comprehensive treatments for young children with autism. Journal of Clinical Child Psychology, 27(2), 168-179.

Rogers, S.J. (1999). An examination of the imitation deficit in autism. In J. Nadel & G. Butterworth (Eds.), Imitation in Infancy. (pp. 254-283). Cambridge, England: University of Cambridge Press.

Rogers, S.J. (1998). Neuropsychology of autism in young children and its implications for early intervention. Mental Retardation and Developmental Disabilities Research Reviews, 4(2), 104-112.

Rogers, S.J., & Vismara, L. (2008). Evidence-based comprehensive treatments for early autism. Journal of Clinical Child and Adolescent Psychology, 37(1), 8-38.

Schreibman, L., & Pierce, K.L. (1993). Achieving Greater Generalization of Treatment Effects in Children with Autism: Pivotal Response Training and Self-Management. The Clinical Psychologist, 46(4), 184-191.

Schreibman, L., Stahmer, A.C., & Pierce, K.L. (1996). Alternative applications of pivotal response training: Teaching symbolic play and social interaction skills. In L.K. Koegel, R.L. Koegel, & G. Dunlap (Eds.), Positive behavioral support: Including people with difficult behavior in the community (pp. 353-371). Baltimore: Paul H. Brookes Publishing Co.

Sheinkopf, S.J., & Siegel, B. (1998). Home based behavioral treatment of young autistic children. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 28(1), 15-24.

Smith, C.M., Rogers, S.J., & Dawson, G. (2007). The Early Start Denver Model: A comprehensive early intervention approach for toddlers with autism. In J.S. Handleman & S.L. Harris (Eds). Preschool Education Programs for Children with Autism. TX: Pro-ed.

Smith, T., Groen, A.D., & Wynn, J.W. (July 2000). Randomized trial of intensive early intervention for children with pervasive developmental disorder. American Journal of Mental Retardation, 105(4): 269-85.

Vaughn, B.J., Dunlap, G., Fox, L., Clarke, S., & Bucy, M. (1997). Parent-Professional Partnership in Behavioral Support: A Case Study of Community-Based Intervention. JASH, 22(4), 186-197.

Vismara, L.A., & Rogers, S.J. (2008). A new focus for parent education: Bridging the gap between diagnosis and intensive early intervention services. Perspectives on Language Learning and Education, 15, 60-66.

Recommended books:

Harris, S.L., & Handleman, J.S. (1994). Preschool education programs for children with autism. Austin, TX: Pro-Ed.

Harris, S.L., & Weiss, M.J. (1998). Right from the Start Behavioral Intervention for Young Children with Autism: A Guide for Parents and Professionals. Bethesda, MD: Woodbine House Inc.

Koegel, R.L., & Koegel, L.K. (1999). Teaching children with autism. Baltimore: Paul Brookes.

Recommended journal articles & book chapters:

Baker, M.J., Koegel, R.L., & Koegel, L.K. (1998). Increasing the social behaviors of young children with autism using their obsessive behaviors. Journal of The Association for Persons with Severe Handicaps, 23, 300-308.

Durand, V.M., Gernert-Dott, P., & Mapstone, E. (1996). Treatment of sleep disorders in children with developmental disabilities. The Journal of The Association for Persons with Severe Handicaps, 21(3), 114-123.

Ozonoff, S., Macari, S., Young, G.S., Goldring, S., Thompson, M., & Rogers, S.J. Atypical object exploration at 12 months of age is associated with autism in a prospective sample. Autism: An International Journal, 12(5), 457-472.

Rogers, S.J., Young, G.S., Cook, I., Giolzetti, A., & Ozonoff, S. Deferred and immediate imitation in regressive and early onset autism. The Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 49(4), 449-457.

Vivanti, G., Nadig, A.,Young, G.S., Ozonoff, S., Rogers, S.J. What do children with autism attend to during imitation tasks? Journal of Experimental Child Psychology, 101(3), 186-205.
Cornerstone Individual Program (CIP) -
This program addresses a child’s global development. If a child is delayed in more than one area, they will have more than one discipline providing services for their child. The program addresses needs in gross motor, fine motor, cognition, speech, activities of daily living, and psycho-social development. Services are provided in a one-on-one therapist to child ratio. The therapy takes place either in the clinic or in the natural environment. Each child’s specialized needs are taken into consideration when determining where therapy would best take place. This program is for children birth to three years of age.
Group Infant Stimulation Program -
Our group program is geared for pre-school children under three years of age. Parent participation is always welcomed but not required. The program meets on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday mornings from 9-11:30 am. It is a global (whole child) program which addresses a child’s needs in gross motor, fine motor, cognition, speech, feeding, oral motor, activities of daily living, and psycho-social areas of development. Children enrolled in the program have individual goals written for each area of development. The program is provided in a one-to-three ratio, with one adult to every three children. Our program includes typical peers to promote modeling of age appropriate social skills and additionally provide opportunities for appropriate peer interaction. Children who are enrolled in the CAP program may participate within the larger social infant stimulation program with their one on one behavior therapist if deemed to be beneficial.
Individual OT.
Occupational Therapy (OT) is the profession that addresses the “occupation” of living at any age. For instance, Occupational Therapy is used to help children with handwriting difficulties which include forming letters with correct spacing and size to succeed in their occupation, which is school. Occupational Therapists address self care, dressing, feeding, sensory regulation and modulation, grapho-motor skills, and fine motor skills. OT can help children master the “job of living” to become as independent in all environments.

It is provided by Licensed Occupational Therapists and Licensed Certified Occupational Therapy Assistants. Occupational Therapists are trained to assess sensory needs, functional levels, handwriting, feeding, and self help skills. OT sessions are tailored to meet each child’s unique needs. Occupational Therapists use a variety of modalities through developmentally appropriate play, arts/crafts, tabletop activities, life skills, sensory activities, strengthening, sensory integration, therapeutic listening, and games to facilitate a child’s optimal functional level.

Therapeutic Interventions Offered:
- Beckman Oral Motor Program
- Feeding: Sensory and Motor-Based Interventions
- Handwriting Without Tears
- How Does Your Engine Run?
- Neurodevelopmental Treatments
- Sensory Diets
- Sensory Integration Therapy
- Sensory Integration and Praxis Test (SIPT)
- Therapeutic Listening
Group OT

“The WRITE Stuff”
Our handwriting group is designed for school-age children to address fundamental pre-writing and writing skills necessary for increased success and independence in school. This class focuses on the development of fine motor skills through upper body and upper extremity strengthening activities. This class also specifically addresses the components of handwriting including spacing of letters, sizing, and letter formation, for increased speed and legibility of written work. The “Handwriting without Tears” program and specialized techniques are utilized in the handwriting group. The group is organized to match peers with similar skill levels in order to facilitate peer motivation and interaction. The group meets once weekly (for about six to eight weeks) and is led by occupational therapists and certified occupational therapy assistants. Please contact our office at (714) 962-6760 to set up an appointment for a screening or if you would like additional information.
“Yoga for Kids”
The Yoga group is designed for children ages 3-10 years old who could benefit from sensorimotor activities developed to improve motor development, balance, coordination, body awareness, flexibility, attention, and sensory processing. In addition, breathing exercises are introduced to help children with increasing self-awareness and self-regulation. Parents are welcome to participate along side with their children. This group meets once weekly and is led by occupational therapists and certified occupational therapy assistants trained in providing yoga services to children with special needs. The group typically runs four to six weeks. Please contact our office at (714) 962-6760 to set up an appointment for a screening or if you would like additional information.
“Get Up and Grow”
Come join a fun, energetic, group-format class where participation is a must! This class is developed for parents, caregivers, and their children. There are three groups with specific activities designed to address milestones and skills within each age group. Learn about normal development as we balance, climb, crawl, throw, catch, jump, and run during group sensory and motor activities. Therapeutic activities for infants 0-12 months will address development of head, neck, trunk, and hand control. Toddlers between the ages of 13-24 months will participate in activities challenging gross motor skills in addition to activities addressing motor planning skills, eye-hand coordination, jumping, kicking, balance, and running. Therapeutic activities for 25-36 month old children are designed to facilitate higher level gross motor skills as well as sensory processing and group games. These classes are led by occupational therapists and/or physical therapists. Please contact our office at (714) 962-6760 to set up an appointment for a screening or if you would like additional information.
“Food Network”
This class is designed to provide strategies for parents who are facing challenges during mealtimes. Parents are required to participate in this supportive group-format class. Topics vary per session and include strategies to help the “picky eater,” increasing variety of foods, nutrition, identifying healthy foods, portion size, volume intake, creating a positive atmosphere, learning how to self-feed, oral-motor activities, and more. This class has a 1:3 ratio of therapist to child and typically runs once weekly for six weeks. Please contact our office at (714) 962-6760 to set up an appointment for a screening or if you would like additional information.

Individual PT.
Pediatric Physical Therapy (PT) focuses on evaluation and treatment of children with gross motor limitations resulting from injury, disease, congenital conditions, or developmental delay, with an emphasis on movement dysfunction. The therapeutic intervention, provided by Licensed Physical Therapists and Licensed Physical Therapy Assistants, addresses muscle strength, range of motion, postural control, balance, motor planning, safety, and motor delays. These interventions help maximize a child’s ability to access his/her environment safely and as independently as possible, achieve motor milestones, and reach his/her fullest potential.

Physical Therapists assess a child’s individual needs, determine equipment needs, consult with caregivers, and use a team-oriented approach with other professionals to develop a plan of care specific to each child. They are trained in all stages of a child’s development and able to analyze movement. They use exercise, play, functional activities, games, therapeutic handling, and modalities as treatment techniques. Physical Therapists will continually motivate and challenge your child to reach his/her highest physical level.

Therapeutic Interventions Offered:

CranioSacral Therapy
Kinesiotaping
Neurodevelopmental Treatments
Theratogs

Group PT

“Get Up and Grow”
Come join a fun, energetic, group-format class where participation is a must! This class is developed for parents, caregivers, and their children. There are three groups with specific activities designed to address milestones and skills within each age group. Learn about normal development as we balance, climb, crawl, throw, catch, jump, and run during group sensory and motor activities. Therapeutic activities for infants 0-12 months will address development of head, neck, trunk, and hand control. Toddlers between the ages of 13-24 months will participate in activities challenging gross motor skills in addition to activities addressing motor planning skills, eye-hand coordination, jumping, kicking, balance, and running. Therapeutic activities for 25-36 month old children are designed to facilitate higher level gross motor skills as well as sensory processing and group games. These classes are led by occupational therapists and/or physical therapists. Please contact our office at (714) 962-6760 to set up an appointment for a screening or if you would like additional information.

Individual SP.
Speech and Language Therapy (SP) is the treatment of speech, language and cognitive disorders that hamper the person’s ability to process and use communication. Therapy should be conducted by a licensed speech and language pathologist and/or a licensed speech pathology assistant. Therapy may include work on speech (oral motor planning, articulation, phonology, volume, vocal quality, fluency, intonation, rate), receptive language (auditory processing, semantics, syntax, morphology), expressive language (morphology, syntax, semantics, pragmatics) as well as written forms of symbolic language such as reading and writing.

Licensed Speech and Language Pathologists will assess each child’s unique needs and create a treatment plan to address all areas of concern. Therapy for the younger child is primarily play based, helping the child to learn and use language within functional activities. An older child may have a combination of various styles of therapy in order to address specific speech and language difficulties that may be impacting overall communication and academic performance.

Therapeutic Interventions Offered:

Visualizing and Verbalizing for Language Comprehension and Thinking(Authored by Nanci Bell)

Picture Exchange Communication Systems (PECS)
(Developed by A. Bondy and L. Frost)
Prompts for Restructuring Oral Muscular Phonetic Targets (P.R.O.M.P.T)
(Developed by Deborah Heyden)
Hanen Courses: More Than Words, It Takes Two to Talk
Links to Language
(Developed by Marion Blank, Ph.D, Laura S. Mckirdy, Ph.D, CCC/SLP, Pamela C. Payne, M.S., CCC/SLP)
Sara Rosenfeld Johnson Oral Motor Programs: straw program, horn program, jaw treatment program
Social Thinking Curriculum
(Developed by Michelle Garcia Winner)

Group Speech -

Social Learning Groups

Children with social cognition deficits struggle to establish and maintain social interactions with others. According to research (Elliott, S. Gresham F. 2007) based on surveys of teachers, researchers identified the top 10 socials skills necessary to be successful at school. Those skills reported are: listening to others, following rules, ignoring distractions, asking for help, taking turns in conversation, getting along with others, staying calm with others, being responsible for your own behavior and doing nice things for others. These skills seems fairly basic but require the student to be able to: think about others (perspective taking), utilize flexible thinking, read non-verbal communication, maintain attention during boring moments, organize and execute a plan to achieve a common goal (executive functioning skills) and figure out the expected behaviors required in a variety of social situations. Our groups run through the school you typically organized into 8-10 week learning modules. We also offer two 6-week summer learning modules. Each group is designed to best serve the needs of the individual children within. Groups are kept small (3-4 children) so that children are given many opportunities to use the concepts they are learning within each session. When developing new groups many factors are considered: age, cognitive functioning, language functioning, and individual areas of social needs. All of our social learning groups meet 1-2 times a week for 60 minute sessions.

Please call our office to set up a screening if you feel that your child would benefit from this type of instruction.
Preschool Literacy Summer Camp - “On the Road to Reading”

Would you like your child to develop or enhance some of these skills and more? It so, then join Cornerstone Therapies’ Literacy Summer Camp. This camp is run by licensed and certified Speech-Language Pathologists to target the development of literacy skills in children between the ages of 4-6 years. Areas addressed will align to multiple states’ early learning standards.

Parent Training Workshops -
Parent Training Workshops - We offer Hanen parent training workshops (More Than Words; It Takes Two to Talk.) The program consists of a total of 8 evening classes of group training lead by a Hanen Certified Speech-Language Pathologist. The classes are designed to teach parents how to work with their children to increase communication development. Parents learn practical techniques to facilitate language in everyday activities. The training also includes individual home visits which includes videotaping and feedback.

Please call our office to find out when the next class starts.