Our programs are empirical in nature. We aim to understand individual and group behavior through observation during sessions. Each student, family, staff and school community’s sociohistorical context influences each other in complex relationship dynamics. Our curriculum is attuned to assessing multifactorial elements of behavior and emphasizing an objective, rather than subjective, approach to better learn and understand the individual or group experience. 

We believe that we can help improve the correlational relationship between students and their school communities by delivering a strength-based creative arts therapy program. We begin with a survey to better understand specific information about student and school behavior. Our preference is to complete a naturalistic observation of your school community before offering a program. This helps the therapist see what normally occurs, as unobtrusively as possible.

We believe that each individual has unique behavioral capacities. The behavior that is seen is dependent upon complex processes occurring in the nervous system, coupled with the endocrine system, heredity influence, and environmental influence. The seen behavior is determined by multiple factors. Numerous internal conflicts and triumphs resolve inside an individual, yet at times prolonged or troublesome conflicts are visibly more apparent in the school environment. Understanding the individual’s defense mechanisms and sociohistorical history can help a therapist better assess personality and behavior. It also helps understand the level of observational learning an individual or group is influenced by in your school community. 

Our creative arts therapy school-based programs focus on broadening self-awareness and self-efficacy skills. When students and staff are empowered with these skills, they can: 

• better understand their emotions

• choose a healthier way to respond to stressors

• creatively work toward solutions

• display more flexibility in their interactions with others

• incorporate sensory wellness and mindfulness rituals 

Our hope is that this helps strengthen or build a school’s social emotional foundation to better identify students, families, and staff who need more support and achieve these pillars:

• Enhance life experiences, healing, and patience through creative arts therapy

• Increase morale and achievement growth

• Expand emotional awareness within and outside of self

• Support the strengths in conflict with improved coping skills

• Develop self-care and mindfulness rituals

• Recognize the limits of verbal language, alone, and prioritize non-verbal communication

• Recognize that all groups are composed of individuals with unique capacities and varied multicultural histories