(952) 737-6900  |  1001 Boone Avenue North, Golden Valley, MN 55427

Summer at Franklin Therapy

School may be out for the summer, but learning and growth don't take a vacation at Franklin Therapy. For many of our clients who attend the clinic year-round, summer is an exciting time to continue building essential social, behavioral, and academic skills while still enjoying traditional summer fun.

We spoke with Jackson Berra, Client Coordinator at Franklin Center, to learn how our team balances core therapy goals with creating memorable summer experiences.

blank

Maintaining Consistency with Morning Meetings

Some Franklin Therapy clients are dually-enrolled, meaning that they attend school at Franklin Academy with a 1:1 Registered Behavior Specialist (RBT) to support them. Others spend their entire day in the clinic with their RBT, working on a tailored mix of academics, behavioral goals, social skills, and emotional regulation.

For both groups, the summer schedule brings a variety of changes, which can be tough for kids who thrive on predictability and routine. To keep everyone grounded, Jackson leads a daily morning meeting, similar to the one that students experience throughout the school year.

blank

"Our thought is just to keep the morning meetings going to preserve that structure for the clients," Jackson shares.

Each morning at 9:00 AM, the kids gather for this important fixture of their day. They share greetings to build peer interaction, review the calendar to practice days, months, and counting, act as "weather helpers" to check the conditions outside, take a movement break to get the wiggles out, and preview the agenda so everyone knows what to expect. It’s a simple routine that gives everyone a chance to connect and sets the tone for the day.

blank

13 Weeks of Summer, 13 Unique Themes

To keep things fresh, therapy staff voted on distinct themes for each week of summer. From there, Jackson determines a morning and afternoon activity for each day of the week that ties into that theme. These activities provide a combination of large motor and fine motor challenges, sensory experiences, and social engagement for our young learners.

A few favorite themes include:

  • Water Week: Featuring pools, sprinklers, water toys, and a massive slip-and-slide!
  • Franklin Center Olympics: Kids create custom team shirts, compete in adaptive games, and earn medals at the end of the week.
  • Science Week: Full of safe, exciting explosions and hands-on experiments.
  •  
blank
  • Art Week: A creative week full of crafts, music, and artistic expression.
  • Food Week: A colorful, sensory-focused week designed to help picky eaters expand their palates. "We have quite a few kids on a strict pizza and goldfish diet," Jackson laughs. "So, each day is a color of food—like red food on Monday—where we work on smelling, touching, or trying new fruits and vegetables."

Students from our Itasca Clinical Classroom frequently join in on these activities as their schedules allow. We also love welcoming community guests, including local police and fire departments, and wrapping up the season with outings to nearby playgrounds and splash pads.

blank

Play With a Purpose

While the summer schedule is jam-packed with festivities, individualized therapy remains the core priority. RBTs work alongside clients throughout the day, whether they are at the clinic, participating in activities, or even joining off-site summer camps.

Between scheduled events, RBTs utilize structured downtime to target specific goals. One hour may be concentrated on reading and writing practice, while another is spent facilitating peer games to practice turn-taking and social etiquette.

blank

Practice Makes Perfect

Ultimately, these summer routines offer more than just seasonal entertainment, they build real-world confidence in a safe, predictable environment.

“Some of our kids who started here are now attending community camps off-site with their therapists. Building those skills in a controlled environment helps prepare them for new experiences down the road,” shares Jackson. 

And for clients that may not be ready for off-site experiences, these activity weeks ensure they get to have the quintessential summer experiences that form core childhood memories. It’s a busier time of year for staff, but seeing the growth, smiles, and handmade tie-dye shirts is the greatest reward.

blank
blank
blank
blank
Schedule a Conversation