PEERS® for Preschoolers

Helping Your Child Build Friendship Skills — Online Parent Program

PEERS® for Preschoolers

Parent Coaching Program | Ages 4–7

PEERS® for Preschoolers is a 16-week evidence based social skills program developed at UCLA to support young children in building the foundations for friendship, communication, emotional regulation, and successful participation in everyday social situations.

At Making Connections Toowoomba, we are offering the parent coaching version of the program, designed to make support more accessible for busy families, regional families, and children who may not yet be ready for direct group intervention.

Rather than children attending sessions, caregivers participate in supportive online coaching sessions where they learn practical, real-world strategies they can use during play, routines, outings, and everyday interactions at home and in the community.

Why Early Social Support Matters

For some young children, social interaction does not come naturally. They may:

find it difficult to join in with peers
struggle with turn-taking or flexible play
become overwhelmed in group situations
have difficulty understanding social expectations
prefer adults over peers
find friendship confusing or exhausting

Early support can help children build confidence, emotional understanding, and positive experiences with others before social difficulties become more entrenched.

What Makes This Program Different?

This is not simply a “social skills group.” The PEERS® approach focuses on:

practical, real-world social skills
caregiver involvement and coaching
explicit teaching of friendship behaviours
helping skills generalise into everyday life
developmentally appropriate, play-based learning
building confidence without forcing masking or “performing”

Research shows that parent involvement plays an important role in helping children practise and maintain new social skills across home, community, and early learning environments.

What Caregivers Learn

Throughout the program, caregivers learn strategies to support:

greeting and responding to others
asking peers to play
turn-taking and cooperative play
flexible thinking
emotional regulation during play
handling winning and losing
friendship foundations
managing frustration and transitions
supporting social confidence in everyday settings

Sessions include practical examples, discussion, coaching, role plays, and home practice ideas.

Why a Parent Coaching Format?

We recognise that not every family can attend in-person weekly programs, and not every young child is ready for structured group participation.

The online parent coaching format may suit families who:

live rurally or remotely
have busy schedules
prefer to learn strategies from home
want to support their child in natural environments first
have a child who may feel overwhelmed in group settings
want consistency across home, preschool, and community environments

Many families find this approach reduces pressure on the child while still building meaningful social growth.

Who Is This Program For?

This program may suit children who:

are aged approximately 4–7 years
experience social communication challenges
may be autistic, ADHD, anxious, or socially uncertain
are speaking in sentences
would benefit from explicit support with friendships and play skills

A formal diagnosis is not required.

Program Details

Format: Online parent coaching program (stable internet is required)
Duration: 16 weeks across Terms 3 & 4
Session Time: Mondays, 1pm to 2.15pm
Start Date: July 2026
Facilitator: Fiona Goodall
Autism Coach & Director of Making Connections Toowoomba
(BEd, MSpEd, Certified PEERS® Facilitator)