From Chaos to Calm
Sundays, 10am - 12:30pm
Ages 7 - 10 years
$375/week
540 President Street, Suite 2D
Big feelings. Fast bodies. Forgotten directions. Stuck moments. We work on the skills underneath all of it.
From Chaos to Calm is a therapeutic executive functioning group for kids ages 7–10 who need extra support with emotional regulation, impulse control, flexible thinking, planning, organization, and getting started.
For many kids, knowing what they’re supposed to do isn’t the problem.
Doing it in the moment is.
A child may know they should wait their turn and still blurt out. They may understand the morning routine and still get completely derailed. They may know that plans change and still fall apart when they do.
That gap between knowing and doing is where executive functioning lives.
And that’s what we practice.
What We Work On
Through games, movement, art, challenges, and hands-on activities, kids practice:
Impulse control
Emotional regulation
Flexible thinking
Working memory
Self-monitoring
Planning and prioritizing
Task initiation
Organization
Problem-solving
Frustration tolerance
Asking for help
Recovering when things don’t go as planned
What Group Actually Looks Like
This is not a sit-at-a-table-and-talk-about-executive-functioning class.
Kids learn through doing.
We might play a game that requires them to stop their bodies before acting, complete a challenge with several steps, work together on a project, change the rules halfway through an activity, practice remembering directions, or figure out how to get started when a task feels overwhelming.
And, inevitably, real moments happen.
Someone gets frustrated.
A plan changes.
A child forgets what they were supposed to do.
Something doesn’t work the first time.
Those moments aren’t interruptions to the group. They’re part of the group.
With support, kids get to notice what’s happening, try a strategy, recover, and practice again.
Who Is This Group For?
From Chaos to Calm can be a great fit for kids who:
Act before they think
Become overwhelmed by frustration or disappointment
Have difficulty shifting from one idea or plan to another
Struggle to get started on tasks
Forget directions or lose track of multiple steps
Have trouble organizing materials or themselves
Need frequent reminders to slow down, check their work, or notice what they’re doing
Know what they should do but have trouble doing it in the moment
Benefit from movement, play, and hands-on learning
Need support building confidence around skills that currently feel hard
Many kids in the group have ADHD, autism, anxiety, learning disabilities, or other executive functioning differences, but a diagnosis is not required.
We’re Not Trying to Make Kids More Compliant
The goal isn’t to create perfectly organized children who never interrupt, never forget anything, and cheerfully handle every change in plans.
That sounds exhausting for everyone.
The goal is to help kids understand how their brains work and build tools they can actually use.
We want them to get better at noticing when they’re getting overwhelmed, slowing themselves down, figuring out what they need, breaking big tasks into smaller steps, recovering from mistakes, and trying again.
Because executive functioning isn’t about knowing all the right strategies.
It’s about being able to use them when you actually need them.
Frequently Asked Questions
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No. A diagnosis is not required to join From Chaos to Calm.
Many of the kids in the group have ADHD and/or autism, and some may also have anxiety, learning disabilities, or other executive functioning differences. Others may not have a formal diagnosis at all.
What matters most is whether your child would benefit from support with things like impulse control, emotional regulation, flexible thinking, working memory, organization, planning, or getting started.
The group is designed around the skills kids need, not the label they have.
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The kids in this group are 7 - 10 years old.
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We accept 6 kids maximum. The group is led by Amy, with one or two college-aged helpers.
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Not exactly.
The primary focus of From Chaos to Calm is executive functioning and emotional regulation. But many of the skills we work on are also the skills kids need in order to navigate social situations successfully.
Things like impulse control, flexible thinking, frustration tolerance, self-monitoring, working memory, and emotional regulation all affect how a child participates with peers.
So while we are not directly teaching social scripts or focusing on friendship skills, kids are practicing many of the underlying abilities that make social interactions easier.
In other words, this is not a traditional social skills group. It is a group that helps strengthen the foundation those social skills depend on.
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From Chaos to Calm focuses on the executive functioning and regulation skills kids use all day long, often without realizing it.
Depending on the child, we may be working on:
Impulse control
Emotional regulation
Flexible thinking
Working memory
Self-monitoring
Planning and prioritizing
Task initiation
Organization
Problem-solving
Frustration tolerance
Following multi-step directions
Slowing down and thinking before acting
Recovering when something doesn’t go as planned
Asking for help
Sticking with something that feels hard
Different kids will be working on different things. One child may be practicing how to pause before acting. Another may be working on getting started without becoming overwhelmed. Another may be learning how to shift gears when the plan changes.
The goal is not just for kids to know these skills. It’s to help them practice using them in the moment, when they actually need them.
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Probably not in four sessions, at least not in any dramatic, overnight way.
Executive functioning skills take time, repetition, and practice. A child may understand a strategy in group and still need lots of support before they can use it independently at home, at school, or when they’re already overwhelmed.
During the class, I’ll introduce kids to tools and strategies they can begin practicing in everyday life. The goal is to give them language for what’s happening in their brains, help them experience some success using new skills, and build a foundation they can keep working on after the group ends.
Think of these four sessions as a starting point, not a finish line.
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We do not expect kids to be robots.
Everyone gets frustrated, disappointed, overwhelmed, or stuck sometimes. In fact, those moments can be some of the most useful opportunities to practice the skills we’re working on.
If your child becomes upset during group, we’ll support them in slowing down, taking space if needed, identifying what’s happening, and finding a way to recover and rejoin when they’re ready.
At the same time, safety is essential.
We can support crying, yelling, shutting down, needing a break, or having a hard time recovering. We cannot safely run a group when a child is repeatedly hitting, kicking, throwing objects at others, or otherwise putting peers or staff at risk.
The goal is not for kids to never get upset. It’s to help them learn that they can have big feelings, use support, recover, and stay safe.
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Yes! You will receive written feedback at the end of the group. You will also have an opportunity to meet with Amy for 30-minutes.