POWER-Solving® FAQ

POWER-Solving®: Stepping Stones to Solving Life’s Everyday Social Problems is a social skills curriculum designed to teach children and adolescents to become independent problem-solvers via a hands-on, user-friendly, positive-practice, interactive approach. Through the use of child- and adolescent-friendly, engaging materials, which rely heavily on visual cues and supports, participants gain the “tools” necessary to successfully problem-solve. POWER-Solving® is now available in 27 states and 8 countries including Brunei, Canada, India, Latvia, Netherlands, Nevis, Norway, and United Kingdom.

The POWER-Solving curriculum helps children and adolescents develop and generalize social problem-solving skills, and has been used successfully both as a primary prevention tool for all students, and as a secondary intervention for students at risk.

Children and adolescents with Autism Spectrum Disorders, Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorders, Oppositional Defiant Disorders, Nonverbal Learning Disabilities, and Social Communication Disorder, as well as those who may not reach criteria for a mental health diagnosis, often have significant social skills impairments and require the type of direct instruction the POWER-Solving® Curriculum provides to address these deficits.

Children and adolescents identified as “at-risk” would benefit greatly from acquiring the social skills associated with the program. Any child or adolescent who experiences significant social problems could benefit from the program, as it would enhance their existing intervention plan.

The POWER-Solving® Curriculum has also been used successfully as a primary prevention tool for all students, to help them develop better social skills.

Research has shown that strong social skills contribute to the initiation and maintenance of positive relationships with others and as a result contribute to peer acceptance required for success. Social skills impairments, on the other hand, contribute to peer rejection and significant loss of self esteem, and continuing challenges both academically and in life. Click here to learn more about why social skills learning is so important.

The POWER-Solving® Curriculum has the flexibility to be used as part of a primary prevention program prior to the identification of any specific disorder or disability, and it can be incorporated into various school curricula to promote social and emotional learning, including as part of life skills, health and physical education, character education, anti-bullying, social studies or other associated curricula.

Many social skills teaching approaches conceptualize social skills as a set of narrow, discrete responses (i.e., initiating a greeting) or as a broader set of skills associated with social problem solving. This leads to teaching of endless discrete skills that are assessed for their presence/absence and are then targeted for instruction.

The POWER-Solving® Curriculum instead focuses on teaching a social problem solving model that the learner would be able to use as a “tool box.”  The social problem solving approach offers the promise of helping the individual become a better problem solver and promotes greater independence in social situations and throughout life.

Recognized professionals, academicians, and social learning experts have reviewed the POWER-Solving® Curriculum. Here’s one from Tony Atwood, Ph.D.:

“The POWER-Solving® curriculum is built on a strong conceptual foundation. It is well-organized, easy-to-use, and based upon evidenced based practices. The Discuss-Demonstrate-Do Model ensures that learners truly develop the skills to solve everyday social problems with confidence. This curriculum is a must for learners who experience social challenges.”

Click here to read more POWER-Solving® testimonials.

POWER-Solving(R) has been applied successfully in multiple settings such as the classroom, a summer treatment program, clinical settings and home environments. The authors have achieved success applying POWER-Solving® with individuals of all ages, as well as with couples and families, and during consultation with school personnel, attorneys, child advocates, business personnel and mental health professionals. POWER-Solving® has been used with youth whose development is typical, as well as with those who present with various mental health diagnoses and/or special educational classifications, including high functioning autism, Asperger’s syndrome, pervasive developmental disorder – not otherwise specified, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, learning disability, anxiety, adjustment disorders, and others.

The facilitator of the POWER-Solving® curriculum may be a regular education classroom teacher, a special education classroom teacher, school guidance counselor, school psychologist, school social worker, speech and language pathologist or any other person in a school setting whose responsibility it is to assist children and adolescents to become more effective in dealing with problems associated with daily living, including promoting social skills and social problem-solving. Any mental health or educational professional within a clinic, hospital, agency or private practice would also be able to incorporate this program into her/his work with children and adolescents, either individually or in groups. Additionally, parents may work with their child at home, serving as the program facilitator.

•    Facilitator’s Guide
•    Activities and Strategies
•    Screening and ongoing assessment tools
•    User-friendly Child and Adolescent versions of the POWER-Solving® Workbook
•    Student self-monitoring checklists
•    A sample letter to parents
•    Various modules which represent common social situations that children and adolescents experience, contained in separate

Facilitator Guides and Workbooks.

Click here for a full description of the POWER-Solving® Curriculum components.

Yes, the POWER-Solving® Curriculum is sold as a set of materials and can be ordered in any quantity, including single sets for review or use for single students, or one-on-one in therapeutic or home settings.

Ongoing support and consultation is available and is designed on a case by case basis to meet the unique needs of each consumer. Click here for information on our consultation, support and training services.