FAQs

Simply Social Kids is a social coaching program for children, teens, and young adults with mild to moderate social challenges. We use play, connection, and real-time coaching to help participants build confidence, resilience, and lasting friendships.

Sessions are offered in person at our Tyngsboro, Massachusetts center and online for families who prefer virtual participation. Each one-hour session includes relaxed social hangout time, a short structured skill-building lesson, and guided peer interaction. We serve families across Massachusetts, Southern New Hampshire, and beyond.

Simply Social Kids offers social resiliency coaching for children, teens, and young adults with mild to moderate social challenges. Our proprietary program is language based, so participants must have strong receptive and expressive language skills and be able to engage independently.

Sessions blend guided skill-building with unstructured social time that reflects real-life environments such as recess, lunch, and free play. This allows us to coach social skills as they naturally occur.

Simply Social Kids provides social skills coaching for children, teens, and young adults navigating mild to moderate social challenges. Our proprietary program, developed by CEO Nadine Briggs through decades of hands-on experience, focuses on coaching real-world social interactions where they matter most.

Our approach combines structured learning experiences with unstructured social time, mirroring the moments that are often most difficult, like recess, lunch, and free play. This allows us to coach authentic social skills as they naturally unfold in real time.
Because our coaching is language-based, participants need strong receptive and expressive language skills and must be able to engage independently in sessions.

We use a customized approach designed to meet participants where they are socially. Our methods blend structured skill-building with real-time coaching during play and peer interaction. We focus on helping participants develop skills in these areas:

Friendship • Resilience • Empathy and respect • Impulse control • Flexible thinking • Reading body language • Personal space • Learned optimism • Transitions • Conversation and communication • Managing emotions and anxiety • Problem solving • Conflict resolution • Sportsmanship • Perspective taking • Mindfulness

All strategies are action based so participants learn how to respond effectively in real social situations. Our coaching builds confidence, optimism, and social well-being.

Nadine Briggs, CEO of Simply Social Skills LLC, holds dual graduate-level certifications in coaching children and teens and coaching children and teens with ADHD. She is the author of the How to Make and Keep Friends series.

Facilitators provide weekly session summaries by email. If you have specific questions about your child’s progress or social challenges, you may schedule a meeting using the link at the bottom of every summary. We also offer a Parent Zoom on the first Wednesday of each month from 12 to 1 PM EST for additional support and guidance.

Every child is different in terms of how long it will take before improvements are apparent. Some kids may need a little social tune-up and others may be in need of support for the long term. Generally, when children meet the guidelines for success, they improve and graduate from the program. It’s difficult to predict how quickly a child will learn and generalize, so we are unable to provide a definitive answer for any individual child.

Our goal is to provide the most natural peer setting possible for kids to learn and practice social skills. Our program is similar to other after-school activities but offers an extra layer of social support. Many of our friends do not have a documented diagnosis and are with us for guidance on friendship skills. However, we welcome children who have been identified as having profiles including ADHD, high functioning autism, social communication disorder, Nonverbal Learning Disability or anxiety. If a child requires more intensive support around behavior, we are happy to assist a family in locating the right resources for their child.

Just like any program, we’re not for everyone. We are social coaches, not mental health providers. We recommend a traditional therapeutic setting with licensed counselors for kids who struggle with significant aggression, bolting behaviors, oppositional defiant disorder, or other related disorders that might cause a safety risk for your child. Our participation requirements are:

– Does not require one-on-one adult attention for safety or participation in a group of 8-10 participants
– Does not have a current history of physical aggression toward others or having to be restrained for aggressive or bolting behaviors
– Must be fluent in their use of language and refrain from using profanity
– Must be interested in socializing with others
– Must be able to independently take care of restroom needs
– Does not have any history of mental health issues or psychosis as we are not mental health providers

Participation requirements are for the safety of the children. Simply Social Kids staff are not trained to address issues of physical aggression toward others. Contact us if you’re uncertain about the participation requirements as it pertains to your child.

No. We completely understand that sometimes a child will have an isolated incident and mildly and briefly lash out in frustration. If you have any questions about this particular issue, please feel free to contact us to discuss your child’s specific needs.

Enrollment is ongoing. Most families begin with a free trial visit so you and your child can experience a group before enrolling. To get started, contact us for a phone intake or select a time using our scheduling system (click here to schedule). Registration requires a conversation with the program facilitator to ensure that you have the information needed to make a fully informed decision and for all of us to make sure it’s a good fit for your child.

Nadine Briggs is the CEO of Simply Social Skills LLC, which includes Simply Social Kids and Building Adult Friendships. She is an accomplished social educator who has spent two decades helping children, teens, young adults, and adults develop meaningful connections.

Nadine holds graduate-level certifications in Coaching Children and Teens and Coaching Children and Teens with ADHD. She is certified in bullying and cyberbullying prevention, is a certified Sibshop facilitator, and earned the Foundations of Positive Psychology certificate through the University of Pennsylvania. She has also been trained by the Child Anxiety Network at Boston University and in the Girl Meets World curriculum.

Nadine uses collaborative problem solving to teach conflict resolution and communicates social coaching concepts in a simplified, practical way that is accessible to individuals across a wide range of abilities. All programs within Simply Social Skills LLC emphasize resilience, optimism, confidence, and the real-life social skills required to form and maintain friendships.

Her commitment to social development began in 1996 when her daughter was born with Down syndrome. Parenting a child with unique needs provided deep insight into how to support people who are misunderstood or socially vulnerable. Nadine also has a son with ADHD, which has further shaped her understanding of executive functioning challenges and the ways they impact friendship skills.

Nadine is the co-author of several books, all available on Amazon:

• How to Make and Keep Friends: Tips for Kids to Overcome 60 Common Social Challenges
• How to Make and Keep Friends: Helping Your Child Achieve Social Success
• I Feel Mad: Tips for Kids on Managing Angry Feelings
• I Feel Worried: Tips for Kids on Overcoming Anxiety
• Tips for Teens on Life and Social Success
• I Need to Win: Tips for Kids on Good Sportsmanship
• Bully Busting and Managing Meanies: Tips for Kids on Managing Conflict

Please visit the About Us page on our website to learn more about the Simply Social Kids coaching team.

No, we cannot bill insurance companies for services as we are coaches and not therapists. We operate very much like friendship tutors. However, some families have been successful in having our services reimbursed through employer Flexible Spending Accounts, and others have been able to receive grants through other organizations.

Tuition for our social educational programs is based on a 4-week month. Tuition is automatically deducted from an on-file credit card on the first of each month. In the case of a missed class we cannot offer a refund, but we can offer make-up opportunities at other programs during the same month.