Where John Started
John began therapy at Cornerstone in March of 2021. Before Cornerstone, John attended elementary school. At that time, the school he attended felt that they were not equipped to handle the behaviors he displayed. John engaged in a high frequency of physical aggression and property destruction, had difficulty engaging during class, and had trouble transitioning to the bathroom to change his pull-up. John relied heavily on visual timers to get through his day and fixated on what time he got to go home. John also experienced various sensory aversions, including wearing shoes throughout the school day, attending multiple doctor appointments, and tolerating different sensory inputs in the bathroom. Additionally, John struggled to communicate his wants spontaneously and needs to others and rarely initiated social interactions with his peers.
How John Improved
John started at Cornerstone with only 20 milestone points from the Verbal Behavior Milestones Assessment and Placement Program (VB-MAPP). Over the past year and a half, he has achieved 162.5 out of 170 milestone points! John has worked hard on improving his language skills and now will speak in complete sentences to both adults and peers and often engages in silly word games with his therapists. He is now independent in the restroom throughout the school day and can complete daily living skills appropriately. He has improved significantly with tolerating additional tasks that used to be difficult for him and have mastered his desensitization programs for both the doctor and dentist. John now follows a full-day mock classroom schedule, can attend to the primary “teacher” for up to 30 minutes at a time without engaging in maladaptive behaviors, and can complete his lunchtime routine independently, including preparing his food, sitting at lunch with his peers, and washing and drying his dishes.
We are so proud of how far John has come throughout his time at Cornerstone and can’t wait to see all he accomplishes in school!
