The "Jedi Training" provided by Kylo Ren was one of many Star Wars themed activities offered as part of the "Open ACES" program. Although the children called it the "fun Star Wars day," the purpose of this event went beyond simply having a good time. Families, staff and clients all came together for a unique ABA experience to give our clients opportunities to socialize, engage, and work on individualized goals to help them increase their independence.

Our series of activities including Star Wars Story Time, Jedi Bingo and Asteroid Hunt, highlighted teambuilding, cooperation and engagement. Each child had goals they are working on and individualized behavior plans implemented by our caring 1:1 behavior interventionist. We even made our own lightsabers!Seven typical peer models have volunteered to take part in the weekly "Open ACES" event on Tuesdays. Peer models offer a positive group learning experience by initiating social interactions with children on the autism spectrum, prompting the social skills being taught to the children, and modeling self-control strategies among many other important skills.

Every Tuesday, the ACES Irvine office is open until 7pm for families of the ACES community to join together as we create a fun environment for ABA to transpire. Each week the theme will change to keep clients motivated, eager to learn and make new friends. We look forward to seeing the ACES clinic come alive with thematic, goal-driven curriculum that will positively impact the client and their entire family.