Behavioural & Developmental Supports

Understanding Behaviour. Building Regulation. Strengthening Connection.

When a child struggles with emotional regulation, behaviour, communication, attention, transitions or everyday routines, it can affect the entire family.

Parents may find themselves wondering why their child reacts so strongly, why seemingly simple requests or transitions become overwhelming, or why strategies that work for other children don't seem to work for theirs.

At Accelerated Potential Academy, we look beyond the behaviour itself to understand what may be contributing to it, what skills need to be developed, and what supports can help the child and family experience greater success.

Approved FSCD Service Provider

Mary Printz, M.Ed., co-founder of Accelerated Potential Academy, is an approved service provider on Alberta's South Zone Family Support for Children with Disabilities (FSCD) Service Provider Registry.

Through APA, Mary provides individualized Behavioural and Developmental Supports for eligible children and families whose FSCD Agreements include these services.

FSCD follows a family-centred approach in which services are tailored to the unique needs of the child and family—an approach that closely aligns with how APA provides support.

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Understanding the Child Behind the Behaviour

Behaviour tells us that something is happening. The important question is why.

A child who refuses, shuts down, becomes angry, avoids a situation, struggles to follow through or becomes overwhelmed during transitions may be experiencing challenges with emotional regulation, communication, attention, sensory demands, executive functioning, flexibility or understanding what is expected.

Sometimes the environment or the demands being placed on the child are also contributing to the difficulty.

Rather than focusing only on stopping a behaviour, we look at what happens before, during and after it, identify patterns and determine what skills or supports may help the child respond more successfully.

The goal isn't simply compliance or managing difficult moments.

We want children to develop the skills to regulate, communicate, problem solve, participate and become increasingly independent.

Who Do We Support?

APA works with children and youth with a variety of diagnosed disabilities and neurodevelopmental differences, which may include:

Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD)
ADHD
Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD)
Deafness or hearing differences
Developmental disabilities
Communication differences
Learning disabilities
Executive-function challenges
Emotional and behavioural regulation difficulties
Other diagnosed disabilities

A diagnosis can provide important information, but it doesn't tell us everything we need to know about a child.

Two children with the same diagnosis may have completely different strengths, challenges, triggers, communication styles and support needs.

We support the individual child, not simply the diagnosis.

Individualized Behavioural & Developmental Support

Effective intervention begins with understanding the child within the context of their everyday life.

We consider the child's strengths and interests as well as the situations in which difficulties occur. Parents and caregivers provide essential information about what they are seeing at home, what is working, what isn't and what changes would make the greatest difference to their child and family.

Depending on the child's needs, we may consider:

Strengths, interests and motivators
Family priorities and concerns
Situations or triggers associated with dysregulation
Communication skills and needs
Emotional and behavioural regulation
Attention and executive functioning
Flexibility and transitions
Social interaction
Independence and adaptive skills
Routines and expectations
Environments in which the child is most successful
Existing assessments and professional recommendations
Strategies already working at home, school or in the community

This allows us to move beyond simply reacting to behaviour and begin developing skills and strategies that address the child's individual needs.

An Individualized Behaviour Development Plan

For children receiving FSCD Behavioural and Developmental Supports through APA, an individualized Service Provider Program Plan guides intervention.

The plan brings together information about the child's strengths and needs, family priorities and the behavioural or developmental goals being addressed. It identifies meaningful goals, intervention strategies and how progress will be monitored.

Goals might involve developing greater emotional regulation, managing transitions, increasing independence, improving communication, developing flexibility or learning more effective ways to respond when frustrated or overwhelmed.

The plan is not intended to be static.

As the child develops new skills and their needs change, intervention can change with them.

Supporting the Family

A child's behaviour doesn't occur in isolation.

Parents and caregivers know their child in ways no service provider can. They know the situations that are most difficult, what tends to trigger frustration or dysregulation, what helps their child recover and what they would most like their child to be able to do independently.

That knowledge matters.

APA works collaboratively with families to help them better understand their child's behaviour and develop practical approaches they can use in everyday life.

Depending on the family's needs, this may include helping parents and caregivers:

Recognize triggers and patterns
Identify early signs of dysregulation
Understand factors contributing to behaviour
Respond more proactively and consistently
Support emotional regulation
Prepare their child for transitions or changes
Reinforce developing skills
Adjust environments or expectations when appropriate
Support communication and problem solving
Encourage increasing independence

The goal isn't to turn parents into therapists.

It is to give families greater understanding, practical strategies and confidence in supporting their child.

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Building on Strengths

A behavioural support plan shouldn't become a list of everything a child is doing wrong.

We also want to know:

What does this child do well?

What interests and motivates them?

When are they most engaged and regulated?

Who do they connect with?

What helps them feel successful?

What is already working?

A child's strengths, interests, supportive relationships and successful environments can become important parts of intervention.

We don't want children to experience support as a constant attempt to correct them. We want them to experience success while developing skills that allow them to manage increasingly challenging situations.

Supporting Skills Across Everyday Life

Children need to be able to use developing skills beyond their sessions at APA.

A child who learns to recognize frustration, ask for help, manage a transition or use a regulation strategy needs opportunities to use those skills in real situations.

With parent involvement and appropriate consent, strategies may be coordinated to support greater consistency across the environments in which the child participates, including home, school and the community.

Existing professional assessments, school information and recommendations from other members of the child's support team may also help inform intervention when appropriate.

FSCD Behavioural and Developmental Supports are distinct from educational services. Academic tutoring and remediation provided by APA are separate services.

Progress Looks Different for Every Child

For one child, progress might mean moving through a transition with less distress.

For another, it might mean recognizing that they are becoming overwhelmed and asking for help before reaching a crisis point.

Another child may be developing the ability to tolerate frustration, communicate what they need, remain with a challenging activity longer or complete a routine more independently.

For families, progress may mean fewer conflicts, more predictable routines and a better understanding of how to respond when their child is struggling.

These changes can seem small from the outside.

For the child and family experiencing them, they can make a significant difference in everyday life.

Does Your Child Receive FSCD Supports?

If your child's FSCD Agreement includes Behavioural and Developmental Supports, Mary may be able to provide those services through Accelerated Potential Academy.

Funding, approved hours and services are determined by FSCD according to the family's individual agreement.

Already Have an FSCD Agreement?

If you would like to access Mary's services, speak with your FSCD caseworker about having Mary Printz provide your child's Behavioural and Developmental Supports.

For families interested in third-party billing, Mary's FSCD provider letter specifically directs the guardian to contact their caseworker first to confirm that they would like to access her services.

Not Currently Receiving FSCD?

If your child has a disability and your family is not currently receiving FSCD services, you can contact Alberta's Family Support for Children with Disabilities program to learn more about eligibility, the application process and available supports.

Start With a Conversation

Every child and family is different.

Contact Accelerated Potential Academy to discuss your child's strengths and needs, the challenges your family is experiencing and whether APA's Behavioural and Developmental Supports may be an appropriate fit.

Understanding behaviour is the beginning. Building regulation, skills and independence is the goal.

Understanding Behaviour. Building Skills. Strengthening Families.