{"url":"/westwood/ucla-childrens-friendship-program","provider":{"id":"ucla-childrens-friendship-program","name":"UCLA Children’s Friendship Program","kind":"organization","about":"The Children’s Friendship Program is a clinical program of the UCLA Jane and Terry Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior, directed by Shilpa Baweja, PhD. It offers a 12-week social skills program for elementary school children who have trouble making or keeping friends, delivered by telehealth and led by licensed clinical psychologists. Parents take part alongside their children.","website":"https://www.semel.ucla.edu/initiatives/childrens-friendship-program/","phone":"(310)825-0142","email":"socialskills@mednet.ucla.edu","instagram":null,"founded":null,"credentials":[],"languages":[],"image":null},"location":{"id":"main","name":"Semel Institute","street":"760 Westwood Plaza","unit":"Room 27-384","city":"westwood","zip":"90095","neighborhood":"Westwood","coords":[-118.44492,34.06818],"precision":"exact"},"serviceArea":[],"programs":[{"id":"social-skills-group","type":"health","name":"Children’s Friendship Program (Social Skills)","summary":"A 12-week telehealth social skills group for children in 2nd to 5th grade who struggle to make or keep friends, with a parent attending each session.","description":"A 12-week group social skills program for elementary school children who have trouble making or keeping friends, led by licensed clinical psychologists and delivered by telehealth. In each small-group session children learn a new skill, such as conversation with peers, joining a group at play, playing fair, hosting a playdate, and handling rejection, teasing and bullying, then practice it with the group through behavioral rehearsal and exposure. Children get weekly assignments to use the skills in daily life, while parents learn to coach them. Groups meet Tuesday evenings: 5:30 to 6:45 PM for 2nd and 3rd graders, 7:00 to 8:15 PM for 4th and 5th graders. Billed as outpatient group therapy; many types of insurance are accepted.","categories":["social-skills","child-therapy"],"ages":{"min":7,"max":11},"grades":{"min":2,"max":5},"health":{"specialties":["Social skills group","Group therapy"],"hours":[{"days":["mon","tue","wed","thu","fri"],"start":"12:00","end":"16:00"}]},"traits":{"parents":"with-parent","groupSize":["small-group"],"telehealth":true,"commitment":"term","specialNeeds":"supported","feel":"Small-group sessions where children learn and rehearse one social skill at a time while parents learn to coach them.","topics":["social-skills","friendship","telehealth"]}}],"source":{"url":"https://www.semel.ucla.edu/initiatives/childrens-friendship-program/","fetched":"2026-10-13"},"updated":"2026-10-13","checked":"2026-10-13","closed":null,"sample":false}