Frequently Asked Questions
What makes Anchor Family Solutions Different?
We pride ourselves on practicing what we preach. We will never recommend a strategy to you that we have not implemented with our own families or in our own practice. We are realistic and understand that life is messy and parents have a challenging job! We work WITH you in a collaborative approach to your individualized plan. Lastly, we utilize a holistic approach to making positive changes. We recognize that there are a variety of explanations for behaviors, skills, and challenges for you and your family. We love to work with practitioners in related fields and are always happy to explore those options with you.
What is positive parenting?
Positive parenting involves creating a safe, interesting environment for your child, regardless of their age. Providing a positive learning environment, having realistic and age appropriate expectations for your child, and implementing consequences that are related to the behavior. At anchor behavioral consulting, we also believe that teaching children mutual respect is a pillar of positive parenting, meaning that we don't require children to "earn" our respect and treat them with the same dignity that we would want to be treated with.
What is a BCBA?
BCBA stands for Board Certified Behavior Analyst. BCBAs complete a masters degree in a related field as well as 1500+ hours of supervision in the field and are required to pass a certification exam. Additionally, BCBAs are required to complete ongoing continuing education in order to maintain their certification. Our team is comprised of BCBAs with extensive experience in child development, parent strategies, and applied behavior analysis.
Do you accept insurance?
While we would love for our services to be covered by insurance, we are a private pay company. Insurance providers require an Autism Diagnosis in order to cover ABA services. Additionally, insurance dictates the types of goals, length of services, and a variety of other factors that create a barrier for some of our families. We want our services to be accessible to all families with every age and stage they are in.
What does a parent strategy session look like?
Our parent strategy sessions occur either virtually via a HIPAA compliant audio/video platform, in your home, or in the community. It is at your discretion whether your child is present for the session. Our BCBAs will walk you through rating your perception of your child's behavior and set individual goals for you and your child. We will teach you to implement positive parenting and ABA strategies as we see the most long term success when parents are providing the therapeutic interventions. Following the session, you will receive a "session note" and customized materials to implement the discussed strategies with your family. We want you to focus on listening and asking questions during your session rather than trying to write everything down! Parent strategy sessions may occur once a week up to once a month depending upon your care plan. Additionally, we offer parent strategy sessions on a consultation basis. If you're not ready to commit to ongoing sessions, try a consultation and see why families keep coming back!
Do you work with me or my child?
We are here for you! Your child is welcome to be involved in the session and we highly recommend your child being present for an initial consultation, however, you are going to be learning to implement our strategies. It is up to you whether you would like for your child(ren) to be present for ongoing strategy sessions, but we recommend taking the time to be focused on learning the strategies!
What can you help me with?
The wonderful thing about our services is that we can help with just about anything! That said, we love to work on toilet training/learning, reducing power struggles and tantrums, making it easier to get out the door, bedtime routines, sleep habits, self-care routines, helping your child to better communicate, and creating better habits. If you're unsure if we would be able to help, just ask! We're always happy to point you in the right direction if we are unable to meet your needs.
What is ABA?
ABA or Applied Behavior Analysis is a set of principles that focus on how behaviors change, or are affected by the environment, as well as how learning takes place. Essentially, ABA is used to increase behaviors that are meaningful and decrease behaviors that are harmful. ABA has recently gotten a negative reputation, and if you are fearful of using these strategies with your child, we encourage you to give us a call and see why we are set apart from typical ABA companies.
What other services do you offer?
We want to support parents near and far and in ways that are helpful and accessible for busy families. We offer live workshops and have an on-demand library of workshops that will help you to learn our strategies and apply them from the comfort of your home. We also offer Mom Meet Ups to help build your sense of community, support, and provide you with "me time". For caregivers, we offer caregiver consultations geared toward sitters, nannies, and grandparents to help improve their caregiving skills. In addition, we are passionate about helping schools and daycares to provide the best and most up to date strategies. We offer professional development for schools and childcare centers.
Meet Anna
Board Certified Behavior Analyst, Mom & Parent Coach
Anna Richardella is a mom, wife, and BCBA who started her journey as an undergraduate student at West Chester University. Studying Communicative Disorders in order to pursue a career in Speech Pathology, Anna began volunteering at her university's ABA clinic to broaden her experiences in the field working with neurodiverse individuals. On college breaks. Anna worked at a public school for children with developmental delays and disabilities as a paraprofessional and substitute teacher.
Upon graduating from West Chester University, Anna's passion for behavior flourished and she decided to change her career path from speech to Applied Behavior Analysis. In 2015, Anna began working at a private school for children and adults diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder. Here she was provided with opportunities to teach individuals life and academic skills in school, home, and community settings.
After completing her Masters of Psychology in Applied Behavior Analysis, Anna completed her supervision hours and earned her certification as a Board Certified Behavior Analyst. From here, Anna began providing behavior analytic services in home and clinic based settings, serving as a BCBA supervisor, center supervisor, and staff and family trainer.
Anna is excited to share her knowledge with a wide variety of clients, companies and schools in order to disseminate ABA and provide families with the highest quality, compassionate, and evidence-based services no matter the location! Anna holds her Board Certification and is available to provide virtual coaching services in New Jersey, Florida, Texas, and Oklahoma.
Meet Christina
Board Certified Behavior Analyst, Parent Coach & Early Intervention Associate
Christina is a dog mom, behavior analyst, and gymnastics coach who has worked in the field of applied behavior analysis for over 10 years. She has worked in settings including in home, in public and private schools, early intervention, in daycares, in clinics, and virtually, and received her board certification in 2020. Christina brings life experience to the table, growing up with a sibling on the spectrum, which gives a unique perspective, understanding, and empathy to her work in the field.
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