Friends Grow Friends Foundation, Inc. is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that runs social skills friendship clubs for children in grades K-12. FGF’s mission is to provide children with an opportunity outside of school hours to learn and practice social skills with their peers, as well as connect with other children. Our goals include: 1) Helping children develop stronger social skills, 2) Reducing the sense of loneliness and frustration in children who struggle socially, 3) Increasing children’s self-confidence with their peers, 4) Helping children to have a more fulfilling and happier childhood, and 5) Meeting new friends and finding a place where they are comfortable to be themselves.

Some of the children who we serve have mild to moderate special needs while some have no diagnosis but struggle socially. All of the children in our program are interested in building friendships and finding peers with whom they share similar interests. All groups include peer mentors who are similarly aged students who provide a strong example of pro-social behavior. We utilize our peer mentors to help more naturally facilitate conversation within the groups as well as to provide respectful feedback. The kids don’t know who is a peer mentor and who is not — everyone participates in the same way!

FGF selects different activities that address a variety of social skills in a natural environment. Our instructors serve as coaches to the children, and help facilitate and navigate interaction within the group and provide the kids with useful social strategies. We try to highlight "teachable" moments and reinforce appropriate social behavior. Each group typically begins with an interactive lesson/discussion to highlight the skills that we will be working on. Some of these include flexibility, making new friends, asking someone to play/“hangout”, identifying common interests, teamwork, and frustration management. Conversation is also a big part of every group!

To learn more, please visit us at www.friendsgrow.org, on Facebook, or on Instagram, or reach out to Nicole Monat, Program Director and Founder, at [email protected].

Age Groups	Children Adolescents
Community Services	Arts & Recreation Recreation / Social / Sports
Health Services	Behavioral / Mental Health ADHD / ADD Anxiety Crisis / Safety Bullying Intellectual and Developmental Needs Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) Communication Disorders Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (I/DD) Special Needs
Treatment Services	Outpatient Services Social Skills Treatment Setting Telehealth
Payment Types	Low Cost / Donation Scholarships / Financial Aid Self Pay Sliding Scale / Payment Plans
Areas Served	Middlesex County Monmouth County Ocean County

Last Updated: 10/19/24