Positive Leaps helps children aged 3-8 with behavioral and improving how they manage their big emotions

Welcome to Positive Leaps

Discover how Positive Leaps achieves lasting results with children.

Take a virtual tour of our Day Treatment facility and get answers to your key questions.

Take a Virtual Tour of Positive Leaps

Watch this video to learn about our programs.
Be sure to scroll down to read our FAQs!

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In order to get scheduled for a comprehensive assessment, please complete this short form.

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Schedule Your Child's Comprehensive Assessment

The next step in our process is for us to help you schedule a Comprehensive Assessment for your child with one of our experienced therapists. Please call our office.  We can also answer any other questions you have.

Would you want to see the Positive Leaps facility in person? When you call, you can also choose to schedule an in-person tour of our Day Treatment facility.

Call us today!

Learn More About Positive Leaps - Read our FAQs

What to Expect at Positive Leaps

What is the First Step?

Every journey at Positive Leaps begins with a comprehensive assessment.  During this initial visit, a licensed therapist meets with the child and their legal guardian to determine the most appropriate level of care.

Positive Leaps offers three levels of service, which will be discussed with you during this step — think of it like getting a doctor’s recommendation, but from one of our licensed child therapists.

Our Three Levels of Care

A. Outpatient Therapy Services

Positive Leaps Outpatient services are available for children and teens ages 2 to 18. These services include both family and individual therapy sessions once a week.

For younger children, therapy sessions may focus more on parenting skills, interventions, and support to help parents and guardians feel prepared to identify when their child may need assistance and to build and maintain positive parent/child relationships.

B. Day Treatment Program (Full-Day Program)

The Positive Leaps Day Treatment program is a full-day program that runs Monday through Friday. It is designed for children ages 3 to 8. Children are temporarily pulled or removed from daycare or school to receive intensive therapeutic care in a structured environment.

We require 8 hours of attendance per day, but our flexible drop-off window (7:00–8:30 AM) allows for personalized scheduling.

For families with Medicaid in Butler, Hamilton, or Warren County, transportation can be arranged through Job and Family Services (JFS). Otherwise, parents or trusted caregivers are responsible for drop-off and pick-up.

C. Intensive Outpatient (IOP)

Our Intensive Outpatient program, also known as IOP, runs three days per week for three hours per day. This program is also designed for kids aged 3 to 8.

The IOP program allows children to maintain attendance at school or daycare while still receiving focused support at Positive Leaps.

Who We Are

Positive Leaps is a CARF-accredited mental health facility

Positive Leaps is a CARF accredited mental health facility for children near me in Cincinnati OH

At first glance, the Positive Leaps Day Treatment and Intensive Outpatient floor environment may look like a daycare or classroom, but we are actually a CARF-accredited pediatric mental health facility.

Our classroom-style setup is intentional. It helps children practice social skills in a setting that mimics school or daycare, with mental health professionals serving as their guides.
Each classroom is staffed with an assigned classroom team consisting of:

  • 2 Child Behavioral Specialists (lead staff)
  • 1–2 Child Behavior Specialist Aides (trained support staff)
  • 1 Licensed Social Worker

Our staff are trained in psychology, mental health, or social work, holding bachelor’s degrees, depending on their role.

How We Work

Our Focus Areas

At Positive Leaps, our focus is to improve social skills, strengthen mental health, and provide individualized therapy to children. However, we also incorporate academic activities to help address problematic behaviors during these times for a successful return to daycare or school.

Examples include:

  1. Circle time for younger children,
  2. Homework or academic time for older children,
  3. Coordination with schools or daycares to complete. homework.

We target eleven key social skills including sharing, using manners, asking permission, and accepting “no”—which we teach using age-appropriate, engaging methods.

What Makes Our Specialized Day Treatment Unique?

Positive Leaps mental health counselor provides support for children in Cincinnati, OH

At Positive Leaps, we have a low staff-to-child ratio. There are up to 12 kids in the classroom with four trained staff members.  This gives us the ability to maintain constant eyes and address behaviors as they occur, while also constantly praising our children.

To encourage positive behaviors and consistency, we offer a token economy for our children.  So, throughout the day, they are constantly showered with positive praise and they can earn rewards at the end of the day based on those behaviors.

All of our children have designated coping skills to aid them when they become escalated.  That can be blowing candles, deep breathing, counting to 10, squeezing lemons (a method of progressive muscle relaxation).  We also often use the zones of regulation to check in with our kids to find out where they are emotionally.

Therapy Services and Family Involvement

Our therapeutic services include:

  • Weekly individual therapy,
  • Weekly family therapy.

Family therapy is essential and required for reinforcing what the child learns in our care. We offer sessions Monday through Friday. Session times are determined by the family and the assigned therapist. Evening hours are available upon request and availability.

Family involvement is not about critiquing parenting. It’s about giving you tools and support based on evidence-based practices that you can use at home to keep things consistent and effective.

Our Therapeutic Approach

Positive Leaps therapists utilize a variety of interventions to meet the needs of each client. These interventions may include Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, Dialectical Behavioral Therapy, Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, and more. Positive Leaps also uses a proprietary programming approach, rooted in positive reinforcement as a primary tool.

This includes:

  • Verbal praise,
  • High-fives or fist bumps,
  • Token economy system to reward positive behavior.

Our goal is to keep things fun, interactive, and effective.

Progress Tracking & Goal Setting

Boy graduating from Positive Leaps and returning to his regular school in Cincinnati OH

Children’s individual progress is tracked daily at Positive Leaps. Our staff documents both social skill development and personalized treatment goals using narrative observations and data-driven tools, such as graphs and percentage tracking. This allows us to identify strengths, challenges, and tailor our approach accordingly.

Each child has an Individual Service Plan, which is reviewed monthly during Family Therapy sessions in order to discuss and track progress. This used to determine when a child is ready for a successful transition to school or daycare.

Each child is supported by their assigned classroom team and an assigned therapist, who works closely together to create and adjust personalized care plans.

Managing Challenging Behaviors: Intervention Tools

To help manage challenging behaviors, we implement a 3-level behavior intervention system, using:

  1. One-on-one de-escalation time with a staff member,
  2. Safety tools like mats to block aggressive behavior safely,
  3. Praise for consistently positive behavior.

We do not use mechanical restraint or isolation, meaning we do not use traditional holds or isolation as a means of intervention. However, if the safety of the client or others becomes a concern, Crisis Intervention may be used.

Our Crisis Intervention involves increased supervision of the child by our highly trained staff and medical professionals, and complies with the Ohio Mental Health and Addiction Services Board regulations. A licensed or certified medical staff member must approve this level, and parents are always notified—either in real-time or at the end of the day, based on family preference.

Graduation and On-Going Support

Graduation and Transition

A photo of a young boy graduating from a Positive Leaps program, walking under a bridge made by his peers' arms, with the text "Our Goal: Successful Graduation from Positive Leaps."

The goal of every child’s journey at Positive Leaps is a successful graduation. Once a child shows consistent progress with their social skills, therapy and floor goals, and classroom behavior, we begin a transition plan to prepare them for their next step—typically a return to a childcare provider, daycare, or school.

Transition steps may include:

  • Reducing hours or days at Positive Leaps,
  • Integrating attendance with the receiving program into the child’s week at Positive Leaps,
  • Gathering daily behavioral reports from the new setting.

After Graduation: Continued Support

But support doesn’t end after a successful transition.  After graduation, we provide:

  • 8 weeks of continued therapy through our Outpatient program,
  • Three months of once-a-month, face-to-face check-ins to provide continued support – this may also be done virtually to better support family needs, if appropriate,
  • A final family survey to help us improve.
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We Are Here For You

At Positive Leaps, we are here to support the whole family system from start to finish. Our goal is to become your child’s biggest support system, and yours. With consistency between our programming and home, we can help your child thrive emotionally, socially, and developmentally.

Do you still have questions?  Reach us at:

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