Programs

Child Care

Universal Preschool (UPK)

WHALE Respite Center is proud to participate in Colorado Universal Preschool (UPK). We are committed to providing a high-quality, inclusive preschool experience that supports every child's growth through developmentally appropriate learning, family partnerships, and individualized support.

Learn more here.

Social Skills Summer Camp

WHALE Respite Center’s Social Skills Summer Camp is a full-day program for children ages 5–18. Our camp focuses on building social and emotional skills, helping children learn to communicate their needs and express themselves effectively. Through structured activities, group projects, and peer interaction, children practice self-regulation, independence, and problem-solving. The supportive classroom environment encourages positive peer relationships, confidence, and meaningful friendships that last beyond the summer.

WHALE Respite Center is a Program Approved Service Agency (PASA), approved by the State of Colorado to provide Medicaid waiver services to children with intellectual and developmental disabilities. Through our PASA program, WHALE is expanding respite services, starting with weekends, to better support families who need reliable, inclusive care. As a PASA-approved agency, WHALE follows all applicable state regulations to ensure safety, dignity, and high-quality care for every child we serve.

Learn more here.

Respite

Outpatient Pediatric Therapy at WHALE

WHALE offers outpatient pediatric Physical Therapy (PT), Occupational Therapy (OT), and Speech Therapy (ST) for children who attend WHALE.

Instead of asking families to leave work, pick up their child, drive to another clinic, complete a therapy appointment, and then return to their day, eligible children can receive skilled therapy services right here at WHALE while they are already in our care.

Our goal is not simply to help a child perform a skill during a therapy session. We want to help that skill carry over into the rest of the child’s day — in the classroom, on the playground, during meals, transitions, play, and everyday routines.

Physical Therapy

Pediatric physical therapy helps children develop the movement skills they need to participate more fully in everyday life.

PT may address areas such as gross motor development, walking and mobility, balance, coordination, strength, endurance, stairs, running, jumping, playground participation, positioning, and other movement-related needs.

Whenever appropriate, therapy can include opportunities to practice skills within the natural environments where children actually use them.

Occupational Therapy

Pediatric occupational therapy helps children participate more successfully in the everyday activities that are important to them.

OT may support fine motor development, sensory processing and regulation, self-care skills, play, visual-motor skills, feeding participation, dressing, classroom tasks, and independence in daily routines.

Therapists can collaborate with WHALE staff so strategies developed during therapy can be supported throughout the child's day when appropriate.

Speech Therapy

Pediatric speech therapy supports children in developing the communication skills they need to connect with others and participate in their daily lives.

Speech-language services may address receptive and expressive language, articulation and speech production, social communication, functional communication, augmentative and alternative communication (AAC), and feeding or swallowing needs when clinically appropriate.

An Interdisciplinary Approach

At WHALE, we believe:

Everybody at the table knows something the rest of us don’t.

Our therapists work alongside teachers, caregivers, families, and other professionals rather than operating in separate lanes.

A therapist may understand the clinical reason a task is difficult. A teacher may know exactly what happens during a particular classroom routine. A parent knows their child in a way no one else ever will.

When we put those perspectives together, children have more opportunities to use new skills throughout their everyday lives.

What Therapy at WHALE May Look Like

Depending on the child’s treatment plan and clinical needs, therapy may take place one-to-one in a therapy space or may incorporate classrooms, playgrounds, hallways, transitions, meals, or other natural routines at WHALE.

Therapy remains a skilled healthcare service with individualized goals and documentation. Being provided at WHALE simply gives our therapists additional opportunities to understand how a child functions throughout the day and help skills carry over into meaningful activities.

Getting Started

Families who are interested in outpatient therapy at WHALE can contact our team to learn more.

The process may include reviewing your child’s needs, completing a therapy evaluation, determining whether PT, OT, and/or Speech Therapy is appropriate, developing an individualized plan of care, and completing any necessary insurance or authorization requirements before treatment begins.

Already attending WHALE? Ask us if outpatient therapy may be an option for your child.