Covid 19 Social Stories

‘Social Stories’ can help people with Autism Spectrum Disorder develop greater social understanding and stay safe. Carol Gray, the founder of Social Stories is offering free club membership and direct free access to pandemic Social Stories with permission to download-share-translate. Please click on the link for direct access to her website:   https://carolgraysocialstories.com/

Social Stories^TM are short descriptions of a particular situation, event or activity, which include specific information about what to expect in that situation and why.

What are social stories for?

Social stories can be used to:

• develop self-care skills (eg how to clean teeth, wash hands or get dressed), social skills (eg sharing, asking for help, saying thank you, interrupting) and academic abilities
• help someone to understand how others might behave or respond in a particular situation
• help others understand the perspective of an autistic person and why they may respond or behave in a particular way
• help a person to cope with changes to routine and unexpected or distressing events (eg absence of teacher, moving house, thunderstorms)
• provide positive feedback to a person about an area of strength or achievement in order to develop self-esteem

• as a behavioural strategy (eg what to do when angry, how to cope with obsessions).

How do social stories help?

Social stories present information in a literal, 'concrete' way, which may improve a person's understanding of a previously difficult or ambiguous situation or activity. The presentation and content can be adapted to meet different people's needs.  They can help with sequencing (what comes next in a series of activities) and 'executive functioning' (planning and organising).    

By providing information about what might happen in a particular situation, and some guidelines for behaviour, you can increase structure in a person's life and thereby reduce anxiety.

Creating or using a social story can help you to understand how the autistic person perceives different situations.   (NAS 2018).

Provided by Mrs T Watson (Teacher, Autism Lead)

Please see the attachment below - Pandemics and the Coronavirus