© 2006 Laurel A. Hoekman/Laurel A. Falvo

• Ben has memorized all of the school bus numbers at his preschool. On the last day of school, the principal invites him to use the intercom to announce the departure of each of the buses. The smile on Ben’s face shows just how exciting the occasion is to this four-year-old.

• Nathan loves trains. He is easily frustrated when other children interfere with the Legos™ he has carefully lined up in the middle of the classroom floor. As others approach, the situation quickly deteriorates as the colorful blocks are hurled across the room.

• Sarah’s mother is frustrated. Although Sarah’s shoes have always been kept on the floor of the bedroom closet, Sarah can never seem to find them. If she has not been able to learn this in five years, will she ever learn?

• Josh is in the third grade. His teacher is perplexed. Every day at ten o’clock, Josh looks at the clock and invents an excuse to leave the classroom. Why? Will she ever solve this mystery?

• Katherine is an intelligent teen. She does well academically, but has difficulty answering the phone or conversing with simple small talk. She is an enigma to the peers who attend class and walk school hallways with her.

These varied scenarios all have one thing in common: Each of these individuals - and the parents, teachers, classmates, and friends with whom they interact - could benefit from a simple but powerful tool…a Social Story™.

Social Stories™ were developed and trademarked by Carol Gray, a former consultant to students with autism spectrum disorders, and an internationally recognized author and presenter. Although there are specific guidelines and criteria for writing a Social Story™, the intent is simple; to provide missing information for the individual, or to recognize an accomplishment. The resulting understanding often promotes a healthy self-esteem, restores calm to an otherwise stormy situation, fosters independence, reduces anxiety and confusion, and increases social understanding on both sides of the social equation.

It is simple to evaluate a situation and identify “wrong” behaviors, “difficult” children, or “hopeless” tasks. It is more difficult - but also more rewarding- to discover the roots of a problematic response or the significance of an achievement. This requires analyzing the situation with the determination of a detective. Digging deeper uncovers past experiences that are influencing present behaviors, information that a puzzled child is missing, and cravings for hope and praise by often-criticized individuals. Diligent study also helps to identify the various roles assumed by others in the environment.

A Social Story™ can help a person do all that- and more!

Preparing to Use Social Stories™

While a Social Story™ could be used at almost any time and for practically any reason, the topic of the Story, the way it is written and presented, and the intended audience all need to be accurately determined before proceeding. While a surface glance may indicate one perception, a look under a “social microscope” may reveal a completely different perspective. Just as a microscope allows for a close look at a very small area, so a Social Story™ often addresses a relatively narrow topic. Adequate research will help to determine just what is needed.

Ben’s Story will be straightforward and rewarding; from the pen or computer keys flow praise and affirmation as his experience using the intercom to announce the buses is described in accurate but glowing terms.

Nathan’s Story will need further consideration, as well as a second component. For starters, he could benefit from a Story affirming his love of trains and ability in crafting them from Legos™. Additional Stories would help him understand when and where it is appropriate to line up Legos™, why the other children are in “his space,” and what to do when classmates disturb his creations. The role of his classmates and teacher will be discussed further in this article in the section titled, Whatever Happened to the Other Half of the Equation?

Sarah’s Story, although it reiterates what her mother has repeatedly told her, can help her find her shoes by providing information under the title, “The Usual Place for My Shoes.”

Josh presents a mystery to his teacher. She is wise to resist the urge to write a Story designed to keep him in his seat or to avoid looking at the clock. Instead, she conducts thorough research with Josh, his classmates, parents, and former teachers, to discover the rationale supporting Josh’s puzzling ten o’clock routine. She is surprised to find that a year ago he was frightened by an unexpected fire drill at 10:00. The Social Story™ that she writes for Josh will be more likely to reduce his anxiety or even keep him in his seat, simply because it is built on an accurate premise rather than an inaccurate assumption.

Katherine is just as perplexing to her classmates. It may be difficult to imagine why someone who is intelligent enough to receive high scores on a history test, or memorize math facts and manipulate them to solve complex equations, struggles to participate in the “simple rituals” of adolescence that many take for granted. While scratching our heads over this puzzle will produce results no more helpful than a few lost hairs, a Social Article™ entitled, “Great Ways to Answer the Phone” could be successfully followed by another™ called “Small Talk Serves a Big Purpose.” (The newspaper-like format of a Social Article™ is often more appealing to older or higher-functioning individuals, although the guidelines and criteria are the same as for a Social Story™). Of course, someone would also write a Story for Katherine entitled, “I am Skilled at Solving Difficult Math Equations!”

Preparing to Write a Social Story™

The tool has been selected. We see that it is the right implement for the job, yet additional training is required to ensure that we are using it correctly. The best education is obtained from Carol Gray herself, or a member of her "Team Social Stories." Carol's DVD, Writing Social Stories with Carol Gray, or one of the workshops that she and her team conduct around the world provide the basis for understanding the tool and how to use it successfully. Her Social Stories™ 10.0 (a download available at www.thegraycenter.org) and Social Stories 10.1 (found in The New Social Story Book: 10th Anniversary Edition) provides updated guidelines and criteria for writing Social Stories™ and Social Articles™, along with suggestions for illustrating them. Learning the 10 defining criteria and guidelines right from the start helps parents and professionals gain confidence, and prevents common errors.

Knowing the intended audience of a Story or Article is an important part of its development. Often the Story or Article can be written with audience participation, having the child, adolescent, or adult fill in missing blanks or provide suggestions which steer the course of the Story-writing process. Audience point of view can impact information that is shared as well as expectations. Sometimes, it may be helpful to listen carefully while writing to incorporate vocabulary and phrasing that are meaningful for the audience.

Whatever Happened to the Other Half of the Equation?

That last paragraph touched briefly on the relationship between the writer and the audience. But wait- there’s more! No tool can be completely successful without taking into account other variables in the environment.

First, an objective look at the situation may reveal no need to write a Social Story™ or Social Article™. Instead, changing the environment or expectations may be more effective, as Sarah and her mom discover in the example which follows.

Second, just as “tug-of-war” cannot be played by only one person, and a balance scale cannot weigh an object using only one side of the scale, the majority of scenarios for which a Social Story™ or Social Article™ would be written involve a variety of social variables. Specifically, there are other people in the environment who need to be considered, educated, and involved throughout the entire process.

Ben’s principal should be commended- both verbally and with a lovely “thank you” card- for noticing Ben’s special interest and ability and devising such a creative (and public) means of acknowledging and affirming that.

Nathan’s classmates benefit from a role model who “oohs” and “aahs” over his colorful trains. They are less likely to disturb his handiwork if they know that their teacher appreciates his creativity. They should also be led to understand Nathan’s need for personal space and the comfort that this beloved activity provides him.

Sarah’s mother may be utterly discouraged by fruitless years of attempting to teach Sarah where to find her footwear. Acknowledging that her past reactions may be contributing to Sarah’s often-flustered response to the need to locate her shoes may help them both to relax and discover new solutions. Working together, they may choose another place to keep the shoes where Sarah may be better able to remember and to find them.

Josh’s teacher has already approached his parents, classmates, and former teachers to solve the mystery of his ten o’clock disappearing-act. However, they can all play an important role in helping Josh to remember and apply the information from the Story, and to feel more comfortable remaining in the classroom at that time—and throughout the day. A buddy-system might prove helpful for both Josh and his classmates. A lesson from Carol Gray’s The Sixth Sense II[3] can also help his classmates better understand Josh’s differences.

Katherine’s abilities can be affirmed and utilized as she is assigned to tutor a classmate who is struggling in math or history, or a younger elementary student who needs a mentor. Her classmates (or initially a few hand-selected “friends”) will interact with her more readily and encourage her more frequently once they understand the reasons for her reluctance to stop and chat in the halls or converse on the phone. They may even be able to do “phone call skits” with her to help her gain the needed skills, followed by “live” calls inviting her to participate in an activity.

Perspective Matters

Writers of Social Stories™ and Social Articles™ combine their knowledge of the approach with their own unique perspectives. A writer may be a parent, sibling, grandparent, friend, teacher, administrator, therapist, neighbor, or “interested other”-or a combination of these. All can help promote social understanding through the Story-writing process, and through the way that they choose to interact with others.

Audiences also have varied perspectives. They may be children, young adults, siblings, adolescents, students, friends, or “interesting others.” They may wear one or more diagnostic labels: Asperger’s Syndrome, High-functioning Autism, PDD-NOS, ADHD, NVLD… These acronyms contribute more to chicken noodle soup with letters or the alphabet song than they do to a discussion of Social Stories™. Individual labels do not matter. Successful interactions and outcomes will result from promoting social understanding—working to understand others, while helping them to understand you!

Now that’s a balanced equation!