Using Social Stories to Prepare for Changes
Written by: Sarah Mauskapf, MA, MT-BC, ATR-P, LAPC, Watson Institute Educational Consultant
It’s natural to fall into routines over time and to prefer consistency over constant change. That can make dealing with sudden or unexpected changes so difficult, particularly children with special needs.?
Changes come in many forms, be it a new classroom or transferring from the elementary school to the middle or junior high. A child could be facing an unexpected move to a new house, perhaps in a new city or town.?
Helping your child prepare for changes well in advance can help ease the anxieties and fears that precede the event. Using social stories, a narrative that outlines what will happen with the upcoming move or change in scenery from your child’s perspective, can help prepare them with coping skills to use when they are feeling anxious and give them the knowledge to know what will happen throughout the process.?
Social stories can be fully customized to suit your child’s individualized needs so the formatting is completely up to you! You may want to incorporate your child’s favorite story book or cartoon characters into the stories to make them more relatable as well.?
Watson’s educational consultants created a number of sample social stories on changes that you can use to get started on topics including:
Remember - make the social story fully customized to suit your child. In the weeks leading up to the change, read through the social story together and talk about the worries that your child may have and how they can cope with those concerns in constructive ways.?
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