Social Stories for Talking & Conversation Skills

Communication encompasses a number of skills including volume regulation, carrying on a conversation, as well as knowing when to ask questions and what questions are appropriate to ask.

Teaching your students the fundamentals of communication and conversation will help them relate to their peers and participate appropriately in the classroom.

Using Social Stories for Reinforcement

Using social stories to reinforce these lessons can help your students understand the scenarios in which they should utilize the skills they’re learning.

Here are a few key conversational skills you could review with your students:

it’s okay to ask questions in class, but you should keep questions relevant to the topic your teacher is covering
managing your voice volume is important, particularly when your peers have sensitivities to sounds or hearing impairments
if you’re speaking indoors, there’s no need to shout, but similarly, be sure to speak up so everyone can hear you!
if you want to talk in class, it’s important to raise your hand first
if someone else is talking, let them finish before you speak; in a conversation, each person is supposed to take a turn and not talk over one another

Social Story Templates

That’s just a start to the number of conversational skills you can teach your students! Watson’s educational consultants have prepared a number of social story templates that can be fully customized, or you can create your own to suit your unique needs.

Bonus Tip: if your students love a particular blue heeler cartoon puppy or animated demon hunting pop stars – don’t be afraid to incorporate those special interest areas (SIA) into your social stories! That can help your students relate to the lesson and get them more involved and interested.

Learn about more using social stories to reinforce skills and check out our fully customizable templates.

These behavior stories may benefit your students. They can be downloaded, saved and edited to suit your needs. The * notation indicates the story is formatted in a Power Point presentation and the ** notation indicates a Power Point with sound narration. Each Power Point has animation included on each slide. Some occur automatically – some occur on a “click”. Feel free to send comments or questions to [email protected].

Saying Hello at School

How to Talk to My Friends – (behaviors of concern: touching, sticking out tongue)

How to Talk to My Friends – (behavior of concern: touching hair)

Talking In Class*

Talking in Class (for younger children)*

What Kids Expect – Personal Space and Rules

What Kids Expect: Talking Loud

Eye Contact

Questions, Questions, Questions

Questions, Questions, Questions – easier version

Questions, Questions, Questions*

Questions, Questions, Questions**