Social and Relationships
By Confident Student
Who is a friend?
How do I help my child make and keep friends?
- Model appropriate ways of interacting with others.
- Discuss how it is important to treat everyone in a respectful way and what that means.
- Use social stories to describe different situations your child may encounter with friends.
- Provide your child with opportunities to interact in a variety of settings.
- Offer the child’s insights about friendships by talking about the importance of your friendships and the things you like to do with friends.
- Teach your child conversation skills by practicing turn-taking and asking questions.
- Structure activities so that the child works and socializes in groups or pairs.
- Highlight the strengths, interests, and hobbies of your child as well as those of his friends.
- Help your child to recognize facial expressions and their associated emotions with the use of pictures, videos, mirrors, and your own face.
- Share information about after-school and community-based activities and encourage your child to participate in them.
- Use role playing to practice different social situations.
- Help your child and other adults to understand the differences between supporting others and helping them too much.
Parent Tip — The Art of Being Social
Social Thinking – Michelle Garcia Winner
Social Skills and Autism – Resources from Autism Speaks
Social Skills Activities for Kids with Autism
Who is a stranger?
How to Protect Children From Kidnapping and How to Teach Stranger Safety Skills
What is appropriate talk and touch?
Social Circles – Personal Space & Safety
How do I find social skills classes, therapists or other tools?
See our Providers and Services database for child psychologists.
See our Providers and Services database for Social Skills providers.