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

 

Social stories have a huge range of applications, including: 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), to help a person to cope with changes to routine and unexpected or distressing events (eg absence of teacher, moving house, thunderstorms) and as a behavioural strategy (eg what to do when angry, how to cope with obsessions).