Can the key elements of this skill be appropriately depicted and connected in a social narrative?
The narrative format of these visual supports provides unique options for laying out complex issues and connecting the details related to an area of instruction.
Below is one brief narrative that might support a student in coping with the anxiety-provoking small talk exchanges that sometimes occur during interviews:
"Beginning and Ending the Interview - Social Narrative - Small Talk"
Consider whether any other “small talk” issues should be addressed via a social narrative: Monologuing versus dialoguing, asking or divulging personal information, persistently talking about high interest areas, etc.
Based on the student’s needs and interests, and based on the targeted skill and related concepts, what type of social narrative should you develop – a situational story, coping comic, thought story, and/ or coping card?
You might use a thought story to illustrate how inappropriate versus appropriate behaviors impact the way the interviewee is viewed, from the perspective of the interviewer:
A coping comic can be a beneficial tool in clarifying key details. This comic may be useful in priming.
For students in need of just a brief overview, a simple comic illustration can depict the steps of a full interview in a compact size. This may be used in practice and may even become a small cue for the student to review just prior to the interview. However, a simple set of visual instructions to use in practice may suffice.
How can you visually or thematically incorporate the student’s interests and preferences into this social narrative to increase motivation and engagement?
Use images of the student’s favorite characters by drawing them, having the student draw them, or printing them from an internet search. For many students, having an activity such as “search online and print 3 pictures of your favorite cartoon character” can greatly motivate participation in a task that later integrates those images. Through this technique, the student could actually work with you to design the social narrative from scratch.
What additional visual clarity cues (e.g. images, bolding, highlighting) might you add to the social narrative to support comprehension and to promote attention to key details?
Can you design the narrative so that it might not only be used in practice settings, but also reviewed independently by the student in generalized settings?
At times, social narratives may be first drawn and shown on a white board or large paper. Some social narratives are even housed on a computer or developed via such tools as Power Point. But, how might you alter these for use in real world practice? Capture the key elements of that original narrative and present those in a list of visual instructions on an index card, for example.
In order to align this intervention topic area with the unique needs of the student, do you need to create a social narrative in the View2do program?