Social Narratives:

Can the key elements of the issue be appropriately depicted and connected in a social narrative? 
 
As you design the social narrative, what are the most important aspects that you want to focus on?  Do not try to include all environmental stressors and all responses within one narrative.  Keep your focus precise and concrete. 

Simply, you might focus on the following: 

• What is the situation – in other words, what is the specific environmental stressor and when does it happen? 
• How does it make me (the student) feel? 
• What can I do about it (in some cases this might mean who can I tell?  How can I get help?)
• How will that make me feel?

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? 

Coping comics can be one creative resource, providing very brief illustrations of how certain environmental stressors might “feel” to the individual, and how to respond in these situations:

"Self-Identifying Environmental Stressors - Social Narratives - Coping Comics"

How can you visually or thematically incorporate the student’s interests and preferences into this social narrative to increase motivation and engagement?

The student may want to help create a social narrative if she is encouraged to make a favorite animated character the star of the story or comic.  Alternatively, let the student be the star!  Use pictures of the student, or simple hand-drawn illustrations.

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? 

Consider where the social narrative can be stored for easy access.  Furthermore, the key elements depicted within the social narrative (a thought story, a situational story) can be lifted and presented within a visual reminder cue. Once printed and cut, these cues can be kept in a drawer, planner, or even a wallet or purse.