Social understanding

• May experience difficulties when interacting alongside other children, for example they may not always accept friendly approaches from other pupils, understand personal space, find taking turns or waiting their turn and/or sharing challenging.
• Rather than seek adult support to help solve a problem, the child or young person may become withdrawn or demonstrate fight or flight responses.
• May not be able to interact effectively with others in different contexts or situations and adapt their behaviour accordingly.
• May demonstrate unsafe behaviours.
• May see events from their own perspective and find others’ points of view difficult to understand, finding resolutions to differences difficult to navigate.
• May not predict or may misunderstand the consequences of their actions on others.
• May find it difficult to manage perceived challenge and conflict.
• Likes to control situations such as trying to lead an activity or conversation.
• May not be able to give opinions, offer compliments or give feedback to manage and maintain relationships.
• May find it challenging to reflect on events to consider what happened, why this may have occurred and consider the impact on others.
• May not adapt language and communication to ensure it is suitable for a particular context, for example language used in the classroom versus language to interact on the playground.
• Does not appear to hold others’ thoughts and opinions in mind in their everyday actions.
• May not recognise when a listener has not understood them, which may lead to frustration and escalation in behaviours.

You may also find the social communication and expressive language information in the communication and interaction section of the framework useful.

Based on need, some of this provision will be effective.

• Opportunities to develop social skills and relationships, using an interest-led approach where possible to increase engagement, for example Pokémon.
• Explicitly demonstrate real life examples of positive social interactions. Adults make the most of moment-by-moment interactions, thinking of them as educative opportunities. They may use commentary, explicit direction and model positive ways children and young people can relate to others.
• Adults notice appropriate interactions and comment, for example “great waiting”. This allows the child or young person to know when they are engaging positively, making new connections of how to relate to others.
• Planned and supported opportunities to engage in social interactions, for example small world, role play making friends, playground games, win or lose games. Ensure an appropriate level of language and activity is used.
• Develop co-operation and interaction skills through small group sessions, for example Lego Therapy, cooking, gardening, role-play, board games, small world, jigsaw puzzles.
• Develop social understanding through specific strategies, for example social stories, comic strips, flowcharts, role play, drama and the use of props such as puppets.
• Visual scaffolds, such as comic strip conversations and social narratives are used to support children and young people to reflect on their own behaviour and that of others. This should begin with reflecting on positive moments for the child or young person.
• Explicit activities linked to developing social understanding are planned into the curriculum, for example Attachment Based Mentoring, Thrive, ELSA, SEAL.
• Planned interventions to develop communication and social interaction skills, such as Circle of Friends. The content of these groups should be shared with staff and parent carers so that this learning can be reinforced and generalised.
• Play games that involve turn-taking, leading, and following, barrier games (begin with activities that involve a very short period of waiting and build up gradually from there). Providing a visual reminder of whose turn it is can be helpful.
• Modify lunchtimes. Try a quieter location for eating, a lunchtime club or a ‘20 – 20 – 20 lunch break’: 20 mins eating – 20 mins playing on the whole playground or smaller area with friends – 20 mins doing tasks or a responsibility job to support transition back into the classroom.
• Carefully consider social interactions and groupings. Supervise these where needed. This may include adult modelling and support with social interactions.
• Adults adapt their language when supporting interactions. Use explicit phrases that do not assume previous social and emotional understanding. For example, it is not helpful to use phrases like “Be kind” or “Calm down”. Instead, explain what you mean by being kind. For example, “Talk quietly to your friends, they get a shock when you shout” or “Touch others gently…it may hurt them if you push”. These phrases can be supported visually, through role-play, or modelled.
• Adults adapt language to reduce the suggestion or perception of demands. Use declarative language (statements, comments or observations), or rephrasing things to talk about an object rather than a person.
• Use a Relational Support Plan to outline support, intervention and activities to support the development of social understanding.
• Language for Behaviour and Emotions can be used to support pupils to develop receptive language skills, particularly in relation to social interactions, for example Comprehension Monitoring, understanding figurative language) – see Language For Behaviour And Emotions: An introduction.
• Explicitly teach, practise and revisit strategies to help repair breakdowns, for example making amends, re-phrasing, acknowledging confusion or asking for clarification. Restorative conversations must be supported using visual supports and social narratives, adult modelling, developing empathy using thought bubbles, stories, small world and role play.

Support services

• Devon’s Social, Emotional Mental Health Team
• LEGO-based therapy training
• Request support from Devon’s Social Emotional and Mental Health Team
• Devon’s Educational Psychology service
• Request support from Devon’s Communication and Interaction Team.
• Children and Family Health Devon referral form for Neurodiversity, Mental Health and Mental Health Support Team in Schools (MHST), sensory and Speech, Language and Communication.

Further reading and information

• Toolkit of evidence based SEMH Interventions
• ELKLAN Language Builders for Social, Emotional, Mental Health
• Linking language and behaviour training: Mind Your Words – mental health e-learning course | RCSLT
• Marjon (Keeping Language in Mind – Dr Val Brooks Cross, M. (2011) Children with social emotional and behavioural difficulties and communication problems: There is always a reason. 2nd Edition. Jessica Kingsley Publishers
• Promoting Social, Emotional and Mental Health | RCSLT
• Supporting Social, Emotional and Mental Health | RCSLT
• Putting the Pieces Together training: Pre-birth and early years, primary school age video – 4 Dec 2023
• Putting the Pieces Together training: Older children and adolescents video – 28 Nov 2023

Resources to share with parents

• Helping your child interact with others
• Creating opportunities for early interaction | BBC Tiny Happy People
• Free Downloads – Solihull Approach | Parenting
• Progress checkers for parents: Signs and symptoms | Speech and Language UK: Changing young lives
• Parent workshop: Simplify language and support understanding | Children and Family Health Devon
• Parent workshop: Using visuals to support communication | Children and Family Health Devon