Social Thinking and being a Social Detective Sara Goldhawk Head Teacher SGS Pegasus School

The Social Thinking Framework Social Thinking is a framework and curriculum developed by Michelle Garcia Winner It is designed to enhance and improve social thinking skills It is a framework that can be used in schools and at home Rather than teaching rote social actions, Social Thinking teaches social awareness by develop social skills in real life situations

What is Social Thinking? Social Thinking is what we do when we share space with others For example:- sending an email or text sitting in a classroom or café lining up in the classroom or in a cinema queue playing in the playground or at a party In fact, any activity that involve our social interpretation of a situation, of other people’s behaviour and how we react or adapt to them

What does it take to be a Social Thinker? To think socially we:- consider the context of a situation take in the thoughts, emotions and intentions of the people with whom we are interacting use that information to determine how we respond It's an incredibly complex process that most of us take for granted

How does this develop? For many of us, social thinking develops naturally and intuitively Yet, for some the process is different Some individuals may find it incredibly complicated to go through the process of thinking about what others are thinking and then use social skills in the exact moment they are needed Social thinking develops when an individual is able to intuitively understand the nuances of social communication and interaction

Social Thinking vocabulary/concepts The Social Thinking Framework has a variety of key vocabulary and concepts It is advisable to introduce these slowly, rather than try to introduce them all at once Social Thinking is about observation and adapting behaviour/actions based on this observation Best practice is to discuss one or more Social Thinking vocabulary/concepts and then observe others or situations to see how others are being Social Thinkers The following are just an example of some of the Social Thinking vocabulary/concepts

Social Thinking vocabulary/concepts 1. WHOLE BODY LISTENING The whole body (eyes, ears, mouth, hands, feet and brain) needs to be focused on the group in order to listen and show you are listening

1. WHOLE BODY LISTENING Once the concept of “Whole Body Listening” is explained, sit with the young person and watch others (real life or on media) Can they observe “Whole Body Listening”? Reinforce this when you observe the young person “Whole Body Listening” with “well done, I can see you are Whole Body Listening because you …”

Social Thinking vocabulary/concepts 2. EXPECTED BEHAVIOURS There are a range of hidden rules in every situation and a young person needs to work out what those rules are and then follow them (using whole body listening, for example) What is expected is different based on where we are and who we are with

Social Thinking vocabulary/concepts 3. UNEXPECTED BEHAVIOURS Are those behaviours/actions which do not follow the set of rules, hidden or stated, in the situation or environment People who don’t follow the rules are doing what is ‘unexpected’

2 & 3. EXPECTED AND UNEXPECTED BEHAVIOURS Once the concept of “Expected and Unexpected behaviours ” is explained, sit with the young person and watch others (real life or on media) Talk about what is “Expected” & “Unexpected behaviour” in these events What do they observe which are “expected” & “unexpected behaviours?” Reinforce this when you observe the young person with “well done, you sat down, that was expected behaviour” or “you are standing up, that is unexpected behaviour. What is the expected behaviour?” Note:- if the word “behaviour” is too abstract, this can be changed to “action”

Social Thinking vocabulary/concepts 4. THINKING WITH YOUR EYES Your eyes are ‘tools’ that help you figure out your environment and what other people might be thinking about It puts the emphasis on a young person to be an observer and to use the clues to make smart guesses about what other people might be thinking about or what the “expected” behaviour is They are encouraged to use this information to adapt their thinking, words, and behaviour

4. THINKING WITH YOUR EYES Once the concept of “Thinking with your eyes” is explained, sit with the young person and watch others (real life or on media) Can they use their eyes to figure out what other people might be thinking about or what the “expected behaviour” is? Reinforce this when you observe the young person with “well done, you were thinking with your eyes when you saw Jack with a ball and you asked Jack if you could play football”

Social Thinking vocabulary/concepts 5. BEING A SOCIAL DETECTIVE Everyone is a social detective We are good social detectives when we use our eyes, ears, and brains to figure out what others are planning to do next, or what they are presently doing and what they mean by what they say

“You are a Social Detective “You are a Social Detective!” presents the core formula for teaching explicitly the concept of Social Thinking It is an important first step to introducing the Social Thinking vocabulary and concepts

“You are a Social Detective!” is a 68-page storybook It introduces concepts such as social detective school smarts/social smarts thinking with your eyes expected/unexpected behaviour

The 1st section points out how we all have “smarts” These might be school smarts, sports smarts, Lego smarts, etc. but we also have social smarts It explains that social smarts means understanding that others have thoughts about us and we have thoughts about others We use social smarts everywhere

“thinking with our eyes” “expected and unexpected behaviours” Other Social Thinking vocabulary that is explained, using simple but age appropriate illustrations include:- “being a part of a group” “thinking with our eyes” “expected and unexpected behaviours”

The book also explains “being upset” in explicit physical terms (unfriendly voice, angry face, body gets tight) Young people can identify their own physical responses for when they get upset This is all part of being a “Social Thinker”

The book then goes on to explain the process of being a social detective, i.e. using eyes and ears along with what they know in their brains The book talks about how we use our eyes, ears and brain to make “Smart Guesses” about how to behave/respond The contrast (Whacky Guess) is also illustrated

Superflex This comic book and curriculum package introduces characters and a highly motivating set of strategies There is a 106 page book to guide adults in teaching the core concepts The 21-page comic book introduces the basic Unthinkable and Thinkable characters through which we teach the curriculum

Social Behaviour Mapping This book presents a collection of over 50 Social Behaviour Maps that are already filled out for common situations that young people may experience at school, at home, and in the community

Young people can develop their own visual ways of remembering The Social Thinking Framework.

How we will introduce Social Thinking Small steps rather than going for the whole Ensure all staff are familiar with “You are a Social Detective” Read to pupils (as a whole or in sections) Print key vocabulary/concepts Plan teaching key vocabulary/concepts in small steps Ensure everyone uses same language Celebrate observed behaviours or language

Where to find out more? Social Thinking website www.socialthinking.com Facebook www.facebook.com/socialthinking Pinterest https://uk.pinterest.com/ Twitter You Tube