Social Skills Stories: Play Plans Change and More Than One Friend

Young elementary students and students with autism sometimes struggle when their favorite friend wants to play with other people. Kindergarteners, for example, often proclaim another child to be their “best friend” and might not understand that people can be still be friends even if they don’t always play together. This misperception can lead to many hurt feelings and tears! Using a social skills story can help explain that people often have more than one friend and that’s okay. The story “More Than One Friend” talks about being a good friend, handling having a friend who wants to play with someone different and the benefits of having more than one friend themselves.

Another difficult social situation kids often find themselves in is when a friend invites them to play a certain game and then later changes their mind. It can be hard for children to handle not playing what they were planning on playing, and sometimes kids become upset with their friends when this happens. The social skills story, “Play Plans Change” helps students to understand and know what to do when people change their minds about what they’ve said they want to play. It also explains how kids can tell their friends if they change their own mind about playing an activity they’ve invited others to join.

Reading the stories with your class when learning about friendships can help prevent problems and misunderstandings between students. The stories can also be reread individually anytime a child struggles with big emotions after their friend chooses to play with someone else or changes their play plan at the last minute.

Product includes:

3 versions of the 17 page social story “More Than One Friend”

• Full-page color version with large visuals and text enhanced with key word pictures.
• Simplified full-page color version with large visuals and text enhanced with key word pictures but less background graphics.
• Half-page color version with visuals but no key-word pictures in the text.

4 versions of the 14 page social story “Play Plans Change” plus visual support card

• Full-page color version with large visuals and text enhanced with key word pictures.
• Simplified full-page color version with large visuals and text enhanced with key word pictures but less background graphics.
• Simplified full-page color version with large visuals but no key-word pictures in the text.
• Half-page color version with visuals but no key-word pictures in the text.
• BONUS: Visual support card for staff to use with students who might need reminders of what to do if their play plan changes.

You can also support students with the social narratives and quick and easy visuals in Social Skills Stories: Going First, Fair Ways to Play, Be a Good Sport & Posters.

Also, check out more social skills stories and visual supports available in my Autterpaw Press store! Titles include:

Sometimes People Don’t Follow the Rules

I Raised My Hand But I Didn’t Get Called On

Friendly Words and Voice (Plus a visual cue card!)