Date
23 March 2024

Foster social interaction

Develop personalised learning activities and approaches to foster social interaction.

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Teach students about their autistic peers

Teach students about their autistic peers

Develop approaches to teach peers and others about autism.  The Kit for Kids program is an American resource to teach primary school students about their autistic peers.

Involve ākonga and whānau and gain permission to share student specific information.

 

Support and develop social skills

Support and develop social skills

Support the development of social skills and foster positive social interactions.
  • Foster tuakana-teina relationships where students support each other.
  • Help autistic students to observe and notice others so that they can learn from their interactions.
  • Support social engagement with peers and adults.
  • Teach skills associated with social interactions, such as joining a group, taking part in two-way conversations, and reading non-verbal cues.
  • Structure social supports, particularly for situations where the rules or conventions are not clearly spelled out, such as at break times.
  • Provide opportunities for peers to understand the perspective of the autistic student.
  • Encourage whole-school awareness and understanding of autism.

Teach conversation skills

Teach conversation skills

Autistic students can get stuck on one subject, find it difficult to read facial expressions and miss social cues.

Create exemplars of social scenarios

Create exemplars of social scenarios

Use photos to identify characteristics of an interaction, such as physical space or facial expressions.
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Source: Ministry of Education | Te Tāhuhu o te Mātauranga

Source:
Ministry of Education | Te Tāhuhu o te Mātauranga

Useful resources

Useful resources

Apps to support autistic learners, includes social stories on a wide range of topics. These are available individually or as four bundles.

Website

Touch Autism (Apps)

Apps to support autistic learners, including social stories. For Apple devices

Publisher: Touch Autism

Visit website

Next steps

More suggestions for implementing the strategy “Key areas of support”:

Return to the guide “Autism and learning”

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