Social Stories are one of those supports that you might have heard of but aren’t sure what they are all about. Or perhaps you’ve been in the field for a while and have seen them used successfully while other times left you questioning if they just created more confusion.
Let’s unpack this potential support!
What to Expect This School Year
First, a little heads-up, the autism section of the TTAC-ODU newsletter will be exploring common classroom supports and looking further into whether or not they are actually evidence-based. For our purposes, we will be using Christopher Bugaj’s (AT Specialist for Loudoun County Public Schools) definition of “evidence-based practices” wherein we need the synergy of three things:
- What is the research telling us?
- What are the professionals who do this regularly and successfully telling us?
- What are autistic* people telling us works for them? What is the user-experience like?
*Mr. Bugaj’s original definition asks, “what are people with disabilities telling us works for them,” but I will specifically be looking for feedback from individuals on the spectrum.
What Are Social Stories?
Social narratives (which include Social Stories ™) have been used across settings to help individuals understand social situations (typically through a neurotypical lens), increase coping skills, improve academic abilities, and develop self-care skills.
Carol Gray, an educator who worked with students on the spectrum, began developing stories to help her students understand concepts, skills, or situations. What we now know to be Social Stories ™, were formalized in the early 1990s with guidelines and implementation supports.
Social Stories are not meant to be a list of rules and directives. They are short, personalized stories that help clarify and explain a social situation, activity, behavior, or expectation in a clear and supportive way.
In order to develop a Social Story, you as the educator must first be curious, listen, and seek to understand the situation from the student’s perspective. Remember, all perceptions are valid because they reflect how the student experiences the situation.
What Makes a social story a “Social Story”
10 Criterion for Social Stories (click to expand):
Each Social Story Must:
- Have a Clear Goal
- Follow a Two-Step Discovery
- Understanding of audience
- Understanding the specific topic
- Have a Clear Title and 3 Main Parts
- Introduction that clearly captures the topic
- Body with key details
- Conclusion that reinforces and summarizes
- Be Tailored to the Audience/Your Student(s)
- Have Patient and Supportive Voice
- Responds to Relevant “WH” Questions
- Contain Descriptive and Coaching Sentences that Meet Guidelines
- For instance, “Descriptive Sentences” must be free of assumption or bias. “Coaching Sentences” are meant to gently guide behavior.
- Meet Formula Expectations
- Two “Descriptive Sentences” for every “Coaching Sentence” with “Perspective” and “Affirmative” sentences infused.
- Rebekah Pierce offers examples of this on her blog “Life Skills Advocate.” Check out her blog post: “How to Write a Social Story (A Step-By-Step Guide).
- Have Multiple Drafts
- Social Stories should continue to evolve based on feedback from students and as our understanding evolves as educators.
- An Implementation Plan
- Please check out one of Carol Gray’s books (available in our TTAC-ODU library) for specifics and more information. For instance, Social Stories should never be used as a consequence for an interfering behavior. They are meant to be introduced and reviewed in a comfortable setting and with a positive tone.
See Carol Gray’s Social Stories 10.2 Philosophy for more information: The Social Story Philosophy.
TTAC-ODU Library Items on “Social Stories” (click to expand):
- The New Social Story Book: 15th Anniversary Edition by Carol Gray
- Revealing the Hidden Social Code: Social StoriesTM by Maria Howley
- Writing & Developing Social Stories by Caroline Smith
What Does the Research Say?
Overall, Social Narratives are recognized as an evidence-based practice for autistic children and youth (Sam & AFIRM Team, 2015)(Hume et al., 2021), with Social Stories™ representing a specific type of Social Narrative.
However, the research on Social Stories and their effectiveness is more nuanced.
Evidence suggests that Social Stories can be effective for specific, targeted goals, while their impact on broader social skills and competencies is less clear.
Why is the Research Complicated?
Researching Social Stories and their effectiveness proved to be somewhat complicated.
Not every study explicitly defined a “Social Story” as the trademarked narrative approach developed by Carol Gray. Instead, some studies examined broader social narratives or narrative-based interventions. Because of this, not all of the research could be considered when examining the effectiveness of Social Stories™ specifically.
What the research does suggest is that Social Stories can be effective in supporting individual and focused goals. For example, Kokina and Kern (2010) found that Social Stories were more effective when used in general education settings and when the focus student was involved in the development of the Social Story.
These findings highlight the importance of considering both the context in which a Social Story is used and the individual learner for whom it is developed.
What About Generalization and Long-Term Effects?
At the same time, the research raises questions about whether the benefits of Social Stories extend beyond the specific skill or behavior being targeted.
While Social Stories may provide immediate and short-term benefits, evidence regarding the maintenance and generalization of those benefits remains limited. Kelvin Bruce (2026) reported maintenance periods ranging from approximately six weeks to six months, while Wright et al. (2024) found that the impact of Social Stories on broader social competencies was unclear or inconsistent.
This distinction is important.
A Social Story may be useful for supporting a student with a specific, meaningful goal, but that does not necessarily mean the student will develop broader social skills or generalize the targeted skill to other people, settings, or situations.
“Social Stories represent a low-cost, low-burden intervention. Benefits are seen in individual socio-emotional goals but without clinically evident impact on social responsiveness, anxiety, depression, parental stress or general health,” (Wright et al., 2024).
Taken together, the research suggests that Social Stories can be a useful tool when they are individualized and designed around a specific goal, particularly when the learner is meaningfully involved in their development. However, educators should be cautious about assuming that success with one targeted behavior will automatically result in broader or long-term changes.
For educators, the practical question is therefore not simply whether Social Stories “work,” but when, for whom, for what goal, and under what conditions they are most useful.
Further research to establish the impact of Social Stories, both short and long term, is needed.
What Do Educators Says About Social Stories?
In my time as a special education teacher, I have found social narratives most effective when paired with direct instruction and additional visual supports.
I intentionally use the broader term “social narratives” because, at the time, I was not yet familiar with the specific criteria and implementation guidelines for Carol Gray’s trademarked Social Stories™.
Social narratives are a broader category of short stories or visual tools designed to explain social situations, routines, expectations, and prosocial behaviors, while Social Stories™ follow specific guidelines, including defined sentence types and ratios.
Preparing for Field Trips
Before field trips and community outings, I developed a social narrative to prepare students for what to expect.
Whenever possible, I visited the location beforehand, took photographs of the actual setting, and spoke with onsite staff about rules and expectations. I incorporated this information into the narrative and paired it with a visual schedule that students and staff could reference throughout the outing.
For example, before our first big field trip to the aquarium, I created a social narrative using real photographs and included class-specific information, such as a generous donation that allowed each student to purchase one stuffed animal from the gift shop for $20 or less.
Of course, looking back there are certainly edits and updates I would make. However, I am sharing the original version with you in hopes you will feel encouraged to share your ideas and first drafts with others. We must start somewhere:
The visual schedules used throughout the trip followed the same sequence outlined in the social narrative.
For instance, we had a visual schedule for:
- our journey to the aquarium,
- our time at the aquarium, and
- our return to school
Ultimately, the main social narrative was not simply placed in the classroom library and left for students to discover.
Instead, we embedded it into whole-group lessons, connected it with student experiences, and it was made available as a self-selected reading option for several weeks before the trip (and after).
This repeated practice helped prepare both students and staff for what to expect.
The field trip was a great success, and the social narrative (combined with direct instruction, a fantastic team of educators & parent volunteers, an established classroom community, and visual supports) contributed to that success.
Do you have experience utilizing Social Stories? If so, I’d love to hear about it! Send me an email, and you might be featured in a future article!
What is the User-Experience Like?
While everyone’s experience is unique, I was keen to know more about Social Stories through the lens of a student who has actual experience using one.
For some essential insights, I interviewed Ryan Bobzien.
Ryan, now an adult, recalls being a part of a video social story when he was a young student. In particular, when he was around 10 years old, he helped to create a video social narrative designed to prepare him for a visit to the dentist:
EXPERIENCE
What do you remember about your experience with social stories?
“I really had no experience on what it was really for, but I do remember that it was essentially one of those things where they put a picture of you on a timeline/powerpoint of sorts on a specific story, in this case, the dentist, and try to tell it in a more happy manner to help autistic people realize that certain things aren’t as bad as they seem to be, like, again, the dentist. I’m not sure if it was for me, but I would definitely say that, looking back, the experience was something that I needed, all things considered.”
IMPACT
What difference, if any, did social stories make for you?
“It has made me better with the dentists that I’ve visited, so, no complications. Which is good, seeing as back then, I really couldn’t stand the dentist, but now I’ve learned to become alright with them.
Overall, I’d say my experiences went from bad to alright, I’d even say good or great if I thought so too. I wasn’t sure if the video in itself impacted me, it was an experience watching it, but I would say that I understood that the dentists are doing what they can to help you out, and that they’re okay with what the patients wanted for their appointment.”
ADVICE/CAUTIONS
If someone was making a social story for a person with autism, what would you want them to include?
“I wouldn’t have much to say on that, but I should go ahead and mention that if they were gonna do experiences of, let’s say, going to the dentist, going to the doctor, or any of the related manners, they should let the autistic person know that listening to the professionals, regardless of the occasion, can help you out as much as they can, and that they do wanna help you out, even if you’re not the talkative type or so, and that they should let the person in question know about the stuff they’re going through regarding their autism, all things considered.”
– Ryan Bobzien (R.B.)
Ryan’s experience also provides an important reminder that social narratives can come in many forms, including video.
Video social stories combine traditional social narratives with video modeling and can be an effective in supporting social communication, task engagement, classroom routines, and academic engagement (Alkinj et al., 2022).
Would you like to know more about Video Modeling? Send me an email and perhaps the Winter Newsletter will feature this intervention!
Closing Thoughts and Free Stories
Each article within the Fall 2026 Newsletter is exploring an approach or support that falls within “Instruction in Behavior and Academics” High-Leverages Practice (the blue domain which contains 2 “Pillar Practices” and 9 “Embedded HLPs,” High-Leverage Practices for Students with Disabilities).
Social narratives, including Social Stories, can be used to:
- support social behaviors (HLP 9),
- provide positive and constructive feedback to guide students’ learning (HLP 22) and behavior (HLP 8), and
- provide scaffolded supports (HLP 15).
However, we must remember those practices fall under “Use explicit instruction” (HLP 16) and “Establish a consistent organized, and responsible learning environment” (HLP 7).
In other words, Social Stories should not be used in isolation. They must be thoughtfully designed and incorporated into your explicit instruction.
Additionally, if your foundational learning environment is not consistent or organized, the Social Story will be a weak band-aid for a structural concern you as the teacher must address.
Start With the Student’s Perspective
While Social Stories might be created with a particular student in mind, it’s really the process of developing the Social Story that is important to help the adults better understand a situation from the student’s perspective:
- How does the student see a given situation?
- What was challenging for the student or missing (i.e. is there something you have not yet explicitly taught)?
Carol Gray sums this final point up best in her interview with “Undivided.” I encourage you to read the full article on Undivided: What is a Social Story? Featuring Carol Gray.
Sample Social Stories
From TTAC-ODU’s “Resource Hub”, developed by educators across Virginia:
- A Social Story: Wearing a Mask
- A Social Story: When Someone Tells Me “No”
- A Social Story: I Can Ask for Help
- A Social Story: I Can Handle Change
- A Social Story: When I Don’t Get My Way
From Carol Gray:
Please keep in mind, many of the above Social Stories were developed 4+ years ago. An important aspect of a true Social Story is that they evolve. If you have any updated Social Stories you would like to share, please send me an email! These stories are meant to give you ideas and help you to get started.
Need Something Else?
Reach out with questions,
to brainstorm ideas,
or to simply share a celebration.
A final note: Out of deep respect for diverse perspectives, I use both people-first and identity-first language throughout my articles.
Words are powerful; everyone’s experiences are unique. Be sure to always ask and honor individual preferences.
References:
Alkinj, I., Pereira, A., & Santos, P. C. (2022c). The effects of an educational program based on modeling and social stories on improvements in the social skills of students with autism. Heliyon, 8(5). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.heliyon.2022.e09289
Hume, K., Steinbrenner, J. R., Odom, S. L., Morin, K. L., Nowell, S. W., Tomaszewski, B., Szendrey, S., McIntyre, N. S., Yücesoy-Özkan, S., & Savage, M. N. (2021). Evidence-based practices for children, youth, and young adults with autism: Third generation review. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 51(11), 4013–4032. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10803-020-04844-2
Kelvin Bruce, B. (2026). Efficacy of social stories on adaptive and behavioral outcomes in autistic youth: A systematic review and meta-analysis of long-term maintenance and generalization effects. International Journal of Recent Trends in Multidisciplinary Research, 10. https://doi.org/10.59256/ijrtmr.20260605002
Kokina, A., & Kern, L. (2010). Social Story interventions for students with autism spectrum disorders: a meta-analysis. Journal of autism and developmental disorders, 40(7), 812–826. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10803-009-0931-0
McLeskey, J., Maheady, L., Billingsley, B. S., Brownell, M. T., & Lewis, T. J. (2022). High leverage practices for Inclusive Classrooms. Routledge.
Sam, A., & AFIRM Team. (2015). Social narratives. Chapel Hill, NC: National
Professional Development Center on Autism Spectrum Disorder, FPG
Child Development Center, University of North Carolina. Retrieved from
http://afirm.fpg.unc.edu/Social-narratives
What is a social story? featuring Carol Gray. Social Stories for Kids with Disabilities. (2024, July 15). https://undivided.io/resources/what-is-a-social-story-featuring-carol-gray-2202
Wright, B., Blackwell, J. E., Bell, K. J., Teige, C., Mandefield, L., Wang, H., Welch, C., Scantlebury, A., Watson, J., McMillan, D., Standley, E., Attwell, L., Carrick, H., Taylor, A., Taylor, O., Hodkinson, R., Edwards, H., Pearson, H., Parrott, S., … Hewitt, C. (2024). Autism spectrum social stories in schools trial 2 (asssist‐2): A pragmatic randomised controlled trial of the social storiesTM intervention to address the social and emotional health of autistic children in UK primary schools. Child and Adolescent Mental Health, 30(1), 4–12. https://doi.org/10.1111/camh.12740