Our Social Skills Training Program will focus attention this month on Making Smart Guesses.
Making a smart guess is a precursor to making predictions and inferences, skills that can be difficult for individuals who struggle with social learning. To make a smart guess we take what we observe (situation clues, people, body language, tone of voice, etc.) A smart guess you make based on some information you have already learned. When you make this type of guess you try and figure out the next logical piece of information based on what you already know. A wacky guess you make when you do not have enough information.
Following are some of the activities we will be using with our clients.
Thinking with your eyes:
Thinking with your eyes are ‘tools’ that help you figure out your environment and what other people might be thinking about. It puts the emphasis on the students becoming good observers and to use the clues to make smart guesses about what other people might be thinking about.
Sample Activities:
I spy- a person will look at an object and the other player will guess what the person is thinking about by following the person’s eyes.
Nonverbal Games- Play games without speaking (for example, Jenga, Uno, etc.) Players will use their eyes to see when it is their turn.
This or That and Then (virtual activity) – Person one will hold 2 items in front of the computer screen and look at one of the two items. Person two will guess what the person one is thinking about (i.e following their eyes). Since person one is thinking about X, then person two will make smart guess about what that person may do with that item.
Example: Abby is holding a pencil in one hand and a spoon in the other hand. Abby is looking at the spoon. Kyle follow’s Abby’s eyes and makes a guess that since Abby is looking at the spoon, she probably is going to use that spoon to eat something.
Treasure Hunt:
Find something that matches each color of the rainbow.
Would You Rather:
A fun list of questions surrounding the St. Patrick’s Day holiday.
These are just a few of the activities we will be working on this month.