Social skills may be described as "abilities necessary to get along with others and to create and maintain satisfying relationships" (Kennedy-Moore, 2011).  These abilities may include verbal and non-verbal forms of communication such as using appropriate greetings, language, gestures, body posture, manners and other social conventions. 

Expectations of "appropriate" social skills may be influenced by local culture, location, presence of particular people, an event and even gender.  As adults, we may be familiar with visiting a foreign country and not understanding the social conventions expected in certain situations.  We may become frustrated with other adults who do not to follow social conventions which we deem as "expected" or "normal".

We expect children to develop social skills by watching adults model language and behavior, however this may be difficult for some children to learn.  Social skills involve the ability of a child to "see" (pick up social cues), "think" (interpret the behavior of others) and "do" (interact in a positive way) (Kennedy-Moore, 2011).  This level of insight usually develops as a child becomes more mature, however for some children it can be extremely difficult.  Some children will need explicit instruction about how to participate in social situations with both their peers and adults.

Teaching social skills to children is a gradual process that begins as early as a baby can say "ta" in exchange for something which is given to them.  Further social skills are developed through modelling,  providing opportunities for social interaction and teaching children words and behavior.  The National Association of School Psychologists (2002) suggest that learning social skills is made through incidental learning and normal activities, addressing environmental factors and individual factors which may affect your child (NASP Center, 2002)

In this article, I look at community activities to encourage your child's development of social skills.   Depending on your child's individual factors, you may teach these skills by modelling, role-play, use of social stories and/or direct instruction. 

These are some common community activities that you and your child might participate in.  There are many more which  in which I have not covered - Can you think of some of the frequent social community events you participate in (eg. playing in a sport's team, walking around the block, attending church, etc..) .  I have not included social skills in the playground (read this HERE) and read about social skills at school next month with the Functional Skills for Kids Blog Series!   

One place where children and adults can build social skills is with conversation at the dinner table ... whether that be at home or at a restaurant.  ​Sometimes both children and adults struggle with "dinner conversation".  There are some great printables at "Conversation Starters" and "Childhood 101" to help start your conversations.  

I have also developed a FREE PRINTABLE called "Would you choose...".  This is a pack of 29 "simple choices" to help start conversations.  They include would you choose snow or surf, cereal or toast, apple or pear... a quick response may lead to further discussion as you delve into "why" they chose this option.  It also provides an opportunity for adults to share about their experiences and preferences.  Download your copy HERE today! 

This article is part of “Functional Skills for Kids: 12 month series by Paediatric Occupational and Physical Therapists”. You can find lots of great tips and tricks to help your children with their participation in the community in the links below.  Make sure you bookmark this page so you can come back to read all the links!

Developmental Progression of Community Skills  | Your Therapy Source
How to Support Your Child’s Core Strength Development Every Day | Miss Jaime, O.T.
Attention and Behavior Concerns and Independence in the Community | Sugar Aunts
Modifications for Kids with Special Needs in the Community  | Growing Hands-On Kids
Calming Games and Activities for Outings  |  The Inspired Treehouse
Working on following Directions When Out  | Therapy Fun Zone
Using Community Activities to Develop Your Child’s Social Skills  |Your Kids OT

References:
Kennedy-Moore, E. (2011) What are Social Skills? Helping Children Be Comfortable and Competent in Social Situations. Psychology Today. Retrieved on 21/07/2016 at www.psychologytoday.com

National Association of School Psychologists (2002) Social Skills: Promoting Positive Behavior, Academic Success, and School Safety. Retrieved on 21/7/2016 at www.naspcenter.org

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I recently "attended" a webinar by the world renown, Professor Winne Dunn on "Sensory Processing and the Impact on Everyday Life".  Professor Winnie Dunn is Professor and Chair of the Department of Occupational Therapy Education at the University of Kansas. She is known for her studies about sensory processing in everyday life and has published more than 100 research articles, book chapters and books.  Dr Dunn is also well known for being the author/creator of the Sensory Profile (assessment) for adults and children.

During the recent webinar, we looked at case studies of three children - a toddler who had difficulty at bath time and meal times, a 5 year old who would vomit in the car regularly and 3rd grader who was socially isolated.  Whilst every child is unique, the webinar prompted me to consider what are the sensory triggers for children when travelling in a car and what solutions can we offer families?

Travelling in a car can be an overwhelming sensory experience!  The trip may be five minutes or five hours, yet a child may suffer sensory overload and may react by becoming car sick, scream, kick, try to get out of the vehicle, head bang, cover their eyes or ears, push or hit other people in the vehicle,  change body positions, etc.  

Motion sickness is generally "thought to take place when there is a mismatch between the information that the brain receives from the inner ear balance mechanism (vestibular system) and what the eyes ‘see’" (Better Health Victoria).  You may not have considered motion sickness as a "sensory issue" however, it is clearly a response due to difficulty processing information from two sensory systems. 

Have you considered the sensory information your child is processing whilst travelling in a vehicle?

VISUAL: What can your child see during a car trip? 

• Is your child looking forward, to the side or rear-facing (for newborns)? 
• Does your child's eye level mean they can see outside of the window?
• Is your child looking at a screen? DVD player, tablet, phone, game device?
• Is your child reading, looking at map or other printed information?
• Is your child wearing sunglasses?
• Are your car windows tinted?

AUDITORY: What can your child hear during a car trip?

• Do you have music playing the car? Is it loud or soft? Does it have lyrics or is it instrumental? Does your child sing along? 
• Do you have audio books playing in the car? Are they engaging? Do they make your child have an emotional response (eg. cry, laugh, become scared)?
• Do you have the radio on in the car? Are their several voices talking simultaneously? 
• Do you have multiple children, people or pets making noise in the car?
• If the windows are wound down, what noises from the environment can be heard? 
• Are you travelling in a rural or urban environment? Does the road surface make a noise when driven over?

PROPRIOCEPTION: What can your child feel (touch pressure) during a car trip? 

• Are the seats in the car leather or fabric?
• What is the suspension like in the car and can you feel the "bumps" in the road?
• Are you travelling in a rural or urban environment? Does the road surface change?
• If the windows are wound down, is the wind affecting your child?
• Does your child seem to "touch" everything in the car? Do they want to play with the window controls, locks, seat pockets, arm rests,  seat belts, head rests, air conditioning vents, lights, audio outputs, floor mats, thread in the upholstery, fabric of a booster seat/car seat? 
• Does your child seem to avoid "touching" things in the car? Do they avoid touching the window or air conditioning vents? 
• Does your child insist on turning off the air conditioning or turning it on full?
• Does your child becoming irritated by the seat belt or harness across their body? 

VESTIBULAR: How is your child moving during a car trip?

• Does your child move their head a lot during a trip between different areas of focus? (eg. looking sideways out of the window, looking the opposite way sideways to look at a sibling, looking downwards at a book, looking backward to look at a pet?)
• Does your child sway/dance to music in their seats?
• Does your child rock forward and backward?
• Does your child kick the chair in front of them?
• Does your child try to curl into a ball?
• Does your child try to twist out of their seat belt of car restraint?

ORAL: What does your child do with their mouth during a car trip?

• Does your child chew or suck on food? Is the food crunchy, soft, sour, sweet, salty, spicy?
• Does your child drink? Is the liquid cold, hot, thick, thin, fizzy, plain, sweet, sour? Are they using a straw, sports bottle top, other?
• Does your child mouthe inedible objects? Are they licking/sucking/chewing items such as a dummy, blanket, hair, seat belt, pencil, clothing, etc?
• Does your child bite themselves or others?
• Does your child blow with their mouths?  Are they blowing their hair, a tissue, a toy? 
• Does your child whistle or sing?
• Does your child play with their lips?
• Does your child dribble or drool? Is this age-appropriate?

SMELLL: What does your child smell during a car trip?

• Does anyone in the car wear perfume, deodorant, after-shave or strong smelling moisturizer?
• Is there a baby in the car? Does the baby have talc powder? Have they soiled their nappy?
• Does the car have an "air freshener"?
• Has the car been recently vacuumed and cleaned? Were chemicals used during cleaning?
• If the windows are wound down, what smells from the environment can be smelt? 
• Is there food in the car (eg. takeaway, fast food, snacks, groceries, raw meat/seafood)?
• Has anyone removed their shoes in the car?
• Has it rained recently and is anything in the car wet?
• Has anyone in the vehicle recently shampooed their hair?
• Is there used sporting equipment in the car?

​

A child may have different reactions in different vehicles as they may be triggered by sensory stimuli in one vehicle which they do not experience in another vehicle.  Different children may respond to the same sensory information in different ways.  This means that siblings travelling in the same car may have completely different reactions to the environment that they are in .... which makes parenting even harder! 
​
These sensory considerations for travelling in a car may also be applicable to other vehicles such as buses, trains and boats. There will be a follow up article in the coming weeks with some sensory solutions for the car! Stay connected so you don't miss it! Find Your Kids OT on Facebook, Pinterest, Instagram and/or subscribe to receive blog posts via email!

Are you doing a road trip these holidays?
Have you considered the sensory triggers when travelling in a car? 

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