Social skills are the play and interaction skills that underpin positive social interactions. Social skills therapy targets: 

• early play skills (eg. people games such as peek-a-boo and pretend or symbolic play)

• eye contact and gesture use

• turn taking

• use of language and tone of voice

• asking questions

• flexible thinking and sharing

• initiating play (e.g. joining in)

• conversation skills

• Theory of Mind (e.g. putting yourself in another person’s ‘shoes’ to make a guess about how they may be feeling, what they are thinking and what they will do next)

• reading body language and being a ‘social detective’

• knowledge of social cues and expected behaviours. 

Social skills are important for your child’s ability to create and maintain meaningful friendships. They also provide a framework for how children make sense of their world.