Tips to Help Autistic Kids Make Friends

Tips to Help Autistic Kids Make Friends Autism

Making friends is something many people struggle with at every stage of life. However, friendships are important, as they improve mental health and overall quality of life. Children diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), struggle to understand social signals more than others. Thus, their behavior and might come across as strange or different from their peers.

This creates challenges in making friends. If your child feels reluctant to engage with others, they need your help for positive autism social interaction and friendships. This guide comprises various autism friendship tips for you to help your child make friends for a more fulfilling life.

Helping Autistic Kids Make Friends: Autism Friendship Tips For Parents

Autism social interactions, even minimal, are a way to heave off emotions and learn and grow. Studies involving autistic children show that positive friendships and a low risk of depression and anxiety go hand in hand.

Tips to Help Autistic Kids Make Friends

Needless to say, you must prioritize supporting and encouraging your child with autism to form friendships from a young age. While it may seem overwhelming, there are many effective steps you can take. From how to meet autistic friends to at-home learning, here are some tips for parents of autistic kids to help them make friends.

Fortify the habit of ‘taking turns’ through practice and play.

Abstract rules of social skills for autistic children do not come easy. Instead, concrete guidelines through play-based practice allow positive social interaction, even in the case of high-functioning autism and friendships. One example of a specific habit pertaining to social interactions is taking turns.

Children with autism spectrum disorder usually lack impulse control and a subconscious understanding of other children’s needs along with theirs—hence the difficulty in waiting for their turn. However, you can help them learn this. Look up social activities for autistic kids that involve taking turns.

Set the rule from the get-go: they have to wait their turn to talk, hold, eat, or whatever action the game involves.

Not only does this practice strengthen the quality of patience, but also helps them be more aware of others and their needs. Moving forward and entering various social situations, they will have more fulfilling, constructive interactions with their peers.

Help them understand ‘friendship’ in real-life scenarios.

A great way to help your child improve peer relationships is to first familiarize them with the concept of friendship. Talk to them about what a friend is, preferably in real-life scenarios with siblings, other children in the family, or kids around your family (e.g. neighbors, classmates, etc.)

For helping autistic kids make friends, you can familiarize them with ‘friendship’ by:

  • Have them share things, talk to, borrow and lend things, and play with other children, while letting them know they’re interacting with friends.
  • Where possible, also let them know who isn’t a friend. This can help them differentiate between strangers, acquaintances, friendships, and other relations.
  • Pretend play can also help children understand friendships. For kids who grow up with few children around and do not have same-age interactions on a daily basis, this practice can be helpful.

As your child gains a better understanding of friendship, it’s also smart to let them know who is not a friend (aside from strangers). Discuss adults who are not considered friends, and children who bully or behave negatively towards them aren’t their ‘friends’.

Encourage recognizing and expressing emotions.

How to make friends as an autistic person? Understanding emotions, showing appropriate responses, empathy, and expressing emotions—all these are vital aspects of friendship building from a young age. Since autistic children often find it challenging to recognize emotions as well as express appropriate emotions, there is a significant barrier in their efforts to be friends and maintain friendships with others.

Encourage recognizing and expressing emotions

Helping your child learn complex emotions is an effective way to help them make friends.  You can work on emotions with your child in everyday life with these autism friendship tips:

  • Start with the basic emotions: happy, sad, and angry, and move on to the more complex scared, worried, and dissatisfied as they progress.
  • Putting emotions into words is the most practical approach. For example, when they look happy when eating their favorite snack, let your child know they’re happy.
  • Use visual aids for communication skills, enabling your child to show and interpret emotions correctly without a lot of guesswork.

People get confused about how to make friends as an autistic person because they perceive social situations differently. So, in addition to teaching your child about their emotions, provide them with real-life examples of other people’s emotions. For instance, if you come across a child crying on the playground, let your child know what they are feeling and why, and what can be done in response!

Set up play-dates with other kids with autism.

Nothing is better than exposure to families and children going through similar life situations like yours to help your child succeed in the emotional and behavioral aspects of social interactions—and make friends.

It can be confusing for other children to play with your child, and learning about autism can result in questions like why is my friend autistic. On the other hand, connecting with families with autistic children and arranging play dates can be a way to:

  • Your kid plays with children going through a learning process, thus they feel less overwhelmed.
  • Playdates with autistic friends will mean less judgment and more understanding from parents.
  • Children and families can rely on each other for information, sympathy, and support.

If you are unsure how to meet autistic friends for your child, social media is a powerful platform. In case, you are not a part of any online autism social groups, consider joining a couple. Social media has made it more accessible for parents of autistic children to connect, learn, and share knowledge and events. Moreover, these autistic friendly online groups allow you to meet with families and give your child the opportunity to make friends.

Seek the help of an applied behavior analysis (ABA) expert.

If your child is extremely awkward or acts out in social situations that incite questions such as is my friend autistic, approach a board-certified behavior analyst (BCBA) for Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA).

Helping autistic kids make friends without professional support can be incredibly challenging. ABA therapy addresses various areas of development—including autism social skills and connections. Enrolling your child in ABA therapy means helping them with:

  • Understanding and emotional regulation
  • Language and speech development
  • Behavior and social skills development

High-functioning autism and friendships are tricky connections in many cases. Since a BCBA is an expert in social skills activities for autistic teens and children, they can provide your child with immense support for making friends.

Involve teachers in the process for enhanced support.

How to help autistic kids make friends at school? Involve their teachers in the process. Autistic children are more confident about social interactions and making friends in the presence of adults who know how to interact with them in an encouraging manner. Your child’s teacher can help by crafting autistic friendly activities.

If possible, you can connect your ABA therapist or any other professional in social skills for autistic children with their teachers. A unified approach to your child’s journey of making friends will help enhance everyone’s efforts.

Have your child’s teacher meet with you and your BCBA so that they understand your child’s strengths and limitations regarding autism social skills. As a school-going child spends a lot of their time under their care, it’s imperative that their teacher is on board with what’s important for them to succeed in conversations and playing with their classmates.

Sign up your child for autism social groups sessions.

ABA providers arrange both one-on-one and group therapy sessions, the purpose of the latter being to help an autistic child learn in realistic situations. Not only is group therapy your answer to how to meet autistic friends, but it also provides your child with an environment that’s more suitable and comfortable for some who have a hard time interacting with others.

These social skills groups for autistic children can provide your child with a safe and welcoming space to interact with potential autistic friends. Under the keen guidance of the therapist, they practice socializing with their peers. Unlike a school or daycare, you can be present to observe your child and learn about their behavior in social situations.

As a result, these group sessions also enable you to become more adept and helping your child navigate social situations and make friends with ease.

Navigate Friendships with the Help of Small Steps

Are you looking for more autism friendship tips and guidance on how to make friends as an autistic adult or child? At Small Steps, we provide counseling and ABA therapy for kids and adults to help them overcome the challenges of autism. Our experts lend support for building friendships for autistic adults and children. Call us at +971556106471 or drop us a message to talk to us arrange a session.

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