New baby brother or sister

This social story is designed to prepare a child for getting a new baby brother or sister. There are 3 versions of the story; one for when mum is pregnant and the baby has not yet been born and then 2 for after the baby is born - one for a brother and one for a sister. These stories cover mum having to be in hospital, the baby coming to live in their house and how this might feel. It also prepares them for the fact that new babies cry and that mum and dad may need to spend a lot of time with the baby however it remains very positive and reassures the child that mum and dad still love them very much and that there will also be plenty of fun parts to having a new sibling.

The point of a social story is to use a patient and reassuring tone to teach children about social situations in a way that can be easily understood. Social stories can be useful for any child who is struggling to understand a situation or concept or needs help to understand a social skill or social cue, expectations, perspectives, common responses or is troubled about an upcoming event but social stories are particularly useful for children on the autistic spectrum for whom social cues can be challenging and who often suffer anxiety if they do not know what to expect from a situation.

These books should be used over and over to reinforce the point so I would suggest either putting the pages into a display book or laminating and binding them.

Clipart images courtesy of Kari Bolt Children’s Illustrator