Social Thinking 2019 Spring Conference Handout 1

Beckham
Linton M.A., CCC-SLP March 1, 2019 Conway, AR
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@socialthinking 2socialthinking
Teaching Social Competencies—More Than Social Skills #STConference
Superflex & Friends Take on Social

Emotional Learning and
Continue the Learning Educational Standards
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Presented by:
socialthinking.com/join Beckham Linton, MA, CCC-SLP

Member of the Social Thinking Training and Speaking Collaborative
Core teaching material developed by:

Michelle Garcia Winner, Pamela Crooke
& Stephanie Madrigal
Financial Disclosure Once upon a time, in San

Jose, a student was
Speaker for Social Thinking
Executive Director Social Thinking Boston stuck…
His flexible
therapist
had a idea…
Copyright 2016, Social Thinking Publishing,

all rights reserved www.socialthinking.com 1
Beckham Linton M.A., CCC-SLP March 1, 2019 Conway, AR
Today we are going to talk about the

scope and sequence of the use of
published Social Thinking products. Our purpose is to clarify teaching
principals and illuminate how to use
Our materials are being adopted broadly these curricula
without all professionals/administrators in the manner they are intended =
fully grasping the more intensive FIDELITY
teaching concepts.
Proclamation:
Dear Citizens of Access fidelity checklists for You are
a Social Detective and Superflex
Social Town posted on the Social Thinking
website under these products!
We have come together to learn how
to defeat the powers of the
Unthinkables by building more
resilient Social Detective and
Superflex powers!
No matter how young or

old, teams of Unthinkables Superflex and
invade our brains!
The Unthinkables
Let’s figure out who has shown up Introducing the cast of characters that
in your brain this week and will be joining us today
perhaps right now, at the
conference…

Your
Face
Here



Stop and Discuss

Which Unthinkables have already
tried to take over your flexible
thinking today?
What is *social thinking?

What are social skills?
“Interpretive Engine”
The ability to consider the context and your
own and others’ thoughts, emotions, beliefs, Utilizing your social thinking
intentions, knowledge, etc. to help interpret then adapting your behavior to
and respond to the information in your mind
and/or through your social behavioral
encourage people to think
interactions. about you or your intentions in
*Note: small “s” and small “t” refer to thinking socially the manner you had hoped.
and not the Social Thinking methodology
It is important to note:
And, having an emotional awareness

that what we do and say can impact The Social Thinking Methodology is geared
how other people think and feel, for those with solid to high language skills,
which impacts how they may treat who have near average to way above
average verbal intelligence.
us which influences how we end up
feeling about them and possibly
ourselves.

A methodology for some, not for all

Using an iceberg as an analogy, in
§ ASD levels § Gifted and talented – the social world we tend to only see
§ ADHD Twice exceptional social behaviors; but there is so
§ Fetal Alcohol Syndrome much more going on below the
§ Social
Communication § Overlap with mental surface.
Disorder health diagnoses
§ Semantic Pragmatic § Brain injury Social Behaviors
Disorder § Behavioral DX
§ Nonverbal Learning § Neurotypical or those Introducing Social Thinking’s
with undiagnosed issues
Disorder (NLD) Social Competency Model
The ability to comprehend

and explain information, The social mind is our
spoken or written, rests meaning maker
on our social knowledge.
We use it to both interpret and
This all relates back to respond to information.
Standards of Education
Our students with Social Learning
Challenges need assistance with
learning both the interpretation as
well as the response.

If you….
• Watched this clip for fun on You Tube- we
Socially, we have to self-regulate
call this leisure time viewing
as part of our social response.
• If you read this story rather than watched it,
we would call it reading comprehension of However, the self-regulation
literature. begins with one’s attention and
• If you explained this clip to another person interpretation of one’s self in
we would call it narrative language. comparison to others.
• If you were asked to re-tell this clip in written
form we would call it written expression.
NEVER START by teaching To use the methodology well, it is

self-regulation. important that:
• We recognize it is a journey between
Our students need to recognizing/understanding what we are
understand the social doing that is unexpected and our ability to
expectations prior to being self-control that same behavior.

able to adapt their behavior to • Adults appreciate how hard it is to change
meet their social goals. one’s behavior!
There are Stepping Stones

Strategies Along the Pathway
Self-Control
Self-Awareness: (behavior change)
Being aware of Self monitoring one’s
others and own behavior in order
comparing yourself to create desired
to them behaviors for a situation
Self Awareness always comes before
Self regulation or self control
This Photo by Unknown Author is licensed under CC BY-SA-NC

What do we mean by the

term “treatment?”
•  Treatment using Social Thinking’s
Methodology involves implementation of
conceptual and client based treatment
frameworks, strategies and activities to
foster the development of social cognitive
processing and responses.
Treatment Pathway Please see our free article-
3 Parts of our Journey Research to Frameworks to Practice:
Social Thinking's Layers of Evidence
Part 1 Learning about Me in the Part 2 Learning about Strategies

Social World
Explore strategies
Increase to regulate self as
awareness of self part of the social
and others as part world and move
of the social world toward own goals
Part 3
Putting Increased awareness of self and
Social Attention
it all others as part of the social world
SELF and OTHERS
together Social Interpretation Making meaning

Awareness of own goals and then
strategies to meet goals Social Problem solving
Social Response
Using knowledge then skills to
navigate the social world

What are realistic outcomes?

• Most students will start to talk about
Superflex, the Unthinkables and what
they are noticing in others and
themselves. Different expectations for
• Kids with poor self-awareness may different ages and abilities
develop better self-awareness.
• Kids with stronger self-awareness may
begin to start to self-monitor and slowly
learn to use self control of their behavior.
Part 1 Increase awareness of self

as part of the social world
Increase
awareness of
self and others • Learning about your brain and
as part of the powers
social world
• Social Detective to learn about
others
• Superflex
Learning about Me in
the Social World • Unthinkables
Brain Bags – What I think

My Brain has Powers
about
• Thinking about myself and learning Images, drawings
about my own brain (across the and notes that
represent different
ages)
interests and
• What I think about – My brain (bag) knowledge
• My brain’s wires (strengths and A visual Me File
challenges) ‘My mind Magnets’

My Brain Wires – Exploring

Smarts
• Adding wires to our brain bags
• Pipe cleaners and clay (younger)
• Brains and wires with recycled
materials
• Strengths and challenges graph
(older)
Brain Bags
Goal: Increase awareness of the
different things we all think about
• We all think about different things
(e.g., interests)
• We all have different knowledge
(e.g., concepts we are familiar with
and think about such as the Group
Plan)
• Activity: Brain making with clay and

pipe cleaners

My Strengths and Weaknesses

5
4.5
3.5 What would be in

3
2.5
your brain bag?
2 What are your
1.5
1
smarts?
0.5
0
Com. Science Non-Fiction Sports Writing Making Organ.Skills
Gaming friends
So many brains with

so many different smarts
all sharing space… Behind everything social
is a flexible brain
No wonder it’s so
hard to be flexible!

Formal Definition of Executive

The process of interpreting Functions
and responding to information
The executive functions are a set of
based on our own goals
processes that all have to do with managing
involves our Executive
oneself and one's resources in order to
Functions, Perspective Taking
achieve a goal. It is an umbrella term for the
(Theory of Mind) and our
neurologically-based skills involving mental
ability to get the main idea
control and self-regulation.
(Central Coherence). Drs. Gerard A. Gioia, Peter K. Isquith, Steven C. Guy, and Lauren
Kenworthy (2000)

Or more simply – summarize EF We tend to think about executive

with your students as the ability functions as they relate to:
to: Goal, Plan, and Regulate
•  Writing a paper
1. Create a goal. •  Moving across the day’s
2. Develop a plan to meet the goal. schedule quickly and efficiently
3. Use strategies and flexible thinking to •  Having materials ready for you
self-regulate your emotions and to do your homework
related behavior to carry out the plan •  Completing your homework
to meet the goal.
•  Turning in homework, etc.
Socially Based Executive

Socially Based Executive Functions
help people to accomplish specific Functioning in face-to-face
social goals such as: interactions:
•  Choosing a seat One’s ability to socially attend to the
•  Going through coffee line situation in order to create a social
•  Make a friend plan and then adapting one’s
•  Keep a friend language and behavior to encourage
•  Work well in a group others to interpret your intentions in
•  Express your point of view in a the manner you had hoped.
manner other’s can consider it, etc.

If your goal is to make a friend

then your plan is to:
• Be aware of who is around you, the situation
and who you would like to be friends with
You can’t have a goal • Make an effort to be with the person
without self awareness • Plan to be perceived as friendly, nice and
interested in the person
• Engage in behaviors that keep the other
person comfortable (this requires self-
regulation)
• Repeat this pattern on a regular basis
BREAK
Teaching Social
Detective Thinking
Supporting social observation and
interpretation
You Are A Social Detective

Social Attention
Social Detective teaches social attention & observation
SELF and OTHERS
Social Interpretation
Smart guesses & hidden rules
Social Problem solving
Consider response based on other’s thoughts & feelings

Teaching students from an

What we say matters - Social abstract base does not help them
to problem solve our social
Thinking Vocabulary expectations.
User-friendly vocabulary concepts
Consider the abstract language we use
to explicitly teach social to guide children to learn in a group:
expectations to all people across all “cooperate”
settings. “negotiate”
“respect”
“be supportive”
More than just words

With Social Thinking, rather than
teach students expectations with • It is not about the vocabulary, it is
an abstract term such as about the concepts underneath
“behave”… • We use the language because the
language triggers the thought and the
We teach: behavior
1.  Every situation has hidden rules
2.  There are behaviors that are Concept Thought Behavior
expected and unexpected based
on the situation
Social Emotional Chain

Reaction Hidden Rules/Expectations
Expected Unexpected We use the words “hidden
behaviors behaviors expectations” to explain that there
How you behave affects how are social expectations that people
people… don’t talk about, but that we are all
Feel & Think expected to follow based on what is
Which affects how they react & happening around us (the context/
respond situation.)
Which affects how you feel yourself

How do we know how to

behave? Social Detective teaches
Awareness to the situation and the
• We figure out the hidden rules/ people (in the situation) which
expectations! uncovers
• We don’t base our social behavior on the Hidden Rules
the environment.
The hidden rules guide us to figure out
• Social behavior is dictated by the what is expected and unexpected
context/situation (people + place) behavior in a situation.
occurring within the environment.
Teaching Hidden Rules/

Expectations Student-friendly definitions
• Instead of asking “What is expected in • Expected behavior is behavior that
our classroom?” consider the specific most people do in a certain place or
situations within your classroom: certain situation.
• Independent reading
• Group work
• Snack time • Unexpected behavior is the
• Lining up opposite. It’s behavior that most
people wouldn’t do or shouldn’t do in
• Checking out a book
a situation.
What is the difference? Situation________________

• What makes a behavior expected is PEOPLE ________________
that it encourages others to feel calm or Expected Unexpected
possibly pleased in response to the
social behavior.
• What makes the behavior unexpected
is in response to the behavior, people
who witness the behavior feel stress or
more negatively towards a person.

Discuss with students:

Consider the many different contexts across
the school day: What are the hidden rules? • “Where are you? Who is there?
What is expected?
Unexpected? What is happening?”

How does it change based on • “What behavior do you think is
the people who are around
(teacher there vs. not) unexpected?
• What behavior do you think is
expected?
We make predictions and

inferences all the time!
•  In social interactions
•  In order to share space effectively with
What do you do with others across contexts
what you observe? •  To understand the directions provided

•  To gain meaning and understand content
across academic subjects
This is what makes it possible to figure out
what to do AND when to shift our thinking and
plans
Smart Guess
• We don’t always know something with
Input before Output certainty (that’s expected!)
We have to put the pieces of the puzzle • When we have some clues or information, we
together to interpret and make inferences
about how others are feeling, what they can make a smart guess (also called an
are thinking, and what the plan is educated guess).
BEFORE we respond.
• We take information from what we see (think
If we have the wrong input, the output will with our eyes) and what we hear and
not match up with the hidden rules or combine that with what we already know or
expectations for the context.
remember.
• If we miss, don’t account for new information,

or ignore important information we end up
Copyright 2016, Social Thinking Publishing, making a wacky guess.
Teach Guessing through an

Observation Toolbox
Teaching Smart Guess

What are we doing to do today?
What do you see?

What do you
hear?

What do you
know/remember?
Social Math or Smart Guess

Formula: Adding up the clues to
make a smart guess
Think with your eyes.
What do you see?
Listen with your ears.

What are others saying?
What do you KNOW about the person
in that situation?
What has happened in the past?
_________________________________________________________________________________________
SMART GUESS

Activity: Make a Smart Guess to figure Moving Into The Superflex

out the Group Plan Academy Starts With Social
• Choose familiar routines or activities (a Detective Boot camp
familiar game, putting homework away, silent
reading, etc.)
• Ask a student/group of students to leave the
room
• Choose a group plan with the remaining
students (e.g., get ready for silent reading)
• Begin the group plan
• Ask students to re-enter the space, observe
and make a smart guess about what the
group is doing---then follow the plan
Theme Based Lessons:

Social Detective Boot Step One
Camp (SDBC)!
• You are a Team!
Kids show their • You must work together to
competencies in observing solve the missions
to make Smart Guesses • The missions should remain
about context based TOP SECRET but will asked
to show what you have
expectations learned
You As The Instructor Is

Part of The Superflex Celebrating Success
Academy Staff
• Teach about the Ranks • Completing Missions = A
• Guide the missions with BADGE stamp
goals on how to proceed • WARNING: It may take a
through the Ranks few weeks to get each
• Prepare Weekly Mission BADGE stamp
Packs

Stratham Memorial School, NH

Reading Other’s Intentions Social Detectives for all Pre-K, K and
1st graders
• Media examples are everywhere!
• YouTube clips
• Big Bang Theory
• Texts and emails can be used to talk about
sarcasm, perspective taking and motives

Further exploring Key Ideas and Details for 1st grade:

connection to academics
Literacy
1. Ask and answer questions about key
details in a text.
2. Retell stories, including key details, and
demonstrate understanding of their
central message or lesson.
3. Describe characters, settings, and major
This Photo by Unknown Author is licensed under CC BY
events in a story, using key details.
Reading for Turn and Talk

Comprehension:
It’s more than Fluency! How could you infuse the
We have a “Stopwatch” Mentality.
concept of being a SOCIAL
DETECTIVE into what you
Let’s teach students to be Text Detectives! - already do?
Look for the clues in the TEXT
Several Apps and check out Pinterest for

examples

If your student..
Not all children are ready for • Cannot pretend

Superflex! • Takes all information literally
• Has very weak language skills so it
We adapt the teachings of Superflex
for children depending on a is unclear how he/she processes
student’s social attention, self- and responds to information
awareness, abstract language and
developmental age. Do NOT use Superflex!
A child is ready for using the

Superflex Curriculum when: While Superflex is mighty cute, be
very aware of a child’s abilities
• They can distinguish between real and
with regards to social attention.
pretend
• Have learned the basic Social Thinking
concepts
Different kids will have different levels of
• Are developmentally ready – meaning they success depending on their own native abilities.
can begin to think about their own thinking
and how this relates to their own behavior!
A Hero can take many forms

(from my students)
Superflex and the

Unthinkables in the
Social World
This Photo by Unknown Author is licensed
under CC BY-SA-NC
This Photo by Unknown Author

is licensed under CC BY-NC
This Photo by Unknown

Author is licensed under
CC BY

Heroes Are Found In Many

Meet Superflex
Places
See Handout “Superflex is Me!”
Heroes Often Have Grit
“To become a Superflex, you first learn to

think about others and what is happening
Meet… around you. As you get older, your
Superflex helps to find and use the right
strategies to be a flexible thinker and
problem solver and helps you to be part of
the group plan. Being Superflex is not
“You may have heard of Superheroes that always easy… All of these super powers
have the powers to fly, freeze, or become take practice and work.
invisible. But have you heard about Together with your team (your family,
Superflex? Superflex is one of the greatest teachers, and friends) you can learn more
superheroes of all time! Superflex’s super about and use your super flexible thinking
powers help us think about others!” powers!”
It is important to teach
children that Superflex
IS ME!
“Here’s the cool thing… We all
have the power to be a
Superflex! We all have a hero
inside!”
Help kids realize that Superflex is ME! SF can can
be any skin color, size, sex, gender, hair or eye
color, etc.

.
Meet The .
Unthinkables Each Unthinkable has

a specific “power” to
defeat superflexible
The Unthinkables are thinking in a person’s
a way for us to talk brain
about unexpected
behavior.

Think, Pair, Share

Which
UNTHINKABLES are
the most common?

They often come in
Image from Bigjoeonthego.com teams of 2 to 3
When they are around, it is hard to think of
others and share space with others.
Problems happen.
One of THESE 3? OR THESE?
According to adults, here are

But when a 3rd grade teacher asked
the 6 most common
UNTHINKABLES 64
3rd & 4th grade STUDENTS

“Which UNTHINKABLE shows up
most often in your brain?,
the overwhelming response was…

Our clients agreed. So,

we imagined how
WORRY WALL got his
power and this was our
conclusion.
Worry
Wall
The Adventures
of By Carter, Loren, & Portia

Worry Wall
(with a little help from Pam)
And the EXPRESS BUS to Brainville

Pair Unthinkables with Concepts underlying Unthinkables

Basic Concepts
• Body Snatcher- Body in the Group
• Brain Eater- Brain in the Group
Pair core social thinking concepts/ • Energy Hare-y- Whole Body Listening
vocabulary with Unthinkables to • Mean Jean- Think It Thoughts
ensure a slower pace and deeper • Un-Wonderer- Social Wondering
teaching. This shifts the focus from • Rock Brain- Flexible Thinking
behavior change to teaching the • Glassman- Size of Reaction matches the
underlying social learning concept. Size of the Problem

The Powers of Rockbrain

We can all
relate to
Rock Brain.
Rockbrain Scavenger Hunt

Turn and Talk
• Where does ROCKBRAIN
show up in your own life?
• How about your colleagues?
• Your students?

Suggested progression to
Explore Unthinkables in
explore different Unthinkables
and their powers books and television
• Teach the concept first (expected behavior) • Max & Ruby (Nick Jr)- Body Snatcher
• Then add the Unthinkable and teach it as and Mean Jean
the opposite (unexpected behavior) • Pinkalicious (Victoria Kann) -Glass Man
• Work on the student pairing the concept • Howard Wigglebottom (Howard Binkow)-
and Unthinkable together Energy Harey
• Find the Unthinkable in literature • Pigeon books (by Mo Williems) Rock
• Look for the Unthinkable in day to day Brain
situations
Students quickly start

wanting to create their
own Unthinkables!
From kids at
True North Wellness Kids are
Harrisburg, PA creating
Unthinkables
all over the
world!
Israel, Portugal,
Argentina, Hong,
Kong, etc…

MD
Shake down!
MD
Activity – Make an
Unthinkable
1.  What’s the name of your
Unthinkable?
2.  What powers does it have
over your brain?
3.  When/where might it
appear?

Making the Connection to

Academics
Use your Social Detective or Use Detective
Observation Smarts to Find power to
Unthinkables in literature figure out:
WHO is there?
WHERE are
the
characters?
What is
expected?


Use your
observation
powers to
spot the
Unthinkable!

Connected to Daily Reading - Superflex Word Wall

Connecting to Academics
Stubborn Rude Nasty

Selfish Annoying Bossy
This Photo by Unknown Author is licensed under CC BY Defiant Grumpy Inflexible
Rigid Negative Mean
The Unthinkables Have

And In Current Events
Their Place In History
• Mobile Phone Ban In
Schools Takes Effect In
France
• (September 7, 2018)
This Photo by Unknown Author is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND
What Were the Teachers

Observing in Their
Students? Moving on to
strategies and self
monitoring?
Move forward, go back, stay where you are (move
deeper)?

• Is my student…
• Able to identify expected and unexpected
Before moving on to behaviors in others and self?
strategies, ask • Able to use the abstract concepts of the

Unthinkables to understand/describe
yourself these unexpected behaviors?
• Talk about powers
questions… • Identify Unthinkables specific to them
• Identify situations when Unthinkables are
likely to appear (e.g., Doing homework,
Glassman likely to take over my thinking)
From a parent: 9 year old

PDD-NOS
“My son has recently started learning
“After being ambushed by Negasaurus Nix
about Superflex with his SLP. It has given and Kenny Can’t, I have fired all of my
him vocabulary and a way of thinking Thinkable guards.
about his challenges that help him to Rock Brain perforated Positive-saurus
understand his own thoughts. Fix’s shield, so he quit and Kenny Can
Last night he was being really negative retired. So that’s it. I was just ambushed
and I lost.’”
about everything…This is what he said
about the encounter:
Part 2 Learning about Strategies
With increased awareness

comes increased knowledge Explore strategies
of why we have goals to regulate self as
part of the social
world and move
We naturally develop goals toward own goals
as we figure out who to
defeat

The Superflex Curriculum

Sometimes It Feels Like…
Social Attention
• Herding kitten video here –
SELF and OTHERS
What Unthinkables are in trying to defeat your Superflexible Thinking?
Social Interpretation not needed for handout

What do you need to do try and do in this situation?
Social Problem solving

Make a decision as to what strategy to use
Social Response
Practice your social response based on your strategy!
Dysregulation in the
Social Behavioral Dysregulation classroom
• Meltdowns or big reactions
The inability to coordinate social • Aggression
emotional behavioral responses • Fighting/Sharing Problems
(expected behaviors) required at • Blurting out answers
that moment in a particular situation • Not joining the group
• Distracted/internal focusing
• Not adapting to other people around them
• Not following the hidden rules
• Shut down – not doing anything at all
What are you doing to self-

Mr. regulate right now in this
Dysregulation situation?
on the
playground! • What are you inhibiting?
• What are you pushing yourself to focus on?
• What motivates you to do this?
• When does it get difficult?
• What strategies do you have when it gets
difficult?

We take for granted

our ability to self-
regulate when
uncomfortable, in a
manner that keeps
others comfortable!
3 Key Processes For Self-

We need self-regulation for navigating in Regulation
the social world (e.g., when we inhibit
revealing a secret, even though it is 1. Self-Monitoring (or Self Observation)
tempting to tell it), academic life (e.g., 2. Self-Awareness (or Self Judgment)
when we study for the test, even though
we would prefer to watch our favorite TV 3. Self-Control (or Self Reaction)
show), and much more—indeed, in every
aspect of life. Bandura,1986
-Andrea Berger in Self-Regulation: Brain, Cognition, and

Development
For kids with poor self-regulation, it’s not

Avoid Assumptions! that easy!
• Teach what to pay attention to (Social

When developing lessons for students Detective)
with solid to gifted language and
learning skills, do not assume they have • Use a common language to understand the
strong social learning and sensory expectations (Social Thinking Vocabulary)
regulation skills based on their • Give Time to process and respond to this
academic testing! information
• Promote strategies to motivate learning to
self-regulate in the moment, if able!

Exploring strategies to
regulate self as part of the
social world
How UNTHINKABLES play a
• Upstairs and Downstairs role in
• Brain Boards dysregulation
• Thinkables
• Self Coach Training
• Strategies for specific Unthinkables

And the story goes…

After Aiden finds the brain sensor;
Aiden becomes Superflexible!
Rock Brain loses his power

as Aiden uses strategies to
become more flexible.
Mom and Aiden are both happy.
Aiden/Superflex and Bark

offer teaching tips to kids
to defeat their
Unthinkables
Using Strategies and

THINKABLES to
guide us toward self-
regulation!

Upstairs Downstairs Brain Upstairs and Downstairs Thinking

Flip Your Lid!
(Dan Seigel & Tina Payne Bryson)
The Whole
Brain Child -
Daniel J.
Siegel &
Tina Payne
Bryson
This Photo by Unknown Author is licensed under CC BY-SA-NC
Adapted from: The Adapted from: The

Whole Brain Child - Whole Brain Child -
Daniel J. Siegel & Daniel J. Siegel &
Tina Payne Bryson Tina Payne Bryson
Upstairs and Downstairs

Brain activity
Downstairs Upstairs
Brain Brain
Residents Residents
Adapted from: The

Whole Brain Child -
Daniel J. Siegel &
Tina Payne Bryson

Flipping your Lid!

Time for
Math!!
Seeing I’M
Head on desk
NOT
OK! MAD Don’t finish
Smelling Scared work
Tasting
Hearing
Feeling
Adapted from: The Whole Brain Child - Adapted from: The Whole Brain Child -
Daniel J. Siegel &Tina Payne Bryson Daniel J. Siegel &Tina Payne Bryson
Upstairs and Downstairs

It’s time
Brain
for Math! Think how
good I’ll feel
when I’m
A little mad
yet
Finish
done! Responsible work
Hopeful!
Calm
Seeing I’M
NOT
OK!
Smelling MAD!
Tasting
Hearing
Feeling
Adapted from: The Whole
Brain Child - Daniel J. Siegel
Adapted from: The Whole Brain Child - &Tina Payne Bryson
Daniel J. Siegel &Tina Payne Bryson
A Brain Board is A Process to Keep Your

Command Central Lid On!
NAME IT
• Concrete representations of the control
panel nestled in all of our brains
• Taught through components
• Designed to incorporate and teach core TAME IT
Social Thinking frameworks and
concepts
• Individualized to each and every student REFRAME IT
The Whole Brain Child - Daniel J. Siegel &Tina Payne Bryson

One Brain…One Board
Your
Face
Here
Another Brain, Another

Version

Strategies for Kids : Brain Boss &

Flex Camp: The Detective &
Dragon Series
Instructors:
An eLearning module on Brain Boards Nancy Clements Pamela Crooke
can be found at • Category:
www.socialthinking.com Teaching Our Vocabulary,
Frameworks & Motivational
Strategies
We’re ALWAYS teaching our brains!

MEET YOUR SELF COACH
Think about a team… a sports team or any
The biggest voice we ever team that has a coach.
Ok, this coach is there to help them figure out
hear is the one inside our how to play and what to do.
heads A coach gives ideas to the players.
A coach tells when someone is doing a good
job.
There are two ways to look at anything… A coach is always on your side.
Developing your self coach Well guess what? You have a coach in your
brain too…
Self Coach vs Self Defeater

Positive self-talk Negative self-talk
• I can try this • I suck
• I will use this strategy • I can never do
_____. that
• This will make me feel • Tomorrow I will
good once I get do it
through it
• I will be relieved once
it is done

Self Defeater Trap
Now to the
THINKABLES

Thinkables
• Represent expected behaviors and
strategies to help defeat Unthinkable The following are
• Students gain a Thinkable or Thinkable Thinkables
powers when they have nearly eliminated for each of the
an Unthinkable 14
• Use with those who only want to focus on
negative behaviors. Limit to only use
“Unthinkables”
Thinkables with these students
• A way to switch the focus in order to push
positive



Activity – Using Your Own

Unthinkable
Create a Thinkable/
What strategies can you use Unthinkable duo at your
to defeat this Unthinkable?
table
When creating one’s own

THINKABLE:
1. Name it
2. Draw a picture
3. Describe the powers STRATEGIES!
4. ADVANCED: Think which
Unthinkable(s) this Thinkable can help
defeat with its powers or create the
UNTHINKABLE.

Be Focused!
Stay Calm!
Superflex Planet Party

Game
One School’s Way of Sharing Some

Kindness! This Photo by Unknown Author is licensed under CC BY

3rd grade Part 3

a. Establish a situation and introduce a Putting Increased awareness of self and
narrator and/or characters; organize an it all others as part of the social world
event sequence that unfolds naturally.
b. Use dialogue and descriptions of actions,
together
thoughts, and feelings to develop Awareness of own goals and then
experiences and events or show the strategies to meet goals
response of characters to situations.
c. Use temporal words and phrases to signal
event order. Using knowledge then skills to
d.  Provide a sense of closure. navigate the social world
Superflex with RTI and PBIS

Superflex and PBIS
Tier 3 Specialized Positive Behavioral Interventions &
IEP’s
and Supports creating a caring community
Referred for individualized
Tier 2
behavior • Creating safe schools establishing a
interventions positive culture with quality leadership
through common:
Tier 1
Social Detective and • Vision
Superflex paired as • Values
school wide (PBIS) • Language
• Experience
Superflex and PBIS: Rolling Encourage self-discovery, use

it out of concepts across situations
• Detective FIRST!!! and settings.
• Provide Visuals for kids to explore! • Encourage as part of conflict resolution –
• Infuse language across day which Unthinkables are invading?
• Spirit assemblies/ST trivia on morning
announcements • Encourage when students are receiving
• The goal is NOT to have it be a separate discipline, how can they become a better
program but infused within existing programs Social Detective and gain more
Superflexible strategies?

Putting it all together! Project Based Learning

• Using the knowledge and strategies Requires Flexible Thinking!
• Project Based Learning
• Preview/Set Up (discussions, role
play, etc.)
• Do
• Review

Preview/Set Up Example:
• Discuss Rock
• Different roles or jobs Brain
• Sketcher
• Approver Challenge
• Taper
• Labeler Make a
• Holder
• Possible problems Brain out
• Strategies to have on hand of Jello
• Role Play
Jobs in Making the How will we know Rock

Brain is in the group?
Superflexible Brain
-  We aren’t moving
• Materials Manager
forward with the plan
• Can opener
(stuck on a step)
• Measurer -  People are upset (voices/
• Water adder Review
“powers” of faces)
• Food coloring adder -  Teacher stops to give
Rock Brain
• Stirrer directions again
• Check list checker -  Trying the same way to
do something over and
over


Strategies to defeat
Rock Brain
Think of ideas Add ideas together
Ask for help

Let it Go Try Another Way
When (not if) Rock Brain enters Freeze!

the group
What is happening?
FREEZE! (Often job of teacher) Can’t open the can.
• What’s happening? What strategies could we use?

Try another way and/or ask for help. Try it!
• Stop and Think!
• Strategy?
How did it go?
• How did we do? Asked the teacher. She had a can opener.
It worked!
After activity is completed.. Defeating Unthinkables

Avoid any language around “killing” or
hurting any Unthinkables. We only
DEFEAT an Unthinkable or lay it to rest.
Discuss with students that the only way to

defeat an Unthinkable is through the use
of strategies, NOT by swords/ guns/
bombs, etc.


You’ll need:
The Inventor of Fun (I.O.F) vs •  Popcorn
•  Events (distance,
The Destroyer of Fun (D.O.F.) accuracy,
in The Popcorn Olympics! obstacles)
•  Scorecard to
reflect on
behaviors
•  Strategies to
adjust or keep it
up for the next
event
A couple of non-negotiables: Please don’t call students the

names of the Unthinkables!!

DO NOT punish, Ex. “You are being a
reprimand, or ROCKBRAIN”
admonish kids for not “You are such a GLASSMAN”
using the strategies in
real time! Instead, notice the behavior
that brings on the unthinkable
A behavior plan, that

USE more POSITIVES than Critical
focuses on the product of statements
good behavior rather than
the process of learning to • This is just good teaching
understand the expectations
and how to self-monitor • Avoid calling out every misstep
one’s own success doing on the part of the student
what is expected will usually • Catch him/her doing it RIGHT!
have limited success!
• Use the THINKABLES

ENVIRONMENT MATTERS!
This Photo by Unknown Author is licensed under CC BY
5th Speaking and Listening -

Comprehension and
Collaboration #1. Free article:
Engage effectively in a range of Dos and Don’ts of
collaborative discussions (one-on-one, Teaching Superflex
in groups, and teacher led) with
diverse partners on grade 5 topics and Go to www.socialthinking.com
texts, building on others’ ideas and Click on “What’s Social
expressing their own clearly. Thinking?” tab
Then see it listed on the left list of
free articles.
What to do about those in Middle/ Extend same idea to Middle School

and beyond
High School who are too cool for
Social Detective, Superflex and Older kids may reject Superflex, but are okay
Social Town? with “Mind-benders” or “Annoyables.”
Have the students invent their own teenage

mind creatures
Define powers such as a “mind meld” or other

form of mind control to defeat the annoyables

Used the app SPORE to

create their own Annoyables
They also had to

provide a rational
for designing their
SPORE the way
they did.
Coach
Hanks Flames
of
Passion
Leaf
Hypnotix
That guy… ANOTHER VARIATION: Teach from

the students’ point of interest:
• Minecraft
• Space
• Military
• Biology
• Dr. Who

Superflex power into Minecraft

What’s in Your Deck? power
‘Steve’ vs. ‘The Creepers’
And now our adult clients are

designing their own Superflex
concepts to learn self-control!
Teaching Social Competencies—More Than Social Skills
James Bond meets Superflex…

Think about it…


Social Thinking 2019 Spring Conference Handout 1

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Beckham

Linton M.A., CCC-SLP March 1, 2019 Conway, AR

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Superflex & Friends Take on Social

Sign up for our

socialthinking.com/join Beckham Linton, MA, CCC-SLP

Core teaching material developed by:

Financial Disclosure Once upon a time, in San

Copyright 2016, Social Thinking Publishing,

Today we are going to talk about the

No matter how young or

Copyright 2016, Social Thinking Publishing,

Copyright 2016, Social Thinking Publishing,

Copyright 2016, Social Thinking Publishing,

Copyright 2016, Social Thinking Publishing,

Stop and Discuss

What is *social thinking?

And, having an emotional awareness

Copyright 2016, Social Thinking Publishing,

A methodology for some, not for all

The ability to comprehend

Copyright 2016, Social Thinking Publishing,

NEVER START by teaching To use the methodology well, it is

There are Stepping Stones

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What do we mean by the

Part 1 Learning about Me in the Part 2 Learning about Strategies

together Social Interpretation Making meaning

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What are realistic outcomes?

Part 1 Increase awareness of self

Brain Bags – What I think

Copyright 2016, Social Thinking Publishing,

My Brain Wires – Exploring

• Activity: Brain making with clay and

Copyright 2016, Social Thinking Publishing,

My Strengths and Weaknesses

3.5 What would be in

So many brains with

Copyright 2016, Social Thinking Publishing,

Formal Definition of Executive

Or more simply – summarize EF We tend to think about executive

Socially Based Executive

Copyright 2016, Social Thinking Publishing,

If your goal is to make a friend

You Are A Social Detective

Copyright 2016, Social Thinking Publishing,

Teaching students from an

More than just words

Social Emotional Chain

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How do we know how to

Teaching Hidden Rules/

What is the difference? Situation________________

Copyright 2016, Social Thinking Publishing,

Discuss with students:

We make predictions and

what you observe? • To understand the directions provided

• If we miss, don’t account for new information,

• Activity: Brain making with clay and

what you observe? •  To understand the directions provided

• If we miss, don’t account for new information,

Not all children are ready for • Cannot pretend

strategies, ask • Able to use the abstract concepts of the

• Teach what to pay attention to (Social