Not sure that your child has any social skills challenges? Take a look at some of the statements below and see if any might apply to your child. Three or more checks may mean that further assessment may be a good idea.

(  )  Your child has difficulties asking for help even from a trusted adult. Example: He did not tell anyone at school that he forgot his lunch and just didn’t eat that day.

(  )  When you are talking about something, your child’s eyes do not follow your eyes to the object that is under discussion wihout specific prompting on your part.

(  )  When you watch your child play on the playground or other unstructured setting with peers, he either watches from the sidelines, ignores peers and does his own thing, or takes over the play and doesn’t allow peers to participate in any decision making about the play.

(  )  When you observe your child in a structured environment, he does not appear to understand what is expected of him without being prompted–often repeatedly.

(  )  Your child will frequently misinterpret or completely miss the intentions of others. For example, he will assume that a peer who bumps into him did it on purpose.

(  )  Your child will not notice that no one is listening while he rattles on about his special interest.

(  )  Your child will make a comment that is a bit “too honest” which may be hurtful to another person without any idea that he is saying something that would hurt someone’s feelings. For example, telling Grandma that she has wrinkled skin or mentioning that someone has a huge nose.

(  )  Your child will use the same joke that would be okay in one context into another context where it is not appropriate. For example he may miss that saying a “Yo mama” joke with his peers is fine, but saying it to his Grandpa is rude.

(  )  Your child may be amazing with the small details, but not be able to clearly understand the big picture. For example, he may be able to remember the details of a story he reads but have a hard time telling you what the main theme of the story is.

(  )  Your child may have a hard time interpreting abstract concepts and may take things very literally. For example ask your child what the saying “A rolling stone gathers no moss” means and see if he starts talking about rocks and moss.

If you checked three or more items here, then it may be time to begin addressing your child’s social skills delay or disability. Check out our Services page for more about Whizkid Camp and our programs.

To learn more about what you can do at home sign up for the Calm the Chaos Newsletter and get a free chapter from the WhizKids Parenting Manual: Better Behavior Without Stress.