Abstract

Social play is about relating to others, playing and making friends - all of which are key elements for social inclusion, adjustment and well-being. The Social Play Record is a practical resource for assessing and developing social play in children with autistic spectrum disorders (ASDs) or difficulties with social interaction.

This toolkit is designed to be used collaboratively with children, parents, carers and practitioners. It is suitable for assessing children of all learning abilities and stages of development, from early infancy to adolescence, and includes photocopiable assessment and intervention materials. The toolkit is divided into user-friendly sections, including:

* a guidance section, which also gives information on what constitutes social play, its significance, development and how to address social interaction difficulties

* an assessment section for recording stages of social play and key abilities, such as independent and peer play, friendship and advanced group skills

* an intervention section, which gives step-by-step directions for developing key social play skills.

Parents, teachers and professionals working with or caring for a child with social interaction difficulties will find this toolkit an essential assessment resource.

Chris White, a speech and language therapist has performed great service by producing this excellent and very practical book... I would strongly recommend it to all educational psychologists. It is clear that this book has been well designed and researched.
Alun Flynn, Debate

This book provides a structured approach to assessing and developing children's social play.

There is a strong emphasis on intervention and the ` ideas and templates' section is especially useful.

The pages are easily photocopiable and user friendly. There are also lots of references to recent research findings.

This book would be particularly useful for SLTs,psychologists and teachers/childcare staff working closely with parents.

Royal College of Speech & Language Therapists
Chris White is a speech and language therapist based at Gosberton House School, an NAS accredited LEA school in Lincolnshre and works for Lincolnshire South West Teaching PCT. She has an MEd in the education of children with autistic spectrum disorders and works with two- to eighteen-year-olds in specialist and mainstream settings. She also runs workshops on social play for parents, practitioners and voluntary groups and tutors on the University of Birmingham's WebAutism course.
This is an excellent book for practitioners, parents and carers and anyone else working with young people with an autism spectrum disorder. It is a well laid out, easily accessible introduction to social play development and a comprehensive assessment tool with matched appropriate interventions for each stage.
Good Autism Practice
This practical resource is designed for assessing the development of social skills by three-to 13-year-olds. The focus of the book is on children with autistic spectrum disorders or difficulties with social interaction and it is divided into three main sections: guidance; assessment; and intervention. Each section provides information on significance of social skills and the recording of children's development.
Children Now