Reading social cues is a skill that develops gradually through paying attention to facial expressions, tone of voice, body movements, and how others react. Knowing how to tell what others might be feeling or thinking without words can sometimes feel challenging. Misreading these cues may lead to misunderstandings or confusion, which is why learning to recognize and respond to them is such an important skill.
The Reading Social Cues Worksheets includes two complementary worksheets. Reading Social Cues invites users to work through three activities — filling in a chart about social cues, becoming social cue detectives by identifying cues in two situations, and reflecting on how they might respond. Understanding Facial Expressions and Body Language instructs clients to identify how children are feeling based on their facial expressions.
These activities help kids and teens build stronger awareness of what’s happening around them, especially the unspoken messages others are sending. To continue developing this skill in real life, parents and teachers can introduce interactive games and observation-based activities. For example, a game where someone makes a facial expression and others guess the possible emotion.
Our Reading Social Cues handout is a helpful addition to these worksheets.
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References:
- Leekam, S. R., Solomon, T. L., & Teoh, Y. (2009). Adults' social cues facilitate young children's use of signs and symbols. Developmental Science, 13(1), 108-119. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-7687.2009.00862.x
- Timler, G. R. (2003). Reading emotion cues: Social communication difficulties in pediatric populations. Seminars in Speech and Language, 24(2), 121-130. https://doi.org/10.1055/s-2003-38903
- Pärnamets, P., & Olsson, A. (2020). Integration of social cues and individual experiences during instrumental avoidance learning. PLoS Computational Biology, 16(9), e1008163. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcbi.1008163
