24/10/2025
These social skills groups are often created with (generally) good intentions to help autistic students âconnectâ or âmake friends.â
But too often, they end up teaching:
đŤ masking (âact like your peers so you fit inâ),
đŤ compliance (âthis is how you should behaveâ),
đŤ and neurotypical norms that donât honour your childâs authentic, autistic communication.
They focus on fixing the autistic child instead of supporting mutual understanding. We call that the double empathy problem đ why should your child be the one putting in all the elbow grease? People around them can also learn how to support them too.
For many neurotypical adults, many thoughts may race in your midn when you see your child communicate differently.
Some might worry that âtheyâll stand out,â be seen as âdisruptive,â or âwonât fit in.â
While these thoughts can sound ableist, theyâre also valid starting points for those who are still navigating what neurodiversity-affirming practice really means.
The goal isnât to remove social support for your child. Itâs to reframe it.
When done right, social groups can:
đť create safe spaces for shared experiences,
đť teach advocacy and perspective-taking (for everyone, not just the autistic child),
đť and celebrate all the different ways people connect.
Itâs not about making autistic people more âacceptableâ, but about helping the world meet them where they are.
