Sporting events often have a Sportscaster that gives the viewers or listeners extra information to help them make sense of the game. The Sportscaster is the person who describes the action on the field, gives the backstory of the players, and at times makes predictions about what will happen next. Sportscasters might also reflect after the game about what went well or not, talk about upcoming games, and share ideas about adjustments that might be made for future success. In these situations, the Sportscasters are doing their thinking out loud. They use their knowledge to help others to better understand what is happening or what may happen.

Many of our students and kids might benefit from this same kind of support. Keep in mind, this is a very auditory based support so if your student is a visual learner, then make sure to add gestures and other visual tools. Thinking out load is a great way to help them notice what is happening around them, provide the context and back story, fill in missing information, and make predictions about what will happen next. Think of providing this vital information as “Social Casting.” As you are thinking out loud, you might be really helping them to attend to, and make sense of, important information they may have missed.

Social Casting or Thinking and Feeling Out Loud can be a useful tool in many situations. Below are some questions and situations to help you get started. Sometimes, we might ask a few questions to help guide observation and self-discovery. In other situations, it might be helpful to simply point out the important information.

Guiding Questions:

• Where are you?

• Who is there?

• What is happening?

• What are people doing?

• What are people saying?

• How do they look (expressions/body language)?

• What might they be thinking?

• How might they feel?

• What is their intention or plan?

• Have you been in a situation like this before?

• What happened last time?

• What is your job/role in this situation?

Download This Free Infographic to Teach Social Casting

At home: Social Casting can also be used to start the problem-solving process when a challenge arises at home.
Situation: Your family is getting ready to leave the house.
Older brother calls out “dibs” and heads toward the front seat.
Younger child also heads to the front seat, and they reach the door at the same time.
Younger child is now frustrated with their sibling for taking the front seat.

To use Social Casting in this situation, begin by describing what you can see. Point out what they may have missed or did not make sense of in the moment.

“You both want to ride in the front. I heard your brother say he wanted to ride up front when we left the house. Then he went to sit up front when we left the house. We're all going to the same place; I don’t think he was trying to upset you. I think he just wanted to sit up front and shared his plan before you did.”

“What can we do if two people want to sit up front at the same time?” or
“When two people want to ride in the front seat, we…(fill this in with a possible solution, such as taking turns, making a deal, etc.).”

In class:

Situation: Your class is having free time and students are in different groups doing different things. As you stand together, ask guiding questions to help them figure out different group plans and options for what they might want to do.

“Let’s think with our eyes and gather some clues. What do you see your table group doing? What do you think they might be talking about?”

You might also state what you observe:

“I see Drew and Sela over at the table. You played Connect 4 with them last time we had a game day. It looks like they are playing cards today. Hmmm… someone keeps slapping the cards - I bet they're playing War.”

While Thinking Out Loud will help learners increase their social awareness in the environment, there shouldn’t be an expectation that they will change their behavior in the moment. Social Thinking lessons are all about teaching the logic or “why” people do what they do and never about “targeting behaviors.” For example, helping a student figure out that their peers are engaged in a card game of War doesn't mean things will go seamlessly or that they will play together in harmony. However, your role in helping the student gather and interpret information they may not have noticed is key to understanding what their social goals are and then how to go about moving towards those goals.

Give yourself some time to practice because making what is usually an internal process something that happens out loud takes practice! One final tip, make sure to ask the student if your social casting is helpful as they learn about the social world. Some kids may be overwhelmed by the language while others will love it and will enjoy being social casters with you too. Most importantly, have fun!