Social group proposal for students with social difficulties
Asperger/Social Anxiety Social Group
An informal social group where students with Asperger Syndrome or social anxiety can meet up every week to socialise. Supervised by a volunteer support group co-ordinator to ensure all students make the most of this social group. Ideally should be held in a quiet, private room in the student enabling centre so that people with sensory issues can also enjoy the event.
Social support
On the first session of the social group, everyone will introduce themselves and describe their social weaknesses so that others understand them. On the first session, they may play ice-breaking games such as table topics http://youthgroupgames.com.au/games/539/table-topics/ so that they can get to know each other more.
They will then spend the rest of the sessions socialising to practice and improve their communication skills and to make friends. The volunteer group coordinator’s purpose will be to ensure that everyone is involved in the group conversations, to organise monthly social events and to introduce new people who join the group. Refreshments and soft drinks will be provided every session. Students from all years should be able to join this social group.
Monthly social events
Although the group will meet every week, once a month they can do some other activity eg. they might go for a day out in Alton Towers or for a meal in a restaurant or a night out. It must be taken into consideration that some people with Asperger may not drink or be comfortable on nights out due to sensory issues, therefore it is a good idea to have 2 separate social events a month held on different days, one for students who like to drink/go out and one for students who prefer to socialise during the day without drinking. The volunteer coordinator will attend both events.
Also, it would be important to encourage students to sometimes bring their befrienders and friends along to weekly/monthly social events to make sure that people with Asperger have a change of meeting new people on a regular basis like students who do not have the condition.