Ah, back to school season is here!
It is almost time to switch from summer mode to school routines. Say goodbye to sleeping in and say hello to hauling your children out of bed so you can attempt to get to school on time.
Attempt is the key word...
We rarely make it to school before the bell rings.
It's just a warning bell anyway, right?
Maybe it's even your child's first year at school or they are moving to a new school. Whatever the situation, you are going to love this list of free social stories about going to school! They will help your child get excited to return to school and reinforce school expectations and rules.
This collection of back to school social stories was last updated on August 10th, 2022. Ten new stories were added and some dead links were removed.
Free Printable Back to School Social Stories
Whether you need a social story for a specific type of class like music or art or you just need a generic back to school social story, these free printable social stories below are super handy.
I've rounded up some options for you to explore so you can find the best social story for you and your child. Or you can use ideas from different stories below to write your own custom back to school social story (free social story templates here to help).
Please note that just because a social story is listed here does not mean I endorse its content. Many social stories tend to be poorly written and/or teach autistic masking. And I haven't read all of these stories word for word myself. So please read through the stories carefully before using them with your child.
1. Time for School: Back to School Social Story from Educating Everyone 4 Life on Teachers Pay Teachers - A simple illustrated social story that uses stick figure like drawings and really simple text.
2. Going to School Social Story from Lindsey Etzelmiller on Teachers Pay Teachers - This social story is in PowerPoint format so you can edit and change it as needed. It uses a mix of photos and illustrations and appears to focus on Kindergarten.
3. Going to School Social Story from Teaching RICH Kids on Teachers Pay Teachers - At 16 pages in length, this story looks like it's going to have lots of detail.
4. Going to P.E. Social Story from Lindsey Etzelmiller on Teachers Pay Teachers - This story focuses on explaining the rules and expectations for P.E. or gym class. It uses really simple stick figure drawings. Plus, it comes in PowerPoint format so it should be editable too.
5. Going to Music Class Social Story from Lindsey Etzelmiller on Teachers Pay Teachers - A story dedicated to attending music class. Like the story above, it uses simple stick figure drawings and comes in PowerPoint format.
6. Going to Art Social Story from Lindsey Etzelmiller on Teachers Pay Teachers - This story is about going to art class and uses the same simple stick figure drawings as the music and P.E. stories about. It is also in PowerPoint format.
7. Going to a New School Social Story from Love Autism on Teachers Pay Teachers - As you can guess by the title, this social story is all about going to a new school. It uses simple colorful illustrations throughout.
8. School's Out Social Story from Socially Skilled Kids on Teachers Pay Teachers - This story is obviously not for back to school, but for the end of the school year instead. It comes with different covers and ending pages so you can customize it a bit.
9. Going Back to School & Going to a New School Social Stories from ISEA - You can also find social stories about school routines, riding the bus, using a school voice, and more here. It does focus on a specific school and specific teachers so you'll likely just use these stories as inspiration for creating your own. Remember, you can find free social story templates here.
10. Social Story About Going to School from educationandbehavior.com - I like how interactive this story is. There are spots for kids to circle, write, or draw. It also uses lots of photos, not clip art, showing diverse kids.
11. Back to School Social Story from Little Mama Jama - A very basic social story. It doesn't have much detail, but it uses full color photos so that's nice.
12. I Will Follow School Rules Social Story from The Full Spectrum on Teachers Pay Teachers - A simple illustrated story describing some common school rules that children are expected to follow.
13. Starting School Social Story (Editable Freebie) from Mrs. Learning Bee on Teachers Pay Teachers - First of all, this story is editable. It also uses illustrations showing diverse kids which is great. I believe this story is geared towards starting kindergarten specifically.
14. Hallway Rules Back to School Social Story from Teaching with a Side of Fun on Teachers Pay Teachers - This illustrated story comes in color or black and white.
15. Eating Lunch at School Social Story from Megan Parker on Teachers Pay Teachers - This story focuses on eating lunch specifically at a cafeteria so may not apply to your situation. We don't really have school cafeterias here, but I know they might be more common elsewhere in the world. The story includes simple illustrations.
16. Beginning School: A Social Story from Kinder Delights on Teachers Pay Teachers - A simple illustrated story that covers a lot of different topics including eating lunch, using the bathroom, and traveling to school. It does use a really strange font for the title that kids might find difficult to read.
17. Back to School Social Story from The SLP Next Door on Teachers Pay Teachers - This illustrated social story includes both a printable version and a digital version.
18. Back to School Social Story from Smartie Pants on Teachers Pay Teachers - This story looks very busy visually with the border and clipart, but might still be worth checking out.
19. Back to School Social Story with Extra Poster & Coloring Book from Denise Wilson on Teachers Pay Teachers - I like that this social story comes with extra goodies to reinforce learning.
20. Time for School Social Story from Miss Evans' Emotional Toolbox on Teachers Pay Teachers - This illustrated social story has lots of pages. So it looks like it could be quite detailed!
21. The School Year is Ending Social Story from Miss Evans' Emotional Toolbox on Teachers Pay Teachers - Need something for the end of the school year? This illustrated social story looks quite detailed.
Free Social Stories for Transition to Middle or High School
Whether your child is heading to middle school (which we don't have here), high school, or some kind of secondary school, here are some social stories to help.
1. 5 Middle School Social Stories Freebies from Literary Lounge on Teachers Pay Teachers - This pack of five social stories covers the following topics: friendships, homework, organization, study skills, and digital citizenship.
2. Starting Middle School Social Story Example from Autism Parenting Magazine - Scroll down to example #3. There isn't a PDF or printable version available. It is simply text. You can also find a social story about riding the school bus here.
3. Middle or High School Lunch Social Story from There's a Swing in There on Teachers Pay Teachers - This story is only two pages so not sure how detailed it will be. But it's geared towards middle and high school aged kids.
Video Social Stories About Going to School
The video social stories below cover a variety of school topics including going to high school, riding a bus, and classroom rules.
Like the stories above, some of the wording in these videos aren't always great. But I wanted to make sure you had lots of different options for helping your child transition back to school.
I know there were a lot of stories to choose from above, but hopefully one of these free social stories about going to school will do the trick for you.
