Sometimes when kids get angry or upset, they might lash out. They might hit others. They might kick, push, or bite. They might scratch.
Obviously, it's not okay to hit others and we need to help kids find alternative - and safer! - ways to deal with these emotions. Both at home and in the classroom.
Many kids need reminders that hands aren't for hitting. Perhaps you just need a little social story or two that teaches them what to do instead and why hitting isn't okay.
So if you are a parent or a teacher dealing with aggressive behavior at home or school, then these free social stories about hitting might be just what you need.
These stories explain why it's not okay to hit, kick, or bite others and offer suggestions of what to do instead when upset or angry. Hopefully they'll help your child find better ways of dealing with their anger.
This collection of social stories for hitting was last updated on November 8, 2022. New stories were added (including video ones!), dead links were removed, and more details were provided to make sure you can find what you need quicker.
Free Social Stories About Hitting & Why it's Not Okay to Hit
Have you been looking for a social story about hitting, specifically not hitting others? Then look no further than these stories for aggression and hitting. Some require you to have a Teachers Pay Teachers account (which is free!) before you can download them.
I've rounded up a few different options for you to explore. That way you can find the best no hitting social story for your needs. Or you can simply use ideas from various stories below to write your own custom 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. After all, many social stories tend to be poorly written and/or teach autistic masking. Besides, 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. Social Story for Hitting from Stephanie Harrington on Teachers Pay Teachers - A simple social story about hitting others that uses a bunch of random clip art. Like super random. None of it really matches.
2. Hitting Social Story from Beyond Words Speech and Language Therapy on Teachers Pay Teachers - A one page social story about the problems with hitting others. It also offers a couple of different ways to calm down instead of hitting or kicking.
3. Gentle Hands - No Hitting Social Story from Rachel M on Teachers Pay Teachers - A super simple one page story that outlines things you could do instead of hitting. It looks like it might be in PowerPoint format too so you might be able to edit it, which is always a nice option.
4. I Can Have a Safe & Calm Body - Social Story About Unsafe Behaviors from The "Feelings Teacher" on Teachers Pay Teachers - A colorful story that discusses how to keep one's body safe and calm instead of hitting, kicking, and biting. Heads up, it apparently uses some social thinking vocabulary, which has been known to be problematic.
5. Hitting Social Story Examples from Happy Learners - There are four text only stories here. No pictures are included whatsoever. The titles include hitting, hitting at school, if I hit, and if I hit at school.
6. Hands are Not for Hitting from Kelsie Thacker on Teachers Pay Teachers - This story focuses on the things our hands can do and what they shouldn't be used for (e.g. hitting). It also explains that hitting hurts, which it does.
7. Hitting, Biting, Spitting, & Scratching Social Stories from MckSpeechie on Teachers Pay Teachers - A set of 4 one page social stories on a variety of aggression related topics. So if you need a short social story, these might do the trick.
8. No Hitting or Biting Social Story from Madi Hardcastle on Teachers Pay Teachers - This simple story focuses on hitting and biting. It uses colorful clip art and only a small bit of text per page.
9. Social Story About Hitting from Making Lemonade on Teachers Pay Teachers - Since this story comes in PowerPoint format, you'll be able to edit this social story. There's even places for you to insert your child's photo so you can personalize it a bit.
10. Social Stories About Aggression: Hitting, Kicking, Chocking, & Pushing During Play from ESE AAC on Teachers Pay Teachers - It appears that there are multiple stories here. Not sure how many are included, but it looks like it covers a few different forms of aggression. So you'll have a few different options here by the looks of things.
11. How to Stop Biting Social Story from ThinkPsych on Teachers Pay Teachers - This story focuses on biting and what you can do instead. It's also editable so you can customize it to fit your needs.
Free Video Social Stories About How It's Not Okay to Hit
If video social stories are more your thing, here are a few social stories that talk about why it's not okay to hit others. There are related topics such as biting, kicking, and anger covered below as well.
You can use these video social stories in teletherapy sessions, social skills groups, and/or classroom settings. Videos are always a great alternative to printing off a story.
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 discussing hitting and aggression with your child.
Hitting is Usually a Result of Anger...Grab this Social Story to Help
If you want to get to the bottom of your child's aggression or hitting behaviors, you have to dig deeper and look at the root cause. Often it's because they're angry or frustrated and don't know how else to release those emotions. That's where this social story about anger comes in.
Please note that this social story isn't free. It is a paid story from my shop that makes a perfect complement to the free social stories about hitting above.
Grab your copy of the anger social story
