Teaching Story Making, Picture Reading & Story Telling Skills in Children with Autism
By Dr. Santosh V Kondekar
Children with autism do not fail to speak because they do not have words.
They fail to speak because they do not connect events into meaning.
Story making is not just language —
it is how the brain learns to think, plan, feel and communicate.
If we can teach a child to understand a picture,
we are actually teaching him to understand life.
Why Story Skills Are Weak in Autism
Most autistic children:
See details but not the whole scene
Know objects but not relationships
Know words but not meaning
Hear sounds but do not follow a sequence
So they may say: “Dog… bone…”
but they cannot say
“The dog found a bone.”
That missing link is story building.
What Is Story Making?
Story making is the ability to:
Notice what is happening
Identify who and what
Add actions
Put things in order
Add feelings
Speak the full idea
This is the brain’s executive + language + emotional network working together.
Step 1 – Teach Picture Awareness
Take any simple picture.
Do NOT ask: “What is this?”
Instead say: “Look… something is happening here.”
Wait.
Let the child observe quietly.
This trains visual attention, which is the base of storytelling.
Step 2 – Name People and Objects
Point slowly and label: “Boy.”
“Dog.”
“Ball.”
Do this many times.
Don’t force the child to repeat.
Let the brain store these labels.
This builds the vocabulary bank.
Step 3 – Add Actions (Verbs)
Now point and say: “Boy running.”
“Dog eating.”
“Girl crying.”
Autism children struggle with verbs.
But verbs create stories.
Repeat verbs again and again in daily life:
eating
opening
washing
sitting
walking
Step 4 – Teach Sequence
Show 2 or 3 pictures:
Boy
Dog
Ball
Say: “First boy… then dog… then ball.”
Do not rush.
Sequence builds the thinking path.
Step 5 – Add Feelings
Point to faces: “Happy.”
“Sad.”
“Angry.”
“Scared.”
Feelings are what turn events into meaning.
Stories without emotions become robotic.
Step 6 – Model the Story
Now combine everything:
“The boy is running.
The dog is chasing the ball.
The boy is happy.”
Let the child hear full sentences again and again.
This is how the speech brain gets trained.
Do NOT Force Speaking
Never say: “Say it.”
“Repeat after me.”
Instead say it yourself.
Listening comes before speaking.
Stories first fill the brain…
Speech comes later.
Use Daily Life as Stories
Turn daily activities into stories:
“Mom is cooking.
The pan is hot.
The food smells nice.”
“The boy is bathing.
Water is falling.
He is smiling.”
This is live storytelling therapy.
How Much Practice is Needed?
Minimum: 2–3 hours of story exposure every day
Through:
Talking
Reading
Describing
Watching with commentary
This is what fills the brain’s “language well.”
Final Message for Parents
Autism is not a speech problem.
It is a meaning and connection problem.
Stories teach:
Thinking
Planning
Emotion
Memory
Language
So if you want your child to speak, teach him to see, feel and understand stories first.
