With a new school year in full swing, many parents and children are feeling anxious about the possibility of bullying. Multiple studies have shown that children with special needs are at higher risk of being victimized by bullying. In fact, they are two to three times more likely to experience bullying. Children with speech difficulties are even more vulnerable. And the psychological and emotional consequences sometimes last into adulthood.

Being proactive about this issue, and helping children recognize bullying even before it happens is one way to help prevent and mitigate patterns of bullying. So, here are two highly-illustrated, FREE social stories about bullying, written for children with (or without) special needs.

The first book is a social story for a child who is being bullied or at risk of being bullied at school.

It helps children identify what bullying is and how it makes them feel.

Then it teaches children what they can do to get help.

Download all 10 pages of Bullying, What I Can to Do to Make it Stop here:

The second book is for children who tend to be the aggressors.

Again, it begins by helping kids identify what bullying is.

It goes on to explain what happens when bullying takes place. Sometimes kids bully others without realizing how much harm they are doing, so it’s important to make them aware.

Then the social story shows kids what they can do instead:

Download all 12 pages of The No-Bullying Super Power social story here:

Of course, reading social stories about bullying is only a start.

If you need more resources, Abilitypath.org has an excellent booklet for parents and teachers, called Walk a Mile in Their Shoes: Bullying and the Child with Special Needs, which raises awareness about bullying and gives concrete suggestions on how to prevent and stop bullying.

Has your child been bullied at school? If so, what have you done about it?