You Are A Social Detective: Part 3
I Don’t Know What I Don’t Know!
Kids with autism and other similar challenges don’t recognize the social cues and unspoken rules of social interaction that we all live under. “You Are A Social Detective” was a book written to help kids recognize what those social norms are.
Expected vs Unexpected
We’ve gone over what it’s like to act with an understanding of the rules, which is labeled as expected behavior. A kiddo who doesn’t understand the social norms is acting unexpectedly. How can kids on the spectrum and other disabilities live as Social Detectives?
What Is A Social Detective?
“You Are A Social Detective” teaches that all kids actually start out with some social smarts. A Social Detective 
Predicting Behavior
They can even use their social smarts to predict what expected behavior should happen next, for them and others.
They can use both their ears and eyes to predict the emotions, thoughts and actions of others. Predicting how they and others should behave is how Social Detectives know how to act anywhere they are.
Smart Guesses
Putting together observations and social smarts are what’s called smart guesses.
Social Detectives use smart guesses to live according to the social cues wherever they go. They can behave all the time with other kids in an expected manner using smart guesses. 
The Wacky Guess
A Social Detective must always use his senses to make smart guesses. Even a Social Detective can go back to using unexpected behavior if he doesn’t use what he’s learned.
If a Social Detective is not using his social smarts he starts making wacky guesses. For example, a Social Detective who is making wacky guesses may predict things about someone that aren’t true. This is because they are not using their senses together with their social smarts.
From Social Detective To Social Thinker
A Social Detective who keeps using his social smarts eventually becomes a Social Thinker. A Social Thinker has developed his social smarts so much that he can work well in groups in different settings.
Success: The Adult Social Thinker
The ultimate goal is for him to be an adult Social Thinker. He will still have to use his social smarts to make smart guesses, but it will be easier for him. He will be much better at avoiding wacky guesses. A successful Social Thinker will be able to function normally at his workplace and in his own family. A successful Social Thinker can live on his own.