Definition
Comic Strip Conversations are a Carol Gray (1994) method that uses stick-figure drawings, colour, and speech and thought bubbles to slow down and unpick a social interaction with an autistic child. Where Social Stories prepare a child for a future event, Comic Strip Conversations make sense of one that has already happened.
In context for parents
Key checkpoints
- A Carol Gray (1994) method using stick-figure drawings, colour, and speech / thought bubbles to slow down a social interaction.
- Where Social Stories prepare for an event, Comic Strip Conversations make sense of one that has already happened.
- Externalises the social cognitive task by putting each perspective on paper.
- Particularly useful for autistic children with theory-of-mind differences or pragmatic difficulty.
- Not therapy and not for processing trauma; use a clinical psychologist for that.
The method is deliberately simple. The adult and the child sit side by side with paper and coloured pens. The adult asks "what happened?" and draws stick figures as the child describes the event. Speech bubbles capture what people said; thought bubbles capture what they were thinking. Carol Gray's colour code is used by some practitioners (green for happy, red for angry, blue for sad, yellow for confused, black for facts) but the simplification is the point, not the colour system.
The intervention works because it externalises the social cognitive task. Where a typical conversation about "what happened in the playground today" requires the child to hold every perspective in working memory while talking, the comic strip conversation puts each perspective on the paper, in order, where it can be seen, returned to, and corrected. For children with theory-of-mind differences or with social pragmatic difficulty, this can unlock understanding that verbal-only discussion cannot.
Where it works best:
- Friendship misunderstandings ("I told them they smelled and they got upset and I don't know why").
- Conflict resolution.
- Processing an incident after a meltdown has passed.
- Preparing for a difficult conversation.
- Working through the social rules of a specific setting (the dining hall, the supply teacher's classroom, Cubs).
Where it does not. Comic strip conversations are not therapy and are not for processing trauma; that needs a clinical psychologist or therapist. They are not behaviour management; they are a sense-making tool used after the regulation has returned.
In an EHCP, Section F can specify comic strip conversations as part of a SaLT-supervised social communication programme, for example "weekly comic strip conversation work with a SaLT-supervised TA, supplementing a structured social communication programme".
Related terms
The terms parents most often see alongside Comic Strip Conversations.
Social Stories
Short, individualised written narratives developed by Carol Gray that describe a social situation, expected behaviour, and others' perspectives, used to prepare autistic children for events.
Autism(ASC)
A lifelong neurodevelopmental condition that shapes how a person communicates, processes sensory information, and experiences the social world. Autism is a difference, not an illness.
Theory of Mind
The cognitive ability to attribute mental states (beliefs, desires, intentions) to oneself and others. Differences in theory of mind are commonly discussed in relation to autism.
Where parents ask about this
Parents usually find this page when a child has had a friendship breakdown they cannot articulate, or when a school's verbal "circle time" is not getting through. Searches include "comic strip conversation autism", "Carol Gray method", and "how to do comic strip conversation". A Beaakon SaLT can model the technique with your child, train school staff to use it, and integrate it into a structured social communication programme written into Section F.
References
The primary legislation, statutory guidance, research, and clinical tools this page draws on.