Educating students in the classroom setting about Selective Mutism

From as early as age 2, children begin to notice similarities and differences between themselves and those around them. In the classroom setting, children are exposed to a diversity of identities, personalities, family structures, and learning styles. As educators, it is our role to encourage their curiosity regarding our differences and provide accurate and developmentally appropriate information within the classroom setting.

School age children also experience diverse mental health issues that can be noticed in the classroom. Selective mutism, an anxiety-based disorder, can be particularly noticeable and discovering that a peer is unable to speak in school is often question-provoking, which thereby makes education on the topic especially crucial. Selective mutism not only impacts a child’s ability to engage with academic material but also their ability to interact with their peers– as educators, it is important to have the tools to explain why this may be, and how students can be a support to a peer with selective mutism.

Below are a few ideas on how you can explain selective mutism to your students:

1. 1. Read books!
      • Read books not only about selective mutism, but also about experiences and identities of other children in the classroom (e.g., books about race, different family structures, gender expression, other mental health topics, etc.)
      • The Selective Mutism Association has a wide range of recommended books you can read to your students.
   2. Prompt for discussions about fears and worries and how to overcome them.
      • We all have things that we may be anxious about and discussing other types of worries (e.g., dogs, shots, darkness, etc.) can help contextualize selective mutism.
      • One way to do this might be having teacher/student interviews
        • Have students interview each other or the teacher on what they used to be afraid of and how they overcame it.
          • Understanding that fears and worries take time to overcome (but can always be conquered!) helps to build empathy towards the student in your classroom with selective mutism.
   3. Encourage students to openly discuss what they are working on.
      • This can be through daily check-ins or through more structured writing assignments.
        • One idea is to have students write a note to their classmates about what they are working on. For example, a child with selective mutism might write, “sometimes it’s hard for me to say ‘hi’ but I really like when you say ‘hi’ to me. I am working on my brave voice, and I will be practicing saying ‘hi’ back,” while a child who is working on sharing might write, “sometimes it’s hard for me to share my toys but I’m practicing. Thanks for playing with me at recess”
          • These skills build awareness and normalize that everyone is working on something.
   4. Have the parent of the child with selective mutism write a letter to the other parents and prompt for at home discussions regarding diversity and acceptance.