Does he follow people who walk away while he's talking, and continue?
I did that when I was a child and I really didn't know that they were leaving because they wanted the conversation to be over. I just assumed that they wanted or needed to go somewhere, but that the conversation was still ongoing. I didn't realize that they didn't intend for the conversation to continue as they (we) were walking.
That might have to be explicitly outlined, along with any other cues you think should be mentioned that he might not get. Maybe at the same time you could tell him not to be insulted, that other children often don't have any "nicer" ways of ending conversations because they themselves aren't that socially nuanced.
19 Apr 2008, 8:49 am
