By Isabelle St-Jean
Following up from the last article posted here on films featuring people with disabilities, I am now sharing what I have discovered about drama therapy for people on the Autism spectrum.
According to Cindy Schneider, a pioneer in drama therapy, and author of Acting Antics: A Theatrical Approach to Teaching Social Understanding to Kids and Teens with Asperger Syndrome, theatre and movement classes can offer multiple benefits. Through such programs for children, teens and adults with autism the benefits include increase in self-esteem, creativity, self-expression, and spontaneity. What’s more, participants in these programs also gain a new leisure activity in a group where they can be successful as they develop new skills for functioning as part of a group.
I have observed those benefits personally when my teenage son with Asperger’s attended, for 3 consecutive years, a 2 weeks summer day-camp offered by the Vancouver Theatre Sports League. Through this experience he benefited as mentioned above; he enjoyed expressing his creativity while interacting with others and collaborating on team efforts as organized by the leaders of the program.
As some of you may have noticed, there seems to be a shortage of opportunities for teenagers on the spectrum to practice social skills while enjoying fun-filled recreational activities. If you have a teen or young adult child with Asperger’s who could be interested in participating in a drama therapy or theatre sports program in the coming year in Vancouver, please post your comments on this blog or contact Isabelle at JFSA: istjean@jfsa.ca
And, with a new year just around the corner, parents can take the opportunity to have a conversation with their children about what they wish to do more of in the coming year. You may choose to make this kind of conversation a year-end ritual in which reflecting on the year can help each family member to identify what they are grateful for and what their hearts desires in the coming year. This also provides great encouragement for everyone to live more fully with clear intentions linked to their most cherished values in the context of their developmental stage and level of ability. Speaking of “stage”,
let us all remind ourselves that life is not a rehearsal and that we must strive to keep taping the wealth of potentiality that resides at the heart of each and every one of us.
Happy Hanukkah
Jewelles Smith, MA
istjeanjfsa
