Drama is an under-utilized intervention for youngsters on the autism spectrum. Yet acting is ideally suited to teaching social perception skills--it involves interaction, sensory awareness, speech, nonverbal cues, social context, and above all, empathy.
This 16-session curriculum uses drama to help students accurately perceive and respond to social cues, especially tone of voice, facial expression, and body language. Its three parts focus on input, integration, and output--that is, perceiving cues, making sense of them, and reacting appropriately. Students participate in process dramas, breaking down complex social interactions into sequential parts, discussing the emotions involved, and acting out possible responses.
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