Specialisterne: leveraging the unique skills of Autistics at competitive market terms

[Visionary7903]

I mentioned the 2009 documentary, Kids with Cameras, and the non-profit organisation, Actors for Autism, in the above two previous posts.

…In twenty years of experience teaching ‘The Celluloid Heroes Movie Camp’ he created, Brad [Koepenick] has developed a methodology of student involvement which has proven to be particularly well suited to inspire creative work from students on the autistic spectrum - from severely non-functional, to the lightest forms of Asperger’s Syndrome.
By using the techniques of Improvisation created by Viola Spolin (of Chicago’s Second City fame), and the Theater Games further developed by her son Paul Sills (with whom Brad has studied), Brad creates a playful atmosphere conducive to collaboration - a particularly difficult task with autistic children who generally experience difficulties in relating to others…

Indeed a Norfolk, Virginia-based business, Play By Play Improv, offers workshops to help individuals who experience Autism Spectrum Disorders develop communication and social skills through short form improvisation games. The business’ Artistic Director is Katie Anderson, a mother of three children, two of whom are on the Spectrum. Anderson has used her experience raising her children to write a book - ‘The Lazy Woman’s Guide to Autism’ will be published by Kindle Publishing sometime in 2012.

In September 2011, Anderson presented a session on ‘A Theatrical Approach to Teaching Social Understanding’ at the Autism and the Military Child Conference in Portsmouth, Virginia…
http://www.med.navy.mil/sites/nmcp/documents/autism2011/anderson_playbyplay_autism.pdf

…Improvisation is the practice of acting, singing, talking and reacting, of making and creating, in the moment and in response to the stimulus of one’s immediate environment and inner feelings. Improvisational Theater allows clients to have fun while developing social and communication skills through playing improvisational theater games. The guiding principle of improvisational theater games is to accept everything that is provided and not to negate a person’s reality. While the ability to see the world through someone else perspective is not often easy to those on the spectrum, improvisational theater provides them the space to learn these skills, practice them and then bring them into more generalized, real life situations…

(sources: http://www.kidswithcamerasmovie.com/about.html; http://www.med.navy.mil/sites/nmcp/documents/autism2011/agenda.pdf)