Author: Kimberly Ramos, Executive Assistant Director

On October 4, 2020, our Head of Curriculum & Instruction attended a one-day workshop held by Dance for All (DFA), a program that teaches the importance of social and emotional skills through creative movement in individuals with developmental disorders.

“I was very impressed with the content of the Dance for All training, and it was refreshing to see people from across the country doing similar work to the work we do at MAGIC. I am very excited to share the SEC (Social, Emotional, and Cognitive) skills I have learned with the rest of our teachers. Integrating these skills into our already inclusive Curriculum will take our students to the next level of learning that fosters more self-awareness, creative expression, and community building.”
-Cassandra “Cass” Cabales, Head of Curriculum & Instruction

This training is a social-emotional learning program based on the concepts of creative therapeutic movement. It is designed to provide participants with tools to skillfully facilitate therapeutic dance/movement classes for special needs populations. Participants will develop skills for group facilitation, classroom management,dance/movement and rhythm facilitation, social, emotional and cognitive goal identification, social skills based discussion, and positive and specific communication skills. Participants will be provided with 8 theme-based lesson plans and a manual that includes guidelines, lesson plans and resources to assist in training participants in effectively lead their own dance classes.

Social and emotional learning (SEL) is important to teach young children and adults how to develop a healthy identity and view of the self, maintain positive relationships with others, understand and manage emotions, and make caring and appropriate decisions. Dance for All teaches participants how to address these social and emotional skills of students in their own programs. Topics covered by the training include identifying emotions, developing bodily awareness, and engaging in self-regulation strategies.

MAGIC curriculum enhances the 5 domains through creative expression to improve overall child development.

At MAGIC, we believe that it is never too early to start teaching children these critical skills. Our curriculum emphasizes creative expression and movement is a means through which our students can share their thoughts and feelings, as well as connect with their peers. The training facilitated by Dance for All, a community-based organization, allowed us to collaborate with like-minded individuals and organizations, explore new ways to creatively engage students, and further develop our curriculum to address the social, emotional, and cognitive needs of our students.

The one-day Dance for All facilitator training is held twice a year. For more information regarding the innovative and insightful program, check out Dance for All’s website or email info@uclartsandhealing.org.

Others resources on Social and Emotional approaches for children with developmental disorders

Beadle-Brown, Julie, Wilkinson, David, Richardson, Lisa, Shaughnessy, Nicola, Trimingham, Melissa, Leigh, Jennifer, . . . Himmerich, Julian. (2017). Imagining Autism: Feasibility of a drama-based intervention on the social, communicative and imaginative behaviour of children with autism. Autism : The International Journal of Research and Practice, 22(8), 915-927.
Corbett, Blythe A, Swain, Deanna M, Coke, Catherine, Simon, David, Newsom, Cassandra, Houchins-Juarez, Nea, . . . Song, Yanna. (2014). Improvement in Social Deficits in Autism Spectrum Disorders Using a Theatre-Based, Peer-Mediated Intervention. Autism Research, 7(1), 4-16.
Guivarch, Jokthan, Murdymootoo, Veena, Elissalde, Sara-Nora, Salle-Collemiche, Xavier, Tardieu, Sophie, Jouve, Elisabeth, & Poinso, François. (2017). Impact of an implicit social skills training group in children with autism spectrum disorder without intellectual disability: A before-and-after study. PloS One, 12(7), E0181159.
Lemberger-Truelove, Matthew E, Carbonneau, Kira J, Atencio, David J, Zieher, Almut K, & Palacios, Alfredo F. (2018). Self-Regulatory Growth Effects for Young Children Participating in a Combined Social and Emotional Learning and Mindfulness-Based Intervention. Journal of Counseling and Development, 96(3), 289-302.