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Patriot
Ledger
By DAVID LEVESQUE
February 8/9, 1997
Not
just child's play
Therapy
class teaches autistic kids social skills
Eight-year-old Steven O'Connor of Whitman has a hard time making friends.
In fact, he only does it Tuesday afternoons.
That's when he joins Meghan, Christine, Katie and a small group of
other children whose disabilities keep them from playing with other
children.
In a Jefferson Elementary School classroom each week, the children
build self-confidence using a program called "expressive therapy,"
which reaches them through music and movement.
Steven O'Connor has autism, a neurological disorder characterized
by communication problems and delayed development.
"Steven's only friends are here. They are the only children who
accept him for who he is," said his mother, Regina O'Connor.
Dozens of other parents from across the South Shore bring children
ages 4-14 to the class religiously. They liken it to soccer games
or band practice for other children.
This program is a wonderful collaboration of two non-profit agencies:
The Boston Institute for Arts Therapy and the Genesis Fund's Theapy
and the Performing Arts.
It is the first year of the program. Expressive therapist Denise Koelsch
said the concept is simple.
"The most important element of this program is to offer a place
for the kids to have a successful fun experience and social expereince,"
said Koelsch, a memeber of the Boston Institute for Arts Therapy.
"It's about just being a kid."
Expressive therapy consists of a series of activities that include
dance, other movements and singing. Those activities are repeated
each class as a means of creating the structure vital to autistic
children.
"What they do in school that would not normally be accepted is
accepted here," said Koelsch.
Steven's behavior at the beinning of a recent class was a good example
of actions that would have isolated him in a regular classroom, the
said.
When the children started to take turns picking instruments to play,
Steven keeps objecting aloud to something that had been bothering
him before class.
Meghan Brigham, a 7-year-old from Quincy, puts her friend at ease
without trying.
"Hit it, Steven. Play," she said. Steven paused and then
started banging two sticks together.
"That was nice, Steen," Megan said.
Meghan aslo has autism.
"She just doesn't know how to deal with other children or they
don't know how to deal iwht Meghan," said her mother, Christina
Brigham.
The acceptance among Meghan's playmates on Tuesday afternoons is apparent
throughout the class as they sing and parade around the classroom,
amrching to the same beat.
"This ultimately helps the children adjust in the mainstream,"
Koelsch said. "If the kids feel what they do and who they are
is OK they can grow. They can feel like they have something to offer."
In the school lounge, the parents also find strength sharing their
expereinces, concerns and snacks.
"It is really good for the kids and for us. This is the only
place we can come to and talk about the problems our children share,"
said Eileen O'Connor of Witman. Her daughter Katie, 5, who is not
related to Steven, suffers from developmental disabilities.
"I find therapy in realizing other families are going through
the same thing," she said. "The kids therapy is just having
fun."
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