Nancy Aracely Romero

Theater 337
Fall 2015
Microtheme: Creative Drama for the Special Child
Special education is defined as a program that helps to meet their needs. They are a group
of children who may be emotionally disturbed, physically and/or cognitively disabled, gifted,
underachievers, or has English as a second language. But how can we apply creative dramatics
with these group of children? Chapter 15 Creative Drama for the Special Child, in Creative
Drama in the Classroom

and Beyond, by Nellie McCaslin, focuses on ideas and activities from

creative dramatics for children with exceptionalities. It gives a description of different
disabilities such as children that are gifted, mental retardation, ADHD, blind, mentally disturbed,
and many more. The benefits in applying creative dramatic varies depending on the disability of
the child.
For a child that is gifted, they have the ability to do many different things at once. For
gifted children, theater, dance, music, or any visual arts is a great benefit for them. They can use
their abilities to write the plays, design costumes, and play many different roles. As for a child
that has mental retardation, we need to understand that this is not a disease but rather a condition.
With dramatics, they can play and expand their imagination. A child can stimulate the teacher's
response in dramatic play, these children need extra help and a lot of encouragement in

comparison with other children. A great activity for them can be movement games and rhythm
such as the Itsy Bitsy Spider or The Wheels on the Bus because it can develop large motor skills

and it also motivates the use of imagination. It can also promote oral expression because with
repetition, and language can increase in a child with mental retardation.
Children who are emotionally disturbed have to be taken with a lot of caution. First of all, the
teacher must be careful in determining if creative dramatics is appropriate for the child. It may be
best for a therapist or an outside clinics to use drama as part of the childs treatment because they
are more specialized in the area.
Children that are physically disables may have obvious limitations and their problem are
easier to identify. With creative dramatics the activities can be modified depending on their
limitations. The student can have the opportunity to escape the body on the wings of his or her
imagination. (McCaslin, 288) If for example, the child is on a wheel chairs, creative dramatics
will give her the opportunity to fly, walk, or run. Deaf children have a lot of disadvantages but
creative dramatics can ease the problem. Pantomime allows children that are deaf or hard of
hearing to participate and enjoy in theater. With pantomime, children can participate in large
motor skills by dancing and moving along.
As future Special Education Preschool Teacher, this chapter captured my attention
because it is a field that I will go into. As of now, I am a special needs assistant in preschool.
After reading this chapter, I have applied many of these activities in my class. I have seen the
great value of creative dramatics and how the imagination of my students have expanded. When
I become a teacher, I will be able to apply more of these activities and create an atmosphere that
is comfortable and nonjudgmental, with clear ground rules, and boundaries. Take note that these
activities do not only apply for children with disabilities, they can also be applied with senior
citizens or nursing home patients.

Work Cited
McCaslin, Nellie. Creative Drama for the Special Child. Creative Drama in the Classroom and
Beyond. 7th Ed.New York: Addison Wesley Longman, 2000. Print