Robin Bennett
10 Creative Arts Gifts
The holidays bring us an opportunity to gift our children with their hearts’ desires. But for those with children with special needs, that can be a challenge. Parents are always on the lookout for gifts their children will love, but that will also assist them in social, movement, and communication skills. As an instructor for 4th Wall Theatre Co., I have seen firsthand that the theatre arts of acting, singing, and dancing can open new paths to growth and enjoyment in skill areas. In this list, you will find 10 items that use the parts of theatre to help specifically address challenge areas for kids with special needs in a fun and demonstrable way.
Acting
- Imagination Masks
Masks are a great tool to help a child with special needs discover and experiment with different character skills. Playing off their own affinities, a child can "try on" different abilities that their favorite character might have, like speaking clearly in a booming voice as Superman or developing social skills as the friendly Thomas the Train. Take it one step further, with dress up costumes and play with friends!
- Character Play Dough Sets
Role-play over and over again with play dough sets that help children see and feel different characters, jobs, or activities. Imagine with them as they experiment with serving their play dough treats or creating and acting out their own stories!
- Character Hats
Another easy imagination tool for pretend and trying on different abilities is the hat. In theatre workshops, I have used games with hats of different careers, animals, and even flowers to encourage children with special needs to think about what that character might say or do. My favorite thing is to take it one step further and have two children wear their choice of hat and decide what they might say or do with each other!
Singing
- Magic Mic
A child with special needs often experiences challenges with speech or vocal communication; speech therapists have recommended things like the Magic Mic for encouragement to try out vocalizing in a fun way! Take turns singing or humming their favorite movie songs along with the characters!
- Drum Kit
Let them bang away while they learn about rhythm and work on gross motor skills. Sound can be a huge motivator for children with challenges of all types. In an inclusive theatre workshop, students often sit in a drum circle practicing following the rhythm set by the leader.
- Singing Machine
As your child advances in play with song and sound, you may want to invest in a device to showcase their musical stylings! Enjoy karaoke performances with the whole family or set attainable goals like learning the chorus of a familiar song.
- American Sign Language Song Music & Video Tutorials
Join our 4th Wall instructors as they teach adapted American Sign Language translations of popular songs. As a bedrock of our theatre workshops, children can sing with their voice and with their hands, or just with their hands, as their unique talents allow.
Dancing
- Trampoline Bouncer
Movement can assist children with special needs in getting out anxiety and energy. Put on some music and make that movement fun and safe with these trampoline bouncers that have a special safety bar to hold. Allow for imagination and spatial awareness by helping them create their own repetitive dance moves!
- Dance Video Games & Accessories
Almost every video gaming console has dancing games with a variety of popular music from radio and movies. Children love following the visual display of lights and directions that can be found for different ability levels. Following show and tell models like these, help children observe how to make their body perform in different ways before trying it themselves.
- Dance Choreography Video Tutorial
Join our instructors for free choreography video tutorials. Work on following directions, tracking, and body awareness with step-by-step follow the leader instructions. Have the whole family join in the fun! Seeing a parent model following directions encourages a child with special needs to try it, too! Source Materials for this Article: Amazon.com LovethatMax.com FatBrainToys.com Parentsmagazine.com 4thWallBackstage.com A note about “theatre”: The use of the spelling for theatre throughout this article is deliberate; this spelling denotes the art form of the stage. The spelling "theater" denotes the building where the art takes place. “Theatre” is used by 4th Wall because that is where the arts’ benefit is for all abilities. The stage and everything that happens there is encompassed in this spelling: acting, singing, dancing, socializing, communicating, and so much more!
