Group Treatment for Asperger Syndrome: A Social Skill Curriculum

Along with increasing awareness and diagnosis of Asperger Syndrome has come increasing work on providing affected children opportunities for positive social interactions. Whether at a theoretical or practical level, the intention is to give children ways to build their interpersonal communication skills, which include seeking out opportunities to communicate, finding common ground, performing interactive behaviors, and forming friendships and other relationships based on mutual communication. Adams concentrates on a series of practical exercises that help children share personal information and experiences, solve problems and play in groups, and participate in scripting and role playing. Activities for children age three to five are designed to improve cooperative skills, eye contact, turn-taking and pretend play, those for ages six to nine include new work on facial expressions and role play, and those for ages ten to twelve include topic maintenance. Annotation c2007 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)