San Carlos Children's Theater awarded grant from Autism Speaks Funds to support "Team Friend" a new theater based social skills program for middle school students

The San Carlos Children's Theater (SCCT) is honored to announce it is the recipient of a Family Services Chapter Grant from the national organization Autism Speaks.  SCCT is one of 54 organizations across the country to receive a chapter grant of up to $5000 to promote local services that enhance the lives of those affected by autism.

SCCT teachers Shelley Frost and Linda Young developed and teach Friends Play Group, a theater based social skills class for children ages 6 - 9 years.  This spring, after having completed the 16th session of Friends Play Group, Frost and Young now look forward to developing Team Friend for middle school students.

Frost says, "Parents whose 9 years olds have completed Friends Play Group were interested in having their children continue developing their social skills experiences but were finding few resources.  The ideas behind Team Friend are a result of what parents were asking for.  Team Friend will also be performance/theater based, where a small group of students will use new skills and concepts to develop and perform their own plays and skits.  The Autism Speaks grant will allow us to purchase ipads which the students will use to film and photograph themselves during the process of their productions."

Team Friend will be open for registration for the fall of 2014 at Central Middle School in San Carlos, California.  The class will be limited to nine students and will be taught by three teachers.

Autism Speaks is the world's leading autism science and advocacy organization.  San Carlos Children's Theater is a volunteer-led, nonprofit organization committed to educating youth on all aspects of theater production while nurturing creative expression, self-confidence, teamwork, and an appreciation of the arts.

Shelley Frost and Linda Young are sisters who melded their expertise to develop and teach the Friends Play Group program.  For more information about Friends Play Group visit www.friendsplaygroup.org.  For more information about the San Carlos Children's Theater visit www.scctkids.com.  For more information about Autism Speaks and the neighborhood grants visit http://www.autismspeaks.org/family-services/grants/neighborhood