Group Curriculum Combining Expressive Arts Therapy & Rainbowdance: A Literature Review

This thesis presents a 10-week curriculum for a short-term expressive arts therapy group for children ages 6-7 (grades 1 & 2). The curriculum is unique in that it combines the dance/movement therapy program of Rainbowdance with expressive arts therapy. The targeted population sub-group for this proposed curriculum is children whose caregivers, teachers, or guidance counselors have expressed concerns about isolation and/or a lack of social skills. The purpose of this proposed curriculum is to develop the social skills essential for making friends and building relationships. More specifically, group members will gain skills in building a sense of community, sharing, taking turns, taking another’s perspective, and developing empathy. The facilitator will use a combination of visual art, music, movement, and play therapy activities to experience and process these skills. In addition, each week the session will begin and close with a Rainbowdance circle ritual. This capstone thesis reviews the literature that supports the reasoning for the development of this curriculum