How Theater Can Teach Our Kids to Be Empathetic

Several studies show communication skills are the most essential skills for navigating American adult life — better communicators are hired more often, enjoy happier relationships and marriages, ascend to leadership positions, and possess higher self-esteem. The ability to manage personal emotions and to recognize them in others — also known as emotional intelligence — is a predictor of academic and professional success.

These skills are often taught through Social Emotional Learning programs offered in K-12 schools in 27 states.

But they are also a by-product of theater class, according to a recent study from George Mason University and the Commonwealth Theatre Center.

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Photo: Washington Post