Shawn Amador, MSW, LCSW

About Shawn:

At present, Shawn is a full time School Social Worker of 17 years who has also been practicing privately for 10 years.  At Shawn's school, she began a clown program, which morphed into a sketch comedy program. She utilizes a theatrical approach in therapy, which creates an outstanding way for small groups of kids and teens to interact and practice social skills together.

Shawn's background is in clowning, but has taken these skills and created an improv and sketch comedy group therapy program called Social Theatre. Social Theatre's purpose is to teach social skills through improv games and the collaborative writing process. Through collaborative writing, Shawn has found that kids can benefit by learning how to work through the process of producing a common product.  Moreover, being able to laugh at our social fails can help heal and reflect while also creating scenarios that demonstrate social success with more effective social skills.  

In Shawn's multitude of experiences, she has worked in the areas of domestic violence, child welfare, and in education. In Education, I have served children of many populations, including children with learning disabilities, across the spectrum autism disorders, communication disorders, emotional and behavioral difficulties, and multi-needs.

Shawn's education includes a Bachelor Degree in Psychology from North Central College, A Master Degree in Social Work from Jane Addams College of Social Work at UIC, and a second Masters Degree in School Administration from North Eastern Illinois University.  Since 2005, I have been a Licensed Clinical Social Worker.  Along my professional journey, I have collected many different therapy tools including Social Thinking®, Mindfulness Training, Assertiveness Training, and Cognitive Behavioral Therapy.

Shaw Amador has attended Social Thinking Training conferences and presented at the Providers Conference in San Jose in June of 2016 on her unique approach to teaching Social Thinking.