Teaching autistic kids to read facial expressions

Autistic children enjoy mechanical things, probably because their motion is predictable, Laugeson says. For example, parents often report that their autistic kids adore "Thomas the Tank Engine."

"The Transporters" seeks to harness that interest.

The five-minute videos feature vehicles such as cable cars and trams, which run on tracks and so move only in a few predictable directions. Each vehicle sports the face of a real human actor. A character might look sad, as Jennie does when her wheel gets stuck, or excited, as Barney the tractor does on his birthday. Each of the 15 narrated episodes explores a different emotion through the story.

"The children can focus on the wheels going around . . . but at the same time, without even realizing it, they're getting exposed to faces, getting the opportunity to learn," says Simon Baron-Cohen, director of the Autism Research Centre at Cambridge University in the UK and developer of "The Transporters."

The British government funded the video's production. One-quarter of profits from sales goes to autism charities; another quarter will fund future research.

Baron-Cohen and colleagues tested "The Transporters" in a study soon to be published in the Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders. They gave 20 families with autistic children, ages 5 through 8, the video and instructions to watch at least 15 minutes a day. Eighteen other families did not use the video.

The scientists evaluated the children's facial expression skills at the start of the study, and again one month later. They found that the kids who had watched "The Transporters" were better at matching the appropriate facial expression to an emotional situation. Also, the children could identify expressions in pictures of strangers, applying their new understanding to unfamiliar faces.

That scientific evidence is important, Laugeson says, because most current therapies lack a solid scientific base.

The study focused on high-functioning children who could use language and had average IQs; Baron-Cohen is now evaluating the videos in low-functioning kids, who generally have difficulty with speech and self care.

The program will likely be useful in helping kids to start thinking about expressions of emotions, says Sven Bolte, a psychologist at the University of Heidelberg's Central Institute of Mental Health in Mannheim, Germany. However, it will be important to show that the kids can apply their skills with faces in real-life situations, Bolte says.