Beginning of Episode 1

Slide 1

It's a classroom inside of a school. There're about 30 kids with disabilities. Everyone is looking at everyone else. Nobody knows each other but everybody is wearing nametags. Some people are disinterested. Other people are visibly nervous. Others are excited. Alexa (pretty 10 year old Hispanic girl with two long braids and an aqua tank-dress), David (a 9 year old interracial boy with dreadlocks sitting in a wheelchair) & another boy are talking in low voices. Gabby, who is blind, is in the middle of the room with her dog Sam. The others are silent, looking furtively around at each other. In the back, a kid who is deaf is talking to her translator.

Alexa: "I wonder where he is… "

David: "I wonder WHO he!"

Other boy: "Yeah. My mom insisted that I come and now he's late! "

Slide 2

The door has opened to let in a middle-aged white man in a wheelchair. Balding, tall, skinny and a potbelly, he parks in front of the desk in the front of the class, looking down to a sheet of paper in his hand. The kids are quiet, turning around.

"Hi people. My name is Will. Do you know each other? I see that you're mostly from different schools."

Switching perspectives to the back of Will & the front of the class. An 8 year-old Native American boy named Nodin is playing solitaire.

"Probably your moms and dads talked you into coming tonight, huh?" said Will.

All the kids start saying, “Uh uh”, “Yes…”, & “Yep.”

Will looks amused.

"I'm sure that most of you would much rather be playing video games or listening to music or watching TV ...after all -- it IS Saturday!" Will continues.

There are rueful smiles on half of the kids' faces & Nodin is still playing solitaire.

"But, now that I have you here, I want to start meeting and greeting each other. After all, that's what your parents dragged you down here to do. Be more social!"

Slide 3

Alexa is sitting in the front of the class & has her hand up.

“Mr. Will? My dad told me this meeting was about disability, all sorts of disability. But you're just saying it's a meet and greet social?”

All of a sudden, people are talking to others. Ben (an 11 year old African-American boy who is very neat & looking stony-faced) is shaking his head in disgust.

“What's a social?” says Gabby, an 8 year-old blind Jewish-American girl.

“My mom says she's ‘socially active in the community,'…” remarks one of the boys.

“I think it's like public domain, like on the Internet…”answers another student.

Sam, the dog, is wondering what all of this human talk is about.

Will is riding up to talk to Alexa more closely.

“Alexa? Hi!”

“It's true -- this meeting is about disability. But more importantly, it's about interaction with other people who just happen to have a disability as well. I'm just a ref who can suggest things to do…!”

The picture is from the outside of the school, right outside of the class. A bird on the window sill is looking in though window. It's a late spring/early summer day. The kids & Will are out of the picture, but Will is talking.

“You see, when I was growing up, I was very self-conscious about my disability. I stayed in the house more than I should have.

Your parents say that you're falling in the same trap?”

Slide 4

Most of the kids are nodding. Ben is still looking stone-faced. Nodin is showing a girl named Ríona (a skinny 7 year old with bright red hair) a card trick.

“Tell me about it!” says David

Riona responds, “ I know!”

“My mom doesn't believe me when I say I don't mind…” Gabby chimes in.

Nodin looks up from his teaching. “It's no big deal.”

“Agreed -- everyone likes to be alone sometimes. But other times, it's fun to be with people.” Will says, “So I want you to just mingle. Who knows! Maybe you can make friends, form a group, something like that.”

“After all -- you have an hour to kill…!”

Slide 5

Mingling in the room -- Ríona is showing David, Alexa & Gabby the card trick that Nodin showed her, while Nodin looks quietly pleased. Ben is petting Sam and talking about the different ideas of dogs (& getting a little annoyed that nobody else is paying attention except Sam). Sam is enjoying the attention. There are other people in the background talking to each other. Will & a little girl are talking to another pair of people in the background as well.

“Ta-da!” Ríona announces

“Wow Ríona!” says Alexa

David says, “ Cool! How'd you do it?”

“Can you teach me?” says Gabby

“The reason why dogs want to please the owner is because the owner displays dominance. It's an instinctive behavior, you know, for both animals. However, dogs view other people as foe or a pack member. When I was at my aunt's house, she had a dog…” states Ben.

Slide 6

The group is now “The Able Crew” !

“Hey -- do you all want to come over to my house real soon? I have a cool clubhouse…” says David.

Riona says, “That'd be neat. Let me ask my mom.”

“Can I bring Sam?” asks Gabby, pointing to her seeing-eye dog.

Sam seems to like that idea also!

Nodin says, “I'd like that…”

“Oh yeah!” says Alexa.

“Let me get your phone number and e-mail…” says Ben.

Will rolls over to the group

“ How are you doing everyone?” says Will.

David says, “We're going to hook up!”

Ben is looking important. “I've made some network connections.”

“Besides” says Alexa, “I want to figure out how to do that trick!”

Now there're parents piling in to the classroom. Everyone is getting ready to leave. Will is next to the desk again. There's some paper on the desk. David is in the doorway, turned around to face the classroom, arm waving.

“Hope you enjoyed yourselves! You can pick up a list of names and phone numbers if you want to stay in touch!” says Will.

“See you real soon everyone!” says David.

End of Episode 1

Please check back frequently. The second episode of The Able Crew will be coming soon!