Cultural Vehicles in Education - assisting the needs of vulnerable social groups

Pilot workshops XII 2007 – VII 2008

Die Wille gGmbH

Course Programm

Workshop 1 17.12.2007
"Who am I - as a German, Turkish, Polish woman or man living in Berlin, Germany?"
About self-images/clichés, individual perceptions, self presentations and presentations of other persons
Goal: Getting to know and trust each other,
supporting interculturell understanding, also supporting listening and other communication skills in front of a group - learning the first basic skills of positive feedback to other persons.

Workshop 2 15.02.2008
"About the connection of identity as a mother/father, our own childhood and the experiences in kindergartens and day care centres."
Goal: Training in self-awareness and improve of communication skills - in accordance with everybody´s needs and limits, to enlarge awareness of unusual methods and to employ them.

Workshop 3 22.02.2008
"About anger, angry children and the anger in ourselves." This topic deals with anger as an important emotion, shown and described in lots of famous poetry.
Theme is conflict management among the participants, between the participants and the children and also among the children in the kindergartens and day care centres.
Goal: Awareness for and analysis of potential conflicts in the context of work and family, using creative techniques in finding solutions.

Workshop 4 29.02.08
"About the interrelation of emotions and intellect". Emotions are quicker than thoughts - what does it mean for daily life? Emotional
Intelligence describes the ability, capacity or skill to perceive, assess and manage emotions of oneself, of others and of groups.
Goal: a deeper understanding about the importance of being in control of one's emotions.

Workshop 5 07.03.2008
"Learning to understand the chances but also the limitations of child-rearing." About parenting: Self-esteem and relating to others. Adjusting to change in one's children.
Goal: To gain a more opened understanding and view on daily life by reading and discussing poetry and famous literary texts and songs regarding this topic.

Workshop 6 14.03.2008
"Solving communication problems by using irony, comic and absurd behaviour" - Excursion to an exhibition of the German poet, musician, actor and filmdirector Karl Valentin (1882-1948) in the Martin Gropius-Museum.
Goal: There are many different possibilities to express oneself and the use of comical methods can be a way to handle problems in personal and social relationship.

Workshop 7 04.4. + 07.-09.04.2008
"Oral history and storytelling: From Fairy Tales to Rap"
Biographical work, renarrating and developing stories and creative methods to present them." (Video-supported).
Goal: Enhancement of self-awareness and self-esteem by means of identification with the figures in the "story", learning storytelling-techniques.

Workshop 8 19.-23.5.+26.-30.5.2008
Theatre workshop: Creating a little scene in team work, rehearsing together in playing different characters and roles, performance in a school or kindergarden.
Goal: Learning to "play with roles", to keep one's distance in social roles, dealing with masks/diguises; acquiring knowledge on methods of theatre, enhancement of creativity, self-confidence and personal presentation.

Workshop 9 20.06.2008
"Disciplinary device or benevolent support?" What are the cornerstones of child education? What guidelines and principles are valid in dealing with children? Famous short articles from Montessori/ Jakob Moreno / Comenius / Pestalozzi
Goal: Gaining a deeper sense of respectful interaction with children and adults. Learning in teamwork to read texts, practicing the ability to pursue and organize one's own learning processes.

Workshop 10 27.06.2008
"Being more aware of stress factors and learning to deal with them more effectively."
Goal: Self awareness and self-management to facilitate interaction with children and adults.

Workshop 11 04.07.2008
"What are elements of successful communication?"
Especially: How to deal with members/ parents of other cultures, for instance in day care centres and kindergartens.
Goal: The participants get to know different models of communication and the special problems in intercultural communication. They also learn the basic rules of good counselling.

Workshop 12 07.-10.07.2008
"Puppets and masks"
History of puppet theatre and masks and their importance and meaning in social and cultural life.The creation and production of puppets and masks by the participants. Excursion to a puppet theatre in Berlin.
Goal: The participants learn how to use puppet theatre for communication purposes and dealing with problems in a creative way, e.g. in the field of children's education.

Workshop 13+14 18.07.+25.07.2008
"About the meaning of life, God and our universe."
Goal: Learning to express one's individual view of the world, one's dreams and aims.
Common and personal assessment/evaluation of the progress the participants run through, perspectives for their future life, next steps.

All workshops deal with topics related to those listed above. It is important to connect the topics with the participants' situation, problems and competences. Mainly used methods will be (besides discussions and teamwork) exercises such as warm ups for body and mind, theatre-playing, working with video and photography, sculpturing and practicing story-telling techniques. In this process the participants will be enabled to enhance their key competences, such as cultural awareness and expression, sense of initiative and learning to learn.
By using creative material and information, taken from cultural heritage, such as poetry, songs, objects of art and theatre playing, the participants gain a broader knowledge about their own cultural backgrounds and better understanding of other cultures.