Creative Tools for Youth Workers: How to Engage and Empower Vulnerable Young People

Description

Youth and community workers (and also educators working with 3rd sector youth institutions) often need to work with vulnerable young people who struggle to feel seen, understood, and valued.

The tendency to label them as “hard to reach” or “difficult to engage” ends up obscuring young people’s real needs.

On the other hand, creative approaches can offer an accessible and safe way for them to explore their experiences and learn to express themselves and build trust.

This course intends to focus on how professionals can use creative tools to support youth positive engagement, strengthen their sense of belonging, and develop essential skills such as communication, collaboration, self-esteem, and active participation.

Thanks to a collaborative and practical approach, participants will experiment with games, exercises, and creative activities that can be easily transferable to their own professional settings.

The course will start with building a foundation with Maslow’s hierarchy of needs theory and the exploration of soft skills.

Participants will practice a range of icebreakers activities, together with different playful games aimed at developing teamwork, collaboration, and self-expression through Piaget’s theory lenses.

Creative writing, visual arts, and music will be investigated to promote self-esteem and belongingness in accordance with Vygotsky’s Theory.

Also, Augusto Boal’s Theatre of the Oppressed theory and techniques will be explored in detail to promote young people’s voices and empower them as active citizens.

Finally, Gardner’s multiple intelligences and Goleman’s emotional intelligence theories will complete the course in conjunction with formative assessment.

Reflection and peer exchange are integrated throughout the whole course, allowing the participants to connect theory and practice and to learn from different professional perspectives.

At the end, they will be able to design a concrete session or project plan, applying the tools and strategies they acquired in their own group settings.

By the end of the course, participants will leave with a range of different creative strategies ready to be applied and a clearer understanding of the connection and benefits of creativity, soft skills, inclusiveness, and active citizenship.

Concept by Marilia Lauria

Learning outcomes

The course will help participants to:

• Understand the connection between creativity, soft skills, and an inclusive and safe environment;
• Gain a deeper understanding of utilizing different creative tools to develop youth soft skills;
• Experience practical creative games and activities focused on specific soft skills, fostering a positive and responsive group setting;
• Engage in theatre techniques aimed at developing leadership and active citizenship;
• Create a specific session/project plan for their own setting/ youth group.

Tentative schedule

Day 1 – Course introduction and setting goals

• Introduction to the course, the school, and the external week activities;
• Icebreaker activities;
• Presentations of the participants’ schools;
• Introduction to Soft skills: creating an inclusive, positive, and supportive group environment/Maslow Theory.

Day 2 – Playful games

• The benefits of games in creating a safe and collaborative environment/Piaget’s theory;
• Icebreaker activities for new groups and the beginning of sessions;
• Games for teamwork and collaboration;
• Games for Communication and a sense of belonging.

Day 3 – Creative expression

• Introduction to writing, art, and music: promoting self-esteem and belongingness/Vygotsky theory;
• Practical activities for creative writing;
• Practical visual arts activities;
• Practical music activities.

Day 4 – Image theatre and forum theatre – becoming an active citizen

• Introduction to Augusto Boal – the man and the method: developing empathy, critical thinking, and resolving conflict/Theatre of the Oppressed Theory;
• Practical “Image Theatre” activities;
• Practical “Forum Theatre” exercises.

Day 5 – Planning ahead

• Gardner and Goleman’s theories;
• Formative assessment for youth groups;
• Developing a session/ project plan;
• Feedback and group reflection.

Day 6 – Course closure and cultural activities

• Course evaluation: round-up of acquired competencies, feedback, and discussion;
• Awarding of the course Certificate of Attendance;
• Excursion and other external cultural activities.

Download or share

Get weekly recaps on confirmed sessions!