The themes for the last few months were: teamwork, problem solving, creativity, body and spatial awareness and empathy. While our key focus was on working together as a group to be able to complete and enjoy the life skills games, we noted many outcomes from our sessions.
Teamwork: Working as a team helped learners to be more patient with each other and taught them how to communicate with one another in a respectful way. With this mind set, they were able to achieve their goals more quickly, which made them proud as a group.
Problem solving: Learners were taught how to react and respond by using what, who and why? Games were designed not only to identify the problems, but also to offer solutions. It has not been an easy process and many learners are still grappling to fully grasp concepts, but facilitators are encouraged by their tenacity and are sure to remind learners of the wider intended outcomes.
Creativity: Taking the risk to perform in front of others was not easy for our learners, especially the newcomers to the class. They still need to work on their self-confidence, but they have really come a long way and continue to grow. This focus on creativity has helped learners to come up with their own ideas and share these with others. It has been very rewarding to watch certain individuals perform as though they were born for the stage!
Body and Spatial awareness: This specific focus area was purely to understand what the body is capable of. Learners loved the games and we had many laughs together.
Empathy: Through life skills games, learners got to know each other better and were able to show greater empathy for one another. They also came to see that everyone is unique and that individuals’ needs must be respected.
Overall, the learners showed great appreciation for the effort that was made by facilitators and we are encouraged that they began to ask upfront for life skills games, instead of seeing them as a chore!