Monday 17 February 2014

Some of our activities...

The activities planned during this youth exchange included, exclusively, non-formal methods; the aims were to facilitate the process of interconectivity, to activate motivation and creativity, to support the process of decision making and contribution with new ideas, encouraging freedom of expression and tolerance among participants. All these methods facilitate the learning process and support the development of entrepreneurship competences, the integration and assimilation of the project results and cooperation among young people. The involvement of young people in these activities help them to develop personal and social competences, and also competences for teamwork.

The non-formal methods proposed during the project activities had the objective to develop a participatory attitude, to support the process of refection, to promote tolerance, to support the integration of intercultural differences in the proces of creation and to support cooperation among young people.
          
Examples of activities:

Energizers: The aim of these activities is to facilitate the getting-to-know-each-other of the participants, to energize them and to facilitate the switch between other activities. Usually these activities are group games that takes up to 15 minutes.

Ninja: The participants are asked to form a circle. The facilitator „attacks” a random participants by pointing out with both hands held together. The person attacked has to raise his hands above his head, also holding them together and his neighbours (the person on the eft and the person on the right) have to come from both sides toward him and to attack him. Then the person that was attacked in the first place has to attack someone else. When you attack you have to shout „ha!”, when you are being attacked you have to shout „he!” and when you are one of the neighbours you have to shout „hi!”.

Prince, princess and dragon: The game revolves around the story of a prince, a princess and a dragon. Participants divide into two teams and stand in two line, with their backs to the other team. Each team decides whether they will be the prince, the princess or the dragon. They turn around to face the other team and mime an action representing who they are. The idea is that: the princess defeats the prince, the prince defeats the dragon, and the dragon defeats the princess. Sometimes, neither group will defeat the other because they will both choose to be the same thing!


Straw towers 
Aim: to facilitate communication and cooperation between participants
Method: teambuilding activity
Description: Participants are splited in four teams. Each teams recieved an equal number of plastic straws. The request is, during 30 minuntes to build a tall tower, using only the straws given. In the end, the tallest tower wins.


City Rally
Aim: to facilitate teamwork
Method: teambulding activity
Description: Participants are split in mixed teams and they receive a list with tasks (to take a photo with the people from the village, to find some museum or important building in the area and to take a picture in front of it, to take a photo of a certain statue, to obtain an information from some infopoint etc.). While completing the tasks they discover the community and the area in which the exchange takes place. Through this method, participants will develop teamwork competences and they have the opportunity to interact with villagers.


„Youth in Action” presentation
Aim: to inform participants on “Youth in Action” Programme
Method: photo/video presentation
Description: Participants gather in an indoor space and one of the facilitators presents the “Youth in Action” Programme then recieved and answers questions to clarify some aspects regarding this financed program.



Creative Workshop: Origami ornament
Aim: creation activity
Method: communication, teamwork, creative tehnics, role play.
Description: participants, splited in teams, recieved paper, scissors and glue and for each country, the representants had to show and teach the others how to make an origami Christmas ornament. In this way, all participants were both teachers and students and they had an active participation during the workshop.

 





Making of... teasers
Aim: to create presentational movies, to encourage active participation
Method: screen play workshop
Description: the participants were spilt into 5 teams and they had 90 minutes to create and develop a presentational movie for the origami ornaments that were made during the exchange. They had different materials to use and were encouraged to express creatively.

Study Visits

One of the youth exchange day took place in a study visit and the participant had the opportunity to visit Targu Jiu City which is primarly well known for some famous works of art made by a world-wide known sculptor Constantin Brancusi. The participants also visited a romanian monastery: Polovraci and got to know a little bit more about the romanian history and culture by visiting some interesting old houses, unique in their style that served as shelters during Ottoman attacks – their popular name is Culele Maldaresti.


Intercultural Nights

During the whole week, each night had a designated theme, each country prepared a cultural night. The participants prepared the program of these nights as they wished and in character with their cultural specifics. The program included a presentation of the country, a presentation of customs and traditions, traditional music and dances, traditional clothes, food and drinks and also a presentation of the sending organisations.











World Café

It is an integrative method that has as aim the facilitation of communication, interrelation, getting-to-know each other between participants and also it is an ideas exchange.


Description: The space where this activity takes place is divided in more places or debate tables, as in a coffee shop. Each table recieves a debate subject, subject that is usually inspired from ideas that participants gathered in branstorming previous activity. The participants are divided in „bees” and „butterflies” and the rule is that the „butterflies can change the tables and go around the room and exchange ideas with others, while the „bees” have to stay at the same table to assure that the discution on that subject is carried on. Each group name a spokesman that presents the ideas at the end of this activity.








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