Date: 2007-11-01

First workshops (June 2007) in the Horea School have been organized for parents, teachers and students, sometimes in parallel sessions, sometimes all together – especially when they were practicing what they’ve learnt in the previous sessions. RWCT and UFA approaches were very much appreciated by trainers and participants. The Learning Rucksack (UFA) activity has been successfully used. Story writing and behaviour workshops have used RWCT Critical Thinking techniques.

Aims of the first workshops

By the end of the workshops parents and teachers will be able to:

• Explain their role in MorePAL;
• Argue for the importance of negotiating recreational activities with children;
• Identify ways of spending quality time with their children;
• Analyse the ways they manage their time;
• Describe at least two activities to spend quality spare time with their children;
• Explain the role of planning activities and carefully  timing them;
• Plan vacation activities to carry out with their children (for parents);
• Plan activities to carry out with parents during the school year (for teachers);
• Write stories working together with children;
• Make books working together with children;
• Demonstrate interest toward the way children perceive the experienced had together;
• Identify positive and negative behaviours that their children display by using „The map of my child behaviour”;
• Describe different ways for rewarding and punishing a child;
• Analyse some alternative ways for rewarding and punishing a child.

Topics of the first workshops:

1. Spare time activities involving children and parents
2. Workshop on book writing for parents and children
3. Behaviour management and spare time activities involving children and parents
4. Planning quality spare time

Methodology of the workshops

In the workshops, trainers were creating opportunities for learning through contact teaching, participatory and experience based methods - all concepts that are part of underlying UFA and Critical Thinking rationale. The workshops consisted of co-operative and active learning methods, games, student – parent – teacher work, discussions. Each parent was supported and encouraged in finding, together with teachers and their child, creative solutions to solve their child’s learning difficulties.

Through the participation of teachers from the schools in the workshops 3 teachers have stated their intention to attend the RWCT training programme during the next academic year.

 

report_on_training_June2007.pdf