The training of trainers at KDM is going on...

Today we had the second session to train the teachers on the role of emotions in the learning processes at KDM.

The trainers who participated have shown a sensitive approach, a good humor and enthusiasm for learning.

I am happy to collaborate with this group of teachers.

Find here below an extract of what we did.

Emotional awareness and learning, how to improve it through music, games and art

1) Introduction of myself, and theoretical premises of the work

2) Goal of today:  to give a hint on how the emotional competence plays a big role  in the learning process, and how to try to boost it in our kids.

3) Files delivery

- importance of learning through play

- team building games

- importance of emotions in learning 

4) Knowledge games

- ball name

- walk around (and at the signal shake hands and greet each other)

- make pairs. One of you will start to talk about a subject for one minutes and the partner will only listen. Then exchange roles. (to improve active listening). Start with easy subjects (how did you wake up this morning?) and proceed towards more challenging ones (what do you think of children living in the street?)

- you have to create to groups based on which month of the year you are born: here who was born from january to June and there from July to December.

5) Team building games

To share intimate thoughts on ourselves we need to know and trust the components of our team.

So, the first thing to start with is team building, and the funniest way to achieve it is through games. 

Here are two examples:

game 1) The human knot or Loop de Loop

game 2) Snowball Fight or My Flag

6) Presentation of today work: the importance of emotions in the learning process

The main goal is to help the teacher to manage better their class, activating the kids, understanding them better and helping them to manage better their feelings.

"Emotion is the on / off switch for learning."

As many researcher say, to become emotionally competent, a person needs to:

1- live and experiment emotions and moods, feel and it in the body and the hearth

2- knowing the emotions, developing a vocabulary and feeling how they affect our body. Recognize the emotions inside ourselves and inside others.

3- understand how they work, from where they come, becoming able to manage it and help other people to express better, improving empathy.

Any pedagogic action must start from a practical experience, as the method I am implementing does.

7)  Through this work we get to know that how we see ourselves, how we think, and how we try to interprete what happens around us is strongly connected with our moods.

Show the video of Flowers performance by Pondok Taruna kids.

8) What makes us feel in a mood or another is mainly:

1. temperament or personality structure

2. our personal story

3. self esteem

4. the way we think (thought processes). 

From a educational point of view, we can only try to change or work on points 3  and 4.

- Games on self esteem: 

game 1) The star

game 2) receiveng applauses, and being able to accept it

game 3) listen to music and choose freely which emotion you are feeling, without fearing to say the wrong thing (there are no right or wrong emotions) and feeling free not to follow the group but only our inner feelings.

9) Visualization of concepts:

a - the group should be confident and cooperative (know each other and team building)

b - emotions are the on / off switch for learning

10) Ending, resuming, in group what we said. 

Greetings.