00.45 – 01.05 Communication
– Participants experience what it feels like when there is no interaction
– Participants increase their skills in making (informal) contact
Exercise 3.2: Take initiative
What do you need?
– A ball
– Ball game instructions on tickets
What should you do?
Introduce the exercise: It is important to build a relationship of trust with newcomers.
With one person this is easy, with another you have to put in a little more effort.
Connecting is a skill you can learn.
– Make groups of four students.
– Sit or stand in a circle and place a ball in the center.
– Give the instruction: Read the cards. Do not tell your group members what it says.
– There are 4 cards, three of which have the following text: “Wait until you get the ball. Then pass it on to someone else in the group.”
The fourth card says: “Wait a few minutes, let the tension build up a bit. Then take the ball and throw it gently at someone else.”
– Perform the exercise.
Trainers advice
During the exercise, participants should experience the following:
– The tension that arises when no one takes the initiative to make contact. How the interaction between people starts when one of them takes the initiative.
– Make a connection between the experiences during the ball game and daily practice: For example, what is it like when people with a migration background are standing by the sports field and you pass them without saying anything? What happens if you chat with them instead? What similarities do you see between the experiences from the game and the use of interaction skills towards migrants in daily practice?
– Ask questions such as: How could you start the conversation? Who has experience with it? What are the benefits if you do start a conversation?