๐ผ๐ฃ ๐๐ข๐ฅ๐ฉ๐ฎ ๐จ๐ฅ๐๐๐ ๐๐ก๐ฌ๐๐ฎ๐จ ๐๐๐๐ก๐จ ๐๐ช๐ก๐ก ๐ค๐ ๐ฅ๐ค๐จ๐จ๐๐๐๐ก๐๐ฉ๐ฎ ๐ฉ๐ค ๐ข๐. โจ
Another Monday, another beginning. Every time I walk into an empty space, I get that same little spark of excitement knowing what’s to come, because I can already feel what could happen there. The conversations, the growth, the learning, the shifts.
And this week feels especially meaningful, because Iโm teaching one of my favourite topics: drama as a tool for inclusion.
Today, we began with what is in my opinion the most effective way to explore drama. Games!
For me, games are never just about playing. Theyโre a way in.
โจA way to learn more deeply about ourselves.
โจA way to notice social dynamics.
โจA way to open up conversations that go a little further than usual.
In my work with drama, it helps people move beyond what โshouldโ be, and start exploring what could be instead.
We already spoke about some of the challenges these educators face in their day to day. A rising black-and-white way of thinking when it comes to politics… gender norms. A damaging underlying school culture of bullying… A hesitation to share individual stories, essential for obtaining a work certificate…
Drama is able to delve into each of these issues.
โจIt highlights the grey spaces, as we realize when we put ourselves in the shoes of others that nothing is really black-and-white.
โจIt helps us recognize, from a place of empathy and our own emotions, how it feels to be powerless, and how we have the power to change that.
โจIt provides different avenues for sharing stories, through creativity, through images, through other stories…
What if we designed spaces where more people could belong?
What if play helped us get there?
When I look at this image, I see that it’s filled with potential of what’s yet to come. What do you see?
#CreativeFacilitation #Inclusion #DramaInEducation #LearningThroughPlay #Facilitation #Belonging #Education #SocialDynamics
Elana Shyong 