Training in Cyprus
Training in Cyprus
The training in Cyprus has been done in Pissouri Village from 5 to 11 of February 2023. In the training took part 3 trainers (one from each partner country) and 12 participants (3 from each country except from Cyprus that we had more participants). In the following folder you can find the infopack of the training.
Implementation of the training - Activities for the inclusion of people with disabilities
DAY 1: Monday 6 of February 2023
Name Games: We did some name games in order to get know each other.The participants were standing in a circle and one by one was introducing his name and then he did a sound,then all the group repeated the name and the sound until all of the group had told their names and sounds.At the end,one participant went to the middle of the circle and just did one sound and the rest of the group had to remember which person made that sound.
Introduction of the training: We did an introduction of the training and the program Non Formal Education Activities for the inclusion of people with disabilities.We explained the aims and detailed analysis of the work that will be done from all organizations in the 3 countries.
Fears,Expectations and Contribution: Participants had the opportunity to express their expectations,their fears and their contribution in the program in a paper. Afterwards, we checked it one by one with the whole group,we answered questions and it helped us to better understand the needs of the group.
Meeting in the offices of Pissouri Community Council: We met with the president of the Community and members of the board and discussed what they have done until now for people with disabilities and suggestions of what they can do more in the community.At the end they received presents from Pissouri Community Council.
Inclusive Workshop: The workshop aimed to promote empathy and awareness about people with dissabilities.Participants will be divided in 3 groups.Each group represents a different kind of disability (blind,kinetic and mental).Each group had to find a way to integrate the disability they represent and act accordingly.For,example the group with visual impairments worked together and were being blindfolded during the activity except one person that was their guide and give them instructions how to move on the place. The group with kinetic disability worked together the whole time without being able to get up from the chair.The group with mental disabilities worked together by being forbidden to use a common language (English).At the end,they shared their thoughts and emotions about this experience and possible solutions in order to create an inclusive society for all people.The workshop implemented by ACFJC from Romania organization.
Take a Step Forward: Through this activity participants raised awareness about inequalities of opportunities and fostered empathy about people with disabilities. In this activity participants take on roles and move forward depending on their chances and opportunities in life. Scenarios described specific physical or social characteristics. Each time, the participants were asked to take one step forward, when they were socially advantaged according to the character they were given.We modified the role cards and it was related to different kind of disabilities and other factors (poor,rich,educated,gender,age) in order to make participants think how the other factors expect the disability can also affect their quality of life.At the end participants reflect on their emotions and thoughts about their roles and these situations in general.
DAY 2. Tuesday 7 of February 2023
Kreaktiva Training-Croatia - Working with people with Mental Disabilities
Mirroring Activity: Mirroring movement is a simple play activity that involves copying someone's movements, like you're in a mirror.Mirroring movement activities helped participants with disability or mental disabilities (autism,down syndrome,ADHD) improve their physical coordination and gross motor skills.These activities also gave them a chance to work together, building relationships and empathy for others. Participants also get to experience taking the lead and following others and learn to be mindful,to focus on the "here and now".
Movement Conversation: This activity is performed in pairs. They take turns moving in front of each other trying to transfer a message,a feeling,a thought.The couple talks non-verbally,only with movements.It is very important that the participants observe or "listen" to each other in each other in non verbal conversation and to respect each other by waiting until the movement stops and then to respond.
Walk in my shoes: An activity performed in pairs. With instrumental music one of the pair moved in space the way he feld at the moment. The other pair observed him and drawed his movements in space on paper. After the observation, they changed roles in such a way that the pair who drew the movements now passes those same movements in space while the other pair watches him.It's an activity that promotes non verbal communication and fosters empathy and creativity.
Sherborne Developmental Movement: The activity is performed in groups and requires pieces of stretchy fabric,preferably pleasant to touch.The background music should be relaxing and instrumental.At the beginning, we gave time to groups to explore their movements with fabric,how it can be stretched,how is the feeling of the fabric,playing with the balls etc.Afterwards, we told to participants to spread out the fabrics on the floor.One person lies down in the middle of the fabric and the other participants took the fabrics on their hands and move it slightly.This creates gentle waves. The movement is repeated until the person relaxes and begins to feel comfortable.The next phase of the activity is moving with the fabric while the person is on it.Gently pull the fabric around the space.The person on the fabric may have their eyes open or closed, depending on how comfortable they feel. Sometimes when the eyes are open, they will need to make eye contact with one of the participants.The last stage is lifting the person with the fabric and swinging lightly. Simulation of the feeling as in the womb. It creates a feeling of security, relaxation.At the end we gently lower the person to the floor and gently dissolve the fabric. Return to the starting position (sitting on the floor around the fabric).This activity can be beneficial for those with intellectual challenges,helping to improve self-esteem,facilitate positive relationships and increase communication and creative expression.
Official Welcoming Dinner: Official Welcoming in the training from NGO ACPELIA and Pissouri Municipality Council with a festivity with Cyprus and Greek dances.
DAY 3: Wednesday 8 of February 2023
Acpelia Training-Cyprus - Working with people with mobility problems
Mask Activity: This art activity is about decorating the outside part of a mask in the way that others or the outside world see us and also decorate the inside of the mask,representing how we see ourselves.Using a mask is perfect as a metaphor for exploring the different aspects of ourselves. There's something about masks - that really pulls us in, evokes feelings, and actually has a long tradition in many cultures. It's a powerful symbol that helps us share our human experience.Creating this mask helps us express what we haven't been able to express before. It lets us think deeply about who we are, what is the "mask" that we wear on the outside and how that is similar to who we are inside. Share our real experience.This project assumes that we all have masks we wear, different aspects of ourselves that are seen or not seen on the outside. It's okay to have these things, and this process just helps us understand ourselves more, accept our different aspects more. We simply bring more awareness to this and practice embracing all of who we are.
Creating a play in pairs: This activity fosters creativity and playfulness and is developing listening skills and collaborative work through participants by introducing drama therapy techniques.The participants divided in pairs of two and they described their house to each other and later they draw a picture of a partner's house.Then they exchange drawings with their partner and take some moment to briefly comment on the process and the drawing that they received.The group went of the room, and members are instructed to re-enter the space, as if they were visiting a museum. Pairs walked around the room, looking at the houses exhibited, and leave brief suggestions about "who (what characters) live in these houses?" And then they created characters and gave them some time to prepare a mini theater play and present it to the group.
Visit Limassol City: Limassol Old Town: Visit this charming historic center, where British colonial buildings and traditional workshops are interspersed amid modern cafés and bars. The Old Town of Limassol comprises a series of narrow streets branching out from the city's old fishing port. Home to busy shopping streets and intriguing historic attractions, this vibrant area of the city is equally popular with locals and tourists.
DAY 4. Thursday 9 of February
(The first two activities were implemented by the ACFJC-Romania organization that is working with people with vision problems and blind people)
Mystery Room: One by one, the participants of our experiment were blindfolded and led into a room specially designed with multiple materials, guided by a rope, to provide a sensorial experience. Once inside, they were free to explore the area and interact with the materials as they pleased.The benefits of this experiment are numerous.It provides an opportunity for participants to explore their senses and to interact with materials in a new and exciting way.It also encourages creativity,as participants have to use their imagination to make sense of the environment and come up with new ideas.Additionally,by being blindfolded,participants are forced to rely on their other senses,which can help them become more aware of their surroundings.Ultimately,this activity fosters an environment of exploration,creativity and discovery.
Leading the blind person: We had a 30 minutes theoretical part on how to guide and walk with a blind person.Then we asked the participants to get themselves into pairs,and then to tie the cloth around the eyes of one person in each pair so that they cannot see anything.The person who is not blindfolded then leads the blindfolded person around 10 minutes. This exercise helps to have the participants experience how it feels to be 'blind', or to lack knowledge of some aspects of what is happening.Also, it raises awareness about the feelings and needs of people who may need assistance. It will engage the heart by understanding and feeling how people who may need assistance feel.
Entering dramatic reality through the back: Through this activity they will explore a personal question by creating ample aesthetic distance from it and learning about the nature of a dramatic reality and its connection with normal reality and how is to approach it from an unusual angle.Also,they practicing how to accompany someone into his/her inner world and making interventions in it. After an appropriate warm up, participants are instructed to think of a current question or issue that they are dealing with, that occupies their minds.They are given some time (5-10 minutes) to write freely about it.At the end of the writing phase, they are invited to formulate a specific question they would like to ask if they had a chance to pose it to a Wise Person. They should write the question.Group divides into pairs. One member becomes the "Traveler" and the other, the "Companion".Travelers close their eyes and take a few deep breaths. They are told they will be going to an imaginary place, which they will discover step by step as they get there. As a first step, the group facilitator guides Travelers as a group by asking them basic questions about the space in which they find themselves. The Companions' goal is to try to help the Travelers get a clear vision of the place.Travelers are encouraged to walk around their imaginary place with their Companions. In the last stage of the process , the Companions take the role of helping the Travelers to "make sense" of the experience by reflecting on the personal question they asked at the beginning of the exercise and looking for any connection between the journey to the imaginary place and the question that was on their minds.Then they changed roles. The activity is implemented by NGO Acpelia.
Friday 10 of February 2023: DAY 5.
Blind Football + hand football: Two adapted sports are special for visually impaired people.This workshop has the role of making the participants to cooperate better in the team but also to understand how they can collaborate with the participants with disabilities.The game is designed to foster team spirit, and the rules are designed to minimize the advantage of a sighted player. The game requires players to use their other senses, such as hearing and touch, to coordinate with their teammates, allowing them to develop skills that will help them in everyday life. Blind football also encourages a sense of community and belonging, as it is a team game and requires players to work together to achieve success.
ERASMUS+/REFLECTION-EVALUATION-DISSEMINATION: A general discussion of reflection of the programme and evaluation based again on discussion and questionnaires. Participants made their personal plans for follow up and dissemination activities in their communities using non formal activities with people with disabilities.All the activities that we did in the training will be in detail in the handbook that we will create.
GIVING YOUTHPASS TO PARTICIPANTS: Participants will have the chance to complete online their youth pass abilities that they gain from the training. A time of another 15 days will be given to them to complete any competence keys they want to complete after re-briefing and making their own summing of their experiences and knowledge that they get in the training.
Visiting Paphos City:
Birthplace of Aphrodite: First we made a stop at Petra tou Romiou-Birthplace of Aphrodite.Petra tou Romiou Aphrodite's mythical birthplace 'Petra tou Romiou' is an interesting geological formation of huge rocks along one of the most beautiful coastlines on the island, located on the southwest coast of the Pafos (Paphos) district. According to the legend, the Ancient Greek Goddess of Love and Beauty -Aphrodite - was born of the sea foam here.
Mosaics in paphos: The Pafos (Paphos) Mosaics are considered among the finest in the eastern Mediterranean and form part of the Archaeological Park of Kato Pafos, which has been included in the UNESCO World Heritage Sites list since 1980. They were discovered in 1962, after a farmer ploughing his field accidently unearthed one of them.
Free Time in Kato Paphos (Paphos Castle):Standing grandly at the west end of the town's harbour,Pafos (Paphos) Castle (Medieval Fort) was originally a Byzantine fort built to protect the harbour, and was rebuilt by the Lusignans in the 13th century, but then dismantled by the Venetians. The Ottomans rebuilt it in the 16th century when they conquered the island. What survives today is the 1592 Ottoman restoration of the western Frankish tower with its Venetian additions. An inscriptionabove the only entrance of the castle bears witness to this restoration.