6 P’s To Keep You Sharp as a Contract Trainer

Great article and tips here.

Reflection Activity

Word for word from a great new site I discovered... thank you! ...

Using a story spine for a reflection activity

During a workshop I was recently involved in, I introduced the story spine to a couple of participants to help them to tell a story using the simple framework.

Not only did they embrace it enthusiastically and use it to great effect, unexpectedly the framework was adapted for a different purpose. A small group of onlookers decided to use it as the basis of a reflection activity. They did a great job, and I think it worked really well.

Here's a quick summary of how it might work for you:

All participants of the group sit in a large circle
The facilitator asks participants to reflect on an activity (in our case, we were reflecting on our involvement in a year-long training course)
The facilitator begins by reading out the first part of the story spine, 'Once upon a time...' or 'Way back when ...'
The person to the left of the facilitator is then asked--without rehearsal or preparation--to develop the story further by providing a brief sentence or sound-byte
This continues around the circle with each person adding to the story until the facilitator feels that it's time to intervene with additional structure from the story spine. When they feel it is time the facilitator will add the next line i.e. 'Everyday...'

This goes on until the story (as defined by the structure) is complete.
I recommend that you record the story so that you have an artefact or keepsake, or for transcription purposes. Because of the impromptu nature of the activity this was a bit of an after-thought for us. We did try to record the story using a mobile phone, but I'm not sure that it worked very well. I haven't heard anything!

The 'story' that we ended up with didn't make too much sense in the end, but that is unimportant. What is important is that the improvisations made it a lot of fun, and it also elicited lots of memories and anecdotes. It was also nice to reflect back on our shared experiences and to make sense of what happened as a group, as a collaborative activity.

Fall Certification Schedule - Vancouver

As children return to school this time of year, so do Facilitators. Below is our fall 2008 Master Faciliatator Certification schedule.

To register contact 604.521.5473 or email to admin@actraining.com

Master Facilitator Level 1

10/3/08 - 10/5/08
Fri-Sun 6pm-9pm/9am-4pm

New Westminster

Master Facilitator Level 2

11/21/08 -11/23/08
Fri-Sun 6pm-9pm/9am-4pm

New Westminster

Master Facilitator Level 3

12/19/08 - 12/21/08
Fri-Sun 6pm-9pm/9am-4pm

New Westminster

Cultural extensions exercise

I just found this exercise online and it looks great - I have emailed the site for permission, in the meantime, check them out yourself... http://www.culture-at-work.com/body.html.

What extensions have humans created for these various functions of the body?

Purpose: The world can look different for several days after doing this exercise! It is useful in linking our societies' complex systems and technologies and beliefs with the fundamental, central reality of the human body as the core of our experiences and actions.

Materials: Names of different parts of the body, different functions of the mind, each on a separate slip of paper. For younger groups, you might also want to put one or two examples of extensions on each slip.

Instructions: Review the question "What objects or systems have humans developed to extend this particular body/mind function (beyond what is physically possible for a human to do without extra help)?"

Pick one of the slips out of the hat, and have the group generate a list together with the leader's help. Then ask participants to pair off. Each pair chooses a slip out of the hat. Give them about 5 minutes to generate the longest, most imaginative list they can.

Some Examples

Fingernails: screwdriver, scratch paper, backscratcher, thimble, shovel, utensils, tweezers.

Visual memory: camera, books, paintings, movies, post-it notes, planner, advertising, maps.

Skin: clothing, buildings, sunscreen, racial classifications, bedding, tatoos, artificial vitamin D.

Territorial part of the brain: maps, boundaries, armies, signposts, locks, global positioning systems.

Lungs: oxygen tanks for scuba diving, yoga, microphones and speaker systems.

Feet: trampolines, bicycles, escalators, cars, ballet point shoes, airplanes, 12 inch measurement unit, postal and delivery systems, canes.

Emotion of sadness: mourning rituals, Prozac, poetry, naming of buildings and places.

Counting on fingers (the original computing method was digital!): arithmetic, calculators, mathematics, computers, outlines, systems for ordering objects, calendars, money.

Discussion: You can either have each group read out the two examples that they think are most interesting, or draw a large silhouette of a human being and have each group write in one or two answers next the the appropriate part of the body. (You may need a separate sketch of a head if you have many pairs.)

Does Your Training Make the Grade?

Presentation slides from a well received presentation to the local chapter of CSTD.