Excerpt from Tips & Tools for the Art of Experiential Group Facilitation, Second Edition: There is great power when learners create symbols, music, words or performance to represent feelings and experiences. The very essence of art is expressing oneself. Throughout history, humans have used artistic expression...
Current brain research supports the experiential education philosophy that educators will increase attention, motivation, and learning outcomes when they weave in opportunities to get learners away from their desks or boardroom tables and move, interact, discuss, and reflect with their peers (Willis, 2015). The default...
Since the beginning of civilization, humans have expressed themselves through symbols. Symbols, images, and objects help people communicate their thoughts and create meaning from experiences. They spark emotions and help people understand and communicate abstract concepts that cannot always be translated into words. Of all...
There’s all the difference in the world between having something to say, and having to say something. —John Dewey My March of 2013 blog post “The Language We Use in Facilitation: Reflection Vs. Debriefing” explored the importance of the language we use in facilitation. At the time...
Think back to your most memorable learning experiences— the courses, team-building programs, or classes you enjoyed and the facilitators or educators you found most impactful. How did they start their classes or workshop sessions? How did they begin the program? How did they greet you...
The Postcard to Your Future Self is one of my favorite reflective activities because it encourages learners to reflect on their strengths, celebrates their accomplishments, and clarify their goals, the postcard gives them a tangible reminder of their learning experience for the future. I regularly...
From the Blog Archives, June 2016: During this time of year, I find myself facilitating many staff team-building retreats for community organizations. In my work with schools, the focus is on celebrating the end of the year and goal setting for the next. For other...
I pulled this post from the Archives as it is one of my favorite activities to use this time of year with both adult and youth groups who are wrapping up their programs or the school year or participating in staff retreats. This activity is...
I find that some of my best activities and strategies are created by accident, when a lesson plan doesn’t go quite as I planned, or when an unexpected situation arises and I have to adapt quickly. One of my favorite formative assessment, social-emotional learning, and...
Take time to study the theory and science behind what you do. Regularly reflect upon and intentionally observe what works in your groups, and consciously develop your philosophy of facilitation and teaching. Reading about theories of experiential education, facilitation, and teaching along with new research...
I was inspired to repost this article from the blog archives (August of 2014) after using it in a particularly successful active review session with a group of students today. It is one my favorites to use with learners of all ages for blending active...
Effective facilitators put a lot of thought into sequencing their programs so that lessons and activities build upon the previous ones. They start with less intimidating methods to build comfort, trust, and rapport in the group before increasing the challenge. I encourage facilitators to put...
These tips will help you create an environment that encourages involvement in meaningful reflection and discussion. • Reflect throughout the experience. Reflection can we woven into an activity itself, or intentional reflection time can be taken in the midst of the activity or lesson to maximize...
Helping facilitators and educators view reflection differently and find ways to make it meaningful and engaging has been a focus of my professional work over the past two decades. Although educators and facilitators agree that reflection is a fundamental aspect of learning, teaching, and group...
Reflection brings learning to life. It is the essential ingredient in education, training, therapy, and team-building, that promotes growth and change in learners. It is the catalyst for creating meaningful and lasting lessons from experiences. A quote often attributed to John Dewey—and a summary of his philosophy—states, “We do...
This group questionnaire has multiple purposes: rapport building, reflection, data gathering, brainstorming, context setting, and academic or training content review/assessment. The playful, informal, small-group sharing and friendly competition engage and motivate participants to join in. Because it is so participant- directed it is ideal...
This is an effective activity for building rapport in groups of all kinds. It is also a useful method to reflect on academic or training material while at the same time learning about peers or colleagues and exploring common and differing perspectives on a topic....
August is a month of new beginnings for educators and group facilitators. These last weeks of summer are filled with back to school meetings, training, student community building, and fall program kick-off events. Many educators ask me for ideas for making the most of this...