Empty Shops Network - Workshop 24

I had a wonderfully productive and inspiring day with the guys from Workshop 24.  The day started with Words work together with Simon Mole.  'A poetic exploration of the use of language, lyrics and literature to give communities a voice'.  Simon took us through an actual workshop he has done with teenagers, and helped us develop practical skills to use with local communities and get creative ourselves. 

After this I had a one-to-one session with Dan Thompson, founder of the Empty Shops Network and author of the Empty Shop Toolkit, which I found invaluable. 

Finally I ended the day with Social Media wiz Daniel O'Neill who gave me a number of exciting ideas to use in the marketing of the final exhibition. 

Notes from the day follow:

- use games to build up the skills towards the main session, make it feel like you never stop playing games
- develop different activities that all linked together
- use different senses
- variety to ensure young people don't get bored
- develop ways to ensure the young people realise what they are good at
- at the end discuss what they feel proud of

Workshop should include:

Warm-up exercise
Skills build exercise
Main Activity

Main aim of workshop:

Help young people visually represent their hopes, dreams and aspirations through creating a T-shirt  that allows them to externally represent and develop their sense of self and personal identity. 

Simon gives the young people a rhyming palette to help them with their poetry, perhaps I could give them images, words and materials, to help them build a picture, like the identity mind maps I have. 

Build their confidence so that they feel can suggest things to you...
....I feel really chilled...
... find a material that feels like that...
.... e.g. smooth and cold...

Consider their past, present and future. 

Asset Maps - see Simon's mapping exercise, plot on the map where they have spoken to an interesting character, or someone that has inspired them...

Sound Collage - A word they use to describe themselves.  1, 2, 3 game... replace the number with words in groups of 3, count to 4, and the 4th can become a clap or a click of fingers. 

Draw a 30 second picture of themselves on a post it note, show it to the group so everyone can see how everyone sees themselves differently.

Physical multiple choice can be used as another interactive game.