Listening Workshop

It was initially an idea of a Peer counseling Workshop, which the kids can have a 'friend'to talk about their daily problems and perhaps provide some encouragement, comforting advice and just being a person that the kids can trust.

However,Peer counseling is too big a word since counselor often been through professional training and experience. What do we do with the problems of abused kids? What do we do with the kids who had been through sexual harassment? The kids are pretty well protected here, but there are still invisible problems in their heads for sure.

One of the things that is within my strength and ability is to introduce a Listening workshop, for it can help the children in two ways: improving ther skills of receiving information at School and be at ease with their brothers and sisters at Home. Therefore, after referring to various sources and gotten my materials, I started to lead one group of teenagers ( which is my evening English class) through a series of Listening Activities.

First, It was getting anonymous objects in a can and let them Guess what's in it. Then, is to differentiate between Hearing and Listening.
What is the Importance of Listening in Various Occupations? followed by Everyday Problems of Listening, for example: Daydreaming, rushing ahead, putting words in others' mouth, interrupting, etc...then Ways to improve listening, follow by some real discussion in everyday life, which I think is the most interesting part...

My big plan is to have all these into their heads, and made them lead their friends at their houses in Thai, so it is like testing their leadership skills at the same time too!

"Good idea!" Everybody says. However, I could puke and easily have the thought of giving up, because, all the problems I mentioned above about listening, is the problems I am facing when I am teaching these to them, how IRONIC huh?? Yupe, problems of implementing the good idea. Its never a quick process. Right now, I am still at the phase of passing down information. The real Listening Workshop is yet to happen, before all this little leaders are ready.

Worse come to worst, I always have a plan B, which is to ask help from the staffs to assist me in the Workshop.

Let's still have some hope with the teenagers yeah?