PLAYA

The project supported youth in the process of empowerment. In PLAYA, young people worked on developing key competencies, skills, and attitudes needed in the job market. The project participants were young people from children’s homes, as well as individuals in foster care and youth sociotherapy centers. They received necessary support for their development process and gained the opportunity to plan their future careers.

Two groups of youth participated in the project, with each participant receiving support lasting 10 months.

The PLAYA project, worth 99,975 zł, was co-financed with funds from the European Social Fund under the Operational Programme Knowledge Education Development, in the amount of 84,258.93 zł.

Each of the participants received the following support:

  1. A workshop on designing their career development path;
  2. Participation in training/coaching circles, during which the participants designed their own challenges in professional areas, developing social activity, initiative, and key competencies in the job market;
  3. Continuous, individual professional psychological support from a guardian;
  4. Youth debates, organized by project participants, aimed at developing social skills (self-presentation, public speaking, communication, cooperation, argumentation, organizational skills) and increasing general knowledge about everyday life affairs. The debates were preceded by public speaking workshops, during which participants learned, among other things, the principles of debate and the basics of erystics.

In PLAYA, we used various methods including the British drama method, creative writing, activation methods, simulations, educational games, and improvisational theater.

The youth participating in the project had the opportunity to develop most social competencies, especially: teamwork skills, nonverbal communication, giving and receiving help, leadership, building consensus or compromise, motivating others, group communication, giving and receiving feedback, and interacting with and persuading a group. Participants acquired theoretical intercultural competencies during circles, and then were able to develop them practically during summer internships with local employers. In all activities, young people worked on developing meta-competencies, such as the ability to take initiative. Participants had a unique opportunity to work on this competency during volunteer work, which each person chose and organized according to their own interests and abilities.

At the end of the project, each participant received confirmation of the acquired social competencies and activities in which they participated in the form of a standardized certificate.

 

In February and March we carried out a recruitment process for a second group of the project, through which 12 new, motivated and growth-oriented were selected. They recently created plans for their professional growth paths. We had lots of laughter, moving moments reflections, nostalgia and plans for the future and ideas on how to make them come true.

Activities Schedule:

  1. Workshop on designing a career development path. Location: Atalaya Foundation headquarters, Warsaw, ul. Wolska 66/39 – workshop conducted online Date: May 20th and 21st, 2020, 15:00-17:30

  2. Training-coaching circle I. Location: Atalaya Foundation headquarters, Warsaw, ul. Wolska 66/39 Date: June 27th, 2020, 10:00-18:00

  3. Training-coaching circle II. Location: Atalaya Foundation headquarters, Warsaw, ul. Wolska 66/39 Date: July 16th, 2020, 10:00-18:00

  4. Training-coaching circle III. Location: Atalaya Foundation headquarters, Warsaw, ul. Wolska 66/39 Date: August 21st, 2020, 10:00-18:00

  5. Training-coaching circle IV. Location: Atalaya Foundation headquarters, Warsaw, ul. Wolska 66/39 Date: September 26th, 2020, 10:00-18:00

  6. Public speaking workshop I. Location: Atalaya Foundation headquarters, Warsaw, ul. Wolska 66/39 Date: October 16th, 2020, 16:00-20:00

  7. Training-coaching circle V a. Location: Atalaya Foundation headquarters, Warsaw, ul. Wolska 66/39 Date: October 30th, 2020, 16:00-20:00

  8. Training-coaching circle V b. Location: Atalaya Foundation headquarters, Warsaw, ul. Wolska 66/39 Date: October 31st, 2020, 9:00-13:00

  9. Public speaking workshop II a. Location: Atalaya Foundation headquarters, Warsaw, ul. Wolska 66/39 Date: November 6th, 2020, 16:00-18:30

  10. Training-coaching circle VI a. Location: Atalaya Foundation headquarters, Warsaw, ul. Wolska 66/39 Date: November 13th, 2020, 16:00-20:00

  11. Debate I “The needs of foster children versus the rules prevailing in children’s homes” Location: Due to the epidemiological situation, the debate took place online: https://zoom.us/j/92960356087 Date: November 20th, 2020, 18:00-20:00

  12. Public speaking workshop II b. Location: Atalaya Foundation headquarters, Warsaw, ul. Wolska 66/39 Date: November 23rd, 2020, 16:00-18:30

  13. Training-coaching circle VI b. Location: Atalaya Foundation headquarters, Warsaw, ul. Wolska 66/39 Date: November 26th, 2020, 17:00-21:00

  14. Debate II “Managing the budget of children in Children’s Homes” Location: Due to the epidemiological situation, the debate took place online: https://www.facebook.com/fundacja.atalaya/live/ Date: December 4th, 2020, 18:00-20:00

From June 2020 onwards, circles were held where each participant worked on developing their competencies. The youth also participated in volunteer activities and have supported, among others:

  • “Nadzieja na Mundial” Association – 2 persons
  • “Towarzystwo Nasz Dom” Society – 4 persons

 

Activities schedule:

  1. Workshop on designing a career development path. Location: Atalaya Foundation headquarters, Warsaw, ul. Wolska 66/39 Date: June 20th, 2019, 10:30-18:00

  2. Training-coaching circle I. Location: Atalaya Foundation headquarters, Warsaw, ul. Wolska 66/39 Date: July 20th, 2019, 10:00-18:00

  3. Training-coaching circle II. Location: Atalaya Foundation headquarters, Warsaw, ul. Wolska 66/39 Date: September 14th, 2019, 10:00-18:00

  4. Training-coaching circle III. Location: Atalaya Foundation headquarters, Warsaw, ul. Wolska 66/39 Date: October 19th, 2019, 10:00-16:00

  5. Public speaking workshop I. Location: Atalaya Foundation headquarters, Warsaw, ul. Wolska 66/39 Date: October 20th, 2019, 10:00-16:30

  6. Training-coaching circle IV. Location: Atalaya Foundation headquarters, Warsaw, ul. Wolska 66/39 Date: November 2nd, 2019, 10:00-18:00

  7. Public speaking workshop II. Location: Atalaya Foundation headquarters, Warsaw, ul. Wolska 66/39 Date: November 11th, 2019, 10:00-16:30

  8. Training-coaching circle V. Location: Atalaya Foundation headquarters, Warsaw, ul. Wolska 66/39 Date: November 30th, 2019, 10:00-18:00

  9. Debate I. Location: Facebook Space, Warsaw, ul. Koszykowa 61 Date: December 17th, 2019, 16:00-20:00

  10. Training-coaching circle VI. Location: Atalaya Foundation headquarters, Warsaw, ul. Wolska 66/39 Date: January 4th, 2020, 10:00-18:00

  11. Debate II. Location: Facebook Space, Warsaw, ul. Koszykowa 61 Date: January 15th, 2020, 16:00-20:00

  12. Project summary meeting and certificate distribution. Location: Atalaya Foundation headquarters, Warsaw, ul. Wolska 66/39 Date: March 6th, 2020, 17:00-20:00

From July 2019 to January 2020, circles were held where each participant worked on developing their competencies. The youth also participated in volunteer activities and supported, among others:

  • “Hope for the World Cup” Association – 2 persons
  • Amnesty International at the Warsaw Marathon on September 27-29, 2019 – 1 person
  • Cultureshock Foundation at the Mobile Apps and Games Forum on October 8, 2019, at “Facebook Space” ul. Koszykowa 61 in Warsaw – 6 persons
  • “Na Paluchu” Shelter in Warsaw at ul. Paluch 2, from August to October 2019 – 1 person
  • “World of Human (In)Justice” Foundation based in Piaseczno at ul. Staszica 8, from October 1st to November 30th, 2019 – 1 person
  • Great Orchestra of Christmas Charity at the Special Pedagogy Academy headquarters at ul. Szczęśliwicka 16, on the day of the grand finale on January 12th, 2020 – 4 persons
  • Great Orchestra of Christmas Charity in organizing the run – 4 persons.

In June 2019, the Career Development Path Design Workshop was held, where participants examined at which stage of their career path they currently are and what further actions are needed, what values they have, and what they must do to pursue their career path in line with their values. In October and November, public speaking workshops were held to prepare young people for organizing and participating in debates as part of the project. Participants had the opportunity to learn what public speaking is, how to prepare for it to keep the audience’s attention, and what to focus on during the speech. They tested their skills first individually in speeches, after which they received developmental feedback, and then in group debates, where each could be in a specific role: debater, audience, or moderator. The youth chose debate topics independently from topics of interest – they discussed, among other things, whether the 500+ program is a good idea, whether Poland should reintroduce the death penalty, whether marijuana should be legalized, why we live, why we fear the police – in each debate, opposing opinions were encountered, allowing the youth to practice critical thinking, the art of argumentation, and learn to take another person’s perspective. The first debate took place in December 2019. It was titled “Let’s Talk about Education”, with 32 participants. The speaker was a teacher from the IX Klementyna Hoffmanowa High School. Foster home supervisors and directors and teachers of the participating youth were invited to participate. The goal of the debate was to generate potential solutions to the question of why schools are poorly preparing for life. While other fields such as medicine, technology, and electronics are evolving rapidly, the education system remains stagnant. The pressure on achieving good exam results was also discussed, while most children need tutoring because schools cannot provide adequate support. After the debate, the youth had supervision sessions where conclusions were drawn for the next debate. The second debate, held in January 2020, had a more provocative title: “Nutritional Absurdities in Foster Homes”. Its task was to draw the attention of invited guests. The effect was great because among the audience we had representatives from WCPR, one deputy director of the foster home, and a representative from the Office for Aid and Social Projects. The youth also sent an invitation to the Ombudsman for Children, who did not appear but is very interested in the topic and requested a summary of the debate. The youth themselves prepared healthy refreshments for the debate, which disappeared in an instant after the debate. The speakers were: a dietitian, who spoke about the importance of diet diversity by age and various diseases, and a representative of the “School on a Fork” foundation, which implements changes in the approach to preparing meals in school cafeterias so that with a specific budget, one can eat healthily. The debate was very productive, and concrete changes occurred, for example, in one team responsible for managing care and educational facilities, a meeting of all cooks took place, and the “School on a Fork” started cooperation with foster homes to conduct culinary workshops. An added value was the increased awareness among participants and guests about nutrition among youth and the additional functions of food (social and cultural functions). Both events were independently prepared by project participants: they chose the location (public space), time, topics important to them, experts, invited guests, and shared tasks. They were also responsible for promoting the event. Immediately after the debates, project participants received feedback on their participation in the events and shared their thoughts on these experiences.

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