Different Types of Conflict - Week 3

We had another great session today. We learnt about the different types of conflict by looking at a role play of the same story with three different endngs.
Denial happens when someone is upset because of a conflict or a fight, and instead of admitting they are angry or sad, they pretend that nothing is wrong. The difficulty with trying to end a conflict this way is that it doesn't really end because the second person never knows what is wrong or why the first person is upset or angry. Therefore it is unlikely theywill act differently next time.

Aggression happens when there is conflict and one person attacks the othe, either physically or with words. This usually hapens when two people are not willing to listen to each other's side of the problem or talk about it. Instead they attack the other's ideas or worth.

Problem Solving is when people talk about the problem without blaming or insulting each other. They know they have a problem and try to think of ways to solve it. They choose the solution that is best for everybody.

"I" Statements and Affirmations - Week 2

It was session 2 of our training today and we tried bringing our chairs along. That was our idea for improving the sessions last week and it worked out so well we will keep doing it.
We started by telling partners 3 Rib Ticklers. They are affirmations where you tell someone good things about themselves. Pretty soon we were all smiling! After that we had some role plays so we could see the difference between "you" statements and "I" statements. "You" statements don't work in conflict situations because the listener feels blamed or judged. You get better results with "I" statements because the listener knows how you feel.
We practised constructing our own "I" statements for situations like someone taking our things without asking.
I feel annoyed when you take my pencils without asking because I needed them to finish my work.
Our co-operative game was "Here I Sit in the Grass With My Friend."
We finished off with an evaluation of what we had learned, enjoyed and what could be imporoved. We couldn't really come up with any improvements this week! Now we need to practise making "I" statements with our families and friends.

Peer Mediator Training - Day 1

Term four is the term when we start learning how to be Peer Mediators, so we'll be ready to start the job at the beginning of next year. There's a lot to learn to become a good Peer Mediator. We had our first training session today. There are 46 trainees and our teacher for this is Viv.
Each session has a new skill, a time to practice the skill, a game and a reflecting time where we discuss what we learned, what we enjoyed, and any ways of improving the session.
Our skill this week was Active listening. To be an active listener you need to give attention to the speaker and keep eye contact if possible, ask some questions to be sure you have all of the information and give feedback. Viv was so impressed with the way we all practised the skill she took photos.
We played the leader of the Pack game and then it was time for reflecting.
Things we liked

• The practice session,
• The game,
• Getting to know the group,
• Making up the scenario,
• How it was fun.

Next week we are going to bring our chairs and see if we can all fit in the Arts Centre.