Art from Heart - 9th Feb 2019

The Art from Heart session on 9th Feb, 2019 had 6 participants. 

Directive: Draw your room. Decorate with things you want to be in your room.

Art from heart - Feb 2nd 2019

The Art from Heart session on 2nd February 2019 had 8 participants. 

Directive: Trace your feet and draw something you want to tell about your feet.

Group Counselling Sessions using Art from 13th to 15th December 2010

Venue: Kellys Girls Home 

 We conducted three consecutive days of group counselling sessions using Art for the children of kellys girls home . It was organized by World vision.Various art techniques were used as therapeutic tools.The tools applied are given below along with the objectives and a brief description of the activity.

Date- 13/12/2010
Objective- The goal was to create awareness  of what they feel at the moment.The children were asked to stick together their own choices of magazine cut outs that best described their feelings.
Tool-  Collage

Date-14/12/2010
Objectives
 1) The goal was to help the children define their social atom
 2)The theme of a tree was used to bring clarity into their future aims and objectives and what was needed to achieve it.
Tools
1)Clay 
2)Collage

Date- 15/12/2010
Objective- The main objective for the day was to help group members see that they could draw support from one another.
Tools
1) The theme of a garden was used to achieve the above objective
2) An interconnected map of the group was created, which was used to make them feel deeply connected to one another using drawing and collage.

The three day session using Art therapy was  successful in making each child feel more connected with oneself and the others around.

Training for teachers from Directorate of Social Defence

Training for teachers at THHV, Potheri - 5 Feb 2009

Center for Counselling conducted a training session on life skills for the teachers from the Government homes. There were 27 teachers present. The experience of teachers varied from recent appointees 2 weeks ago to those appointed for many years, those who got promotions into becoming teachers from house masters etc.

What was very interesting in this training was to note how everyone struggled to get hold of this job. We conducted various exercises to help understand and learn self esteem, decision making, critical analysis, empathy, creativity etc. 

List of activities:

1. Election campaign - The objective of this activity was that everyone promotes themselves by explaining all the positive qualities they have. This activity helped me explain self esteem very clearly. Each participant was given a chart and asked to make a campaign poster. This helped in explaining creativity as a skill.
2. Gifts from the heart - The objective was to teach empathy as a skill. All participants gave and received gifts. This exercise helped participants put themselves in the role of the receiver and choose a gift that was most suitable for the receiver. Explaining critical analysis and decision making was also through these exercises.
3. Karupu than ennaku pedicha coloru -   Right now, Center for Counselling is running a short campaign on explaining that no matter what the skin color is, you are important. Who you are and how you are is more important than the color of the skin. Children of the Kellys home have sent in poems, short stories, paintings, charcoal sketches and are making collages on the theme.

We had a very interesting election campaign and had an opportunity to hear all the positive qualities that each teacher had. Overall, the session was very well received and everyone participated enthusiastically.