Communication Skills

Tommy Papp | ESTIA | Greece

It is a project run by people with disabilites, for the people with disabilities! Our purpose is to create a handbook for PWDs with a strong wish to live independently, on how to sustain professional skills and become useful parts of their country’s workforce.

Our two teams in Athens, with the valuable support of Estia & Alma Institutions, are particularly focused on educating their members on two important aspects; communication and organizational skills!

Through group discussions, role playing and personal effort from all our team members, we learn how to successfully present ourselves (verbally, in written form and body language) but also how to organize time, space and our work efficiently!

What is of great importance here, is the fact that the members being educated are the ones that actually decide over which methods better suit their understanding and make it easier to learn!

The methods they select as most helpful and efficient will be included as material in the final handbook, due to be published in late 2019.

PSONI | Poland

We focus on self-presentation, body language, communication skills and team working.

One of the exercises is enacting good and bad examples of journalistic behaviour, remembering how other people look and what kind of emotions they express and then switching roles. One task was describing different colors in an abstract way, playing different roles in interviews, work on emotions and how to prepare your self for interviews.

The project coordinator (a PWD) is acting as such in a project setting for the first time. She is very motivated to work as a coordinator and the position is greatly empowering for her. She also said that it gives her an inside view of the project workflow and she acquires a lot of knowledge this way.

The journalistic experiences seem to be received as very interesting and new. The participants are preparing themselves for an interview and following the topics of discussion.

They learn that a journalist should have an open-minded attitude and should not be afraid of speaking with people. The journalist should be neutral but also brave in asking complicatedor difficult questions.

Playhouse Derry | Lilliput Theatre | Ireland

Tommy Papp | ESTIA | Greece

In this chapter, we are three partners from three countries: Northern Ireland, Poland and Greece. We are going to use the method learning by doing (What I do, I understand).

The fields we want to cover is employment, community living, social life, schools, how to communicate. We aim to strengthen the skills in self-presentation, self-expression, comprehension skills - listening and understanding of what you heard. Skills in using and "reading" body language, non-verbal and verbal communication.

The methods we will use in this partner cooperation are role play and theater. Experience of being a journalist and making interviews, group work in self-advocacy groups with the aim of informing mainstream groups.

Playhouse Derry | Lilliput Theatre | Ireland

Playhouse Derry | Lillput Theatre | Ireland

Max Beer, The Playhouse (Communication Skills and Technical Skills)

We will be working with Lilliput Theatre Company (who are a group of adults with learning difficulties) to record two songs which they wrote last year, in partnership with our music tutor.

We will also produce a video for the two songs, working in partnership with a film-maker, and a cover for the CD / DVD working in partnership with an art tutor.

We will work with our local Health Authority – Western Health & Social Care Trust – to assess how involvement in these arts activities can impact on the technical and communication skills of the clients with learning disabilities. Tasks are performed by the clients with learning disabilities include singing, acting, of art-work design and contributing to ideas for the production of two videos. This includes the storyboarding, deciding on filming locations, costumes and developing characters, for example.  

The results should be available to be presented at the STELLA meeting in Athens, April 18-21.