‘Creative Learning with Touch and Movement’
Touch and movement create a positive learning environment for children and are powerful tools for experiential learning. We’ve put together this programme for all levels of teaching staff, which is taught as a 3 hour workshop.
“I would recommend this workshop as it has fantastic information, which is useful to everyone.”
– Ellie Day, Teacher
The aims of this workshop are to equip the participants with the knowledge, skills and sensitivity necessary for the use of creative, positive touch and movement in learning
Outcomes: By the end of this course participants will be able to:
- Define the legal, ethical and safety issues regarding the use of massage in schools
- Recognise and state the benefits of peer to peer massage
- Identify circumstances in which the use of peer to peer massage is contra-indicated and suggest safer alternatives where possible
- Determine and select strokes/techniques for specific required outcomes
- Facilitate a peer to peer massage sequence
- Demonstrate awareness of the need for good posture
- Demonstrate care, consideration and respect towards receiver(s)
- Demonstrate the ability to apply good communication / listening / reflecting skills
- Demonstrate sensitivity, responsiveness, creativity and adaptability
In this workshop we:
- Have fun exploring and developing creative ideas for touch and movement to be used within the classroom.
- Discuss health and safety issues and be clear about specific guidelines for peer to peer massage.
- Learn a specific ‘weather massage’ sequence that can be used at anytime within the framework of daily class routines
- Explore how to incorporate touch and movement in the teaching of the school curriculum
This is a very practical & experiential workshop that is interspersed with time for discussion. All massage will be practised on each other through clothes. Information will be provided in the form of a handout and a certificate of attendance issued upon completion.
Benefits of using touch and movement in the classroom:
- Improves children’s motor skills
- Improves co-operation as they work together in pairs and groups and learn from each other in the process
- Encourages visualisation and kinaesthetic learning
- Encourages and sustains creative and fun approaches to learning
- Supports the learning of subjects from across the curriculum
Studies and observations have shown that the Massage in Schools Programme:
- Supports emotional intelligence, health and well being
- Empowers children to make choices and express their feelings
- An inclusive programme that embraces all abilities, faiths and races
- Helps children become calmer and their concentration improves
- Enables children to feel good about themselves, raising self esteem and confidence
- Creates an environment of care, respect and social inclusion
- Helps children give and receive nurturing touch and brings the associated benefits of massage
- Teaches the difference between positive, healthy touch and inappropriate touch
- Provides an effective tool against bullying and aggression
Facilitators
Sally Morris has worked with individuals and groups through her complementary therapy and training practice for over 20 years. This includes work with schools and children with special needs. Sally is committed to developing nurturing touch for children of all ages and abilities as a positive influence on their growth and learning.
Tracy Crisp is a professional complementary therapist offering treatments in Holistic Massage, Indian Head Massage and Reiki Healing. She has worked as an Associate Lecturer at South East Essex College offering introductory courses. In recent years, Tracy has worked with adults and children with special needs. She provides one-to-one treatments within a special needs school and in various daycare facilities and has experience working with a range of disabilities Tracy is committed to making a difference through touch in all aspects of her work. This approach forms the basis of all her treatments.
Here’s what participants have to say:
100% of participants felt sufficiently prepared to use the ‘weather massage’ in class.
100% of participants would recommend this workshop to other teachers and schools. Their reasons included:
- Invaluable knowledge for teachers to use in the classroom
- It is a positive and calming tool
- It is completely adaptable for everyone
- Very interesting, lots of ideas and can be used to link in with all lessons at school
Participants were asked what they could see as the benefits of positive touch; many commented on the calming effect and others wrote the following:
- Helping children get in touch with their own and others emotions
- Children learn that touch was OK
- Helping children to understand each other more
- Helping children learn respect for others bodies and personal space
- A sense of bonding / unison as everyone cooperates closely
- Another means of learning besides visual & auditory
- Beaks down barriers and gives the opportunity to talk about safe touching
- Relaxation and the incorporation of positive touch in the classroom
- Brings some children some much needed touch
If none of these reasons persuade you to try our workshop, how about this comment which is our favourite: “Thanks for best Friday afternoon I have spent in months!”
We also organise ‘Communicating through Touch’ workshops and courses for teaching staff, parents and carers. Some schools have preferred this as a weekly course for their staff; alternatively we can arrange the material to facilitate a 3-hour workshop.
Contact us to discuss your school’s needs and arrange an appointment >