What we bring to the table

What each person brings to the table can make a great difference in eachothers lives. Therapy groups are amazing in this way. But even in another type of setting it can make a difference. Each experience I have had in my life, whether it is being a camp counselor dealing ADD, ADHD children or dealing with someone that is depressed from having to change their career because of an injury, my toolbox has grown. We all have a toolbox of events that change how we feel about a situation & how we react to that situation. And tucked away inside we note what works & what does not work. With each new person we meet that toolbox grows. This past week in my fieldwork our leader had two different activities planned, one for the girls & one more focused to the boys. However, each activity could work for either sex. I notice that one of the tools in my toolbox is to change direction very quickly. There are a couple children that are not schoolage yet, which means limited counting ability. The 1st activity we were to do required some counting ability. We taught the children how to make & play mancala out of an egg carton, 36 beans, & 2 cups. To play this game you need to be able to follow the rules & count. Unfortunately, some of the younger children, 4 years old, could not understand the rules, or still have limited attention span in order to play the game.So, in the end we just worked on counting the objects, beans, instead of playing the game with them. But because I had dealt with children with limited attention span, ADD or ADHD, I had the tools ready to make this activity fit what the child was able to do.

The kids still got a lot out of the activity, and had a lot of fun too. Which is the entire point of this work we are getting into. So, think what you get out of every experience you have had, whether it was at work, or home with family & friends. Add to your tool box every day. To start this journey it may help to understand a bit about conflict resolution. Here is a sight that can help with your skills, I hope it helps you to understand a bit more. Conflict Resolution