Creative physical activities as a tool of youth work

The goal of this training course is to teach the participants, basics of various circus skills such as partner and group acrobatics, juggling, diabolo… and various methods of preparing and implementing circus workshops which they can use as a tool in their work with kids and youngsters.

We want to spread the method of circus pedagogy as we think it is a great method which teaches participants how to cooperate, trust each other, be creative and improves their self-esteem. It is an inclusive method, which works well with different target groups.

The main idea of circus pedagogy is that circus is accessible to everybody regardless of their age, physical condition, social background, gender… It is appealing and fun for everybody, making it ideal as a tool for educational work with youngsters. The aim is to introduce youngsters to positive, healthy activities, encourage co-operation, and strengthen their confidence, while developing co-ordination and persistence. By practising this activity, children and teenager develop physical skills, social skills and personal skills.

During the training, we give lessons about:

Circus skills like juggling, diabolo, poi, Chinese plates, slack line, balloon modelling and group acrobatics. This part is composed of practical workshops where participants learn how to juggle, how to create human pyramids…

How to organize a circus workshop. This part is composed of theoretical lectures and exercises about safety, equipment, and how to prepare and adapt a circus workshop to the participants, the space available and the duration of projects. There is also a practical exercise where youth worker organize and lead a circus workshop in a real situation.

How to create simple circus performance with the participants. This part is composed of theoretical lectures about safety, practical and pedagogical aspect of creating a short performance. There is also a practical exercise where youth workers create their own short circus performance and present it in public.