OST with children...

Tue Oct 8 10:53:18 PDT 2002

Dear Toke,
is that you on the picture titled det_abne_rum?
I had to smile when I saw it because it has a little bit of a buddha
quality but also a mischieveous smile suggesting at the same time a
lot of contentment. Seems like a wonderful pose for an open space
host squatting on the sidelines and enjoying the show!
Here are some questions:
-When you use the word "host" as in "Learning Space Host" is it your
way of saying "facilitator" ? (Or as I say "Begleiter" which I think
might translate into "companion"). What is the danish for "host" (in
German it would be "Gastgeber" which I think could also be a nice way
of translating "Facilitator" or rather: a nice way of describing the
role of the facilitator).
-I noticed A3 colored sheets in the background. Are those the sheets
that participants post their issues on? If that is so and the colors
are indicators for the time slots, how do people move their issues
from one time to another during market place? I use one color A3 and
have the postits in different colors for the various times, they can
be moved quickly from one sheet to another. Or is it another system
yet that is hiding there?

As far as os with kids: they are indispensible. I will have an os
with teenagers in a gym (a setting similar to the one in your
pictures) in November(with the title "Lebens(t)raum Schule" and 2
others in December, one with a student body council of a highschool
and another on youth policies in Thüringen, one of the "new" states
of Germany).
I think the os-projects I was privileged to host for children in the
past (elementary school, after school day-care, student
conflict-guides) were also days I will not forget.

What I find also interesting are some of the other parallels: there
is a project in the making with student body councils from
neighboring highschools (and perhaps other schools) in one Berlin
neighborhood and today I received a call from a landscape architect
who is in the process of working out plans with a school for redoing
their schoolyard with the intention of involving the entire school
and especially the pupils and teachers so that the planning and
implementation gets to be part of the school curriculum.

I agree with your sentiment: this is a way to go
greetings from Berlin
michael

--Original Message Text---
From: Toke Paludan Møller - InterChange
Date: Tue, 8 Oct 2002 16:16:33 +0200

Re: OST with children... Hi Winston an you other good folks exploring
OST with children....

Within the last 2 months I have hosted 3 OST involving children -
which not just worked well but the intergenerational  energies came
into real play. This is a way to go.....

First was a summer party in my garden with 19 grown up and 10
children - we open space and self organised everything from the
entertainment, fishing  and bathing trip, playing with barbie dolls
in our fishing hut - convened by the yongest member of Celilie of 5
years, creating the fires for cooking foood to cleaning and  serving
the  food ...

is was effortless - and I want more of it.....

Second was with 30 puplil council members and headmasters and contact
teachers from 7 schools in the same area who were together to become
a learning network and gain understanding and creating project to
further the democratic work of the pupils councils....youngest was 3
grade.....Nikolaj.

His defenition of democracy was very simple - "it is when we all come
together to make the important decesion together".

Project are in motion from this process and they communicate on an
E-conference to share question, solutions and results.

Thirdly a OST with 190 people from the same village close to whare I
live - half of them children  other half grow uppers - for one day to
explore their common understanding of what democracy is to them and
them create project to enhance / develop their village and school in
and active democratic way.
Through open space was the democratic practise - not just talk about
it and - 17 projects was been created - 4 has already taken place
most organized by children - one - to paint the school was organised
by parents who would not wait any longer for that to happen...

there was great intergration between generation - youngest person
walked her first steps that day -the oldest was 4 pensionist ladies
of above 80 years....

this day I  will remember for many years.......

This is a way to go.....everyone who are stakeholders together....

my best

- toke

Toke Paludan Møller, InterChange, Dialogue Architects - Learning
Space hosts - by the river at Days like this, http://www.days.dk/
Gudenåvej 60, Voervadsbro, 8660 Skanderborg, Phone +45 702013 35   -
Mobile  +45 2616 6919  http://www.interchange.dk  Home office at the
lake - Stengaardsvej 5 A,   8600 Silkeborg, Denmark

Some of the work  we are  currently involved in:
* Open Space training, Denmark
http://www.concept-for-hire.dk/ostraining
* Knowledge mentorship training, Denmark  - BDOScanRevison -
http://www.bdo.dk
* The Open Space Village,  Castle Borl,, Slovenia
http://village.borl.org
* The Kufunda Village - learning center, Zimbabwe,
http://www.kufunda.org
* Obraz - an emerging leadership education in Zagreb, Croatia

Michael M Pannwitz
boscop
Draisweg 1
12209 Berlin, Germany
FON +49 - 30-772 8000     FAX +49 - 30-773 92 464
www.michaelmpannwitz.de

An der E-Gruppe "openspacedeutsch" für deutschsprechende open space-PraktikerInnen interessiert? Enfach eine mail an mich.

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