GETTING TO KNOW EACH OTHER AND CREATING A SAFE ENVIRONMENT
[3 hours].

This first session is dedicated to creating a framework in which participants feel comfortable and confident to share at the microphone. First, we get to know each other through games. Then, we propose to the participants to discover and learn about the radio equipment so that they can use it in full autonomy. This first session seems to us to be a necessary step before tackling the following sessions and themes, so we advise you not to skip it!


Introduce yourself, i.e. indicate the social position from which you are speaking.

Here are a few things you can read beforehand to help you find your way around.

Present the workshop and its educational goals in a few sentences.

Make it clear that these are educational, not therapeutic workshops: invite people to share only things that will not put them in a state of great vulnerability.

Please read our recommendations on how to deal with traumatic stories in the event that such experiences are told. This will help you feel more prepared as a facilitator.

If you are located in Limerick, you can print this list of feminist associations.

Please note that we are proposing activities based on non-formal education: the objective is above all to express oneself, to get to know oneself better and to develop one’s social and relational skills: these are not workshops that aim to deliver theoretical knowledge on gender or on emotional and sexual life, although these dimensions may be present.

Finally, specify the framework for the dissemination of the sound bites. Reassure participants that nothing will be broadcast without their consent.

In order to overcome resistance, you can explain why you are proposing this type of game. For example, you can say that waking up the body helps with attention and concentration. Also, when people are in a new environment, such as a workshop, they may feel stress. Stress is a physical reaction that can be effectively reduced by moving the body. After this type of activity, participants are better prepared to retain the information they are given.

Then, we recommend this series of icebreakers with the same starting configuration: a circle.

Here are a few things you can read beforehand to help you find your way around.

5 min

Energizers: Awakening of the body
Wake up the different parts of the body one by one.

To read the explanation of this activity, click here.

5 min

Icebreakers: First name and gesture
Remember each person’s name by associating it with a gesture.

To read the explanation of this activity, click  here.

5 min

Icebreakers: Circle of gender oriented commonalities
Get to know each other better by sharing your similarities and differences.

To read the explanation of this activity, click here.

15 min

Icebreakers:  The speaking circle
Finally, offer short two-way exchanges between participants so that they can get to know each other better.

To read the explanation of this activity, click here.

This allows rules to be set as a group for the duration of the workshop. For example, when dealing with issues of intimacy with different audiences, it is important that everyone is able to communicate their needs and boundaries.

You can find the step-by-step instructions here.



BREAK [15 min]

5 min

Say a few words about radio
The point here is to make sure that everyone has a common understanding of the term. For example, you could say:

“Radio can be broadcast live or recorded. Audio content, such as broadcasts, is traditionally broadcast via electromagnetic waves on a given frequency (as is the case with radios, in the car, etc.). However, sounds can also be broadcast via the Internet, for example on social networks. It is this accessible distribution that gave rise to the word “podcast”: “access to free audio content that can be listened to anywhere, anytime.

There are several ways to record sound before it is broadcast. For example, you can record a programme at a meeting between different people in a radio studio. But you can also go off on your own with your microphone and recorder to do interviews and short interviews on the street.

Sound recordings are usually edited (i.e. different elements are put together) on dedicated software. This can be a simple edit (such as removing extraneous noise or lengthy moments) or a more complex edit with specific sound design, narration, multiple voices. At the request of the journalist, the person in charge of the editing (usually a sound director) can add a voice-over that will be the common thread between the different sound bites, as well as music or sound effects.”

15 min

Discovering the radio equipment 
Prepare several recorders, headphones and earpieces. The participants should then take the equipment in hand, try to combine it, turn it on and record themselves in mini-groups. Then explain the equipment in plenary and how to use the different types of Zoom recorders.

You can find the step-by-step instructions here.

20 min

Crossed interviews and first talk on intimacy 
This activity offers to express oneself for the first time on an intimate subject at the microphone. In order for the participants to feel more comfortable and confident, we have chosen to propose this activity in triads on fairly light subjects, but which allow a first step into intimacy.

For example, you may choose three questions that participants will have to pick : 

The craziest thing I’ve done for love.
My best friendship memory.
My worst date.

You can find the step-by-step instructions here.

25 min

Listening to voices 
Stand in a comfortable circle and place a speaker in the center of the circle. Suggest that those who have made a short clip (less than 3 minutes) play it for the rest of the group. You can then ask a few questions about the technical aspect (“Did it sound good?”, “How were the settings?”).

To conclude, ask a few questions:
– Do you feel more empowered about the radio equipment? Do you still have technical questions?
– Did you feel comfortable answering questions about your personal life? If not, what would you need?
– Did you prefer to answer or ask questions?