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In 2021, a group of students from the Windesheim Honours College in Zwolle, Netherlands worked on a project together with the ambition to empower vulnerable groups, specifically young children. Their vision was to create a self-sustaining and evolving ecosystem that would support the way to an inclusive society where everyone can thrive, called the Ecosystem of Care (Figure 1). With this approach they developed an educational model called The ToolKID (Figure 2). This model is based on certain principles defined by CARE International (2010). It shows 3 levels of learning and being: Me-level, You-level, and We-level. These levels are connected to different learning fields: Feelings education, Values education and Role model Education.
In order to strengthen children in these fields and navigate through the challenges in the future, they also created a workbook for caregivers and teachers with an extensive selection of exercises to nurture the leaders of tomorrow.
Figure 2: ToolKID Model (2021)
The main objectives of the product are as follows:
Increase self-awareness and connection to others
Educate about different feelings & values
Encourage vulnerability, empathy & compassion
Create Role Models
These activities can also be used by therapists or carers of children who are vulnerable towards, or have been victims of, trafficking as a way to build trust and openness. Here are some screen shots of the workbook.
You can access the entire workbook via the link below: https://www.canva.com/design/DAEPpZ7_tDo/7TQxzWSdFA99oDREzIegZw/view?utm_content=DAEPpZ7_tDo&utm_campaign=designshare&utm_medium=link&utm_source=sharebutton
References
CARE. (2010). Strong Women, Strong Communities: CARE’s holistic approach to empowering women and girls in the fight against poverty. CARE. Retrieved from https://care.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/PSJ-2010-Womens-Empowerment-Report.pdf