Sample Training Agendas
Oakland Unified School District – 2-day, 90-minute Training Agenda
Sample Training Agenda from Womedia
Three-Hour Let’s Get Real Training | 90-Minute That’s a Family! Workshop
No two trainings look exactly the same because we work with your school or community group to customize content to your specific needs. Depending on the amount of time available, we can add to these basic agendas to meet your goals.
Three-Hour Let’s Get Real Training
5 minutes – Introductions, goals and ground rules
Trainers introduce themselves and discuss the goals and ground rules for the session, which can also be used for leading lessons or discussions with students. Trainers introduce The Respect for All Project, a program of Women’s Educational Media, and Let’s Get Real. Trainers explain the general content of the film and its purpose, issues that may arise as trainees watch the film, and set up post-film activities.
5 minutes – Icebreakers
Looking at bias and building empathy.
10 minutes – Why address these issues in the first place?
Discuss why it is important to talk about bullying and review statistics. Examine what kinds of bullying take place at your site. Explore the unique ways in which Let’s Get Real can help educators talk about bullying with young people.
35 minutes – Screening of Let’s Get Real
10 minutes – Sentence starters
Trainees write down their thoughts about what they have just seen using sentence starters from the curriculum guide. Trainees share their feelings in pairs or small groups first, and then all trainees may share their reactions with the entire group.
15 minutes – Curriculum guide review
Trainers hand out curriculum guides to each trainee and discuss how exercises relate to academic standards. Discussion about when to show the film to students and how much time is needed afterward for follow up. Examine the goals of screening the film for students, as well as goals for related activities and assignments.
5 minutes – Break
20 minutes – Exercises and activities
Trainers model activities and assignements from the guide for the group. Trainees participate in writing and sharing exercises about remembering a time when they were bullied, racial prejudice and gender harassment
25 minutes – Effective intervention methods
Participants discuss general pointers and then brainstorm how they could respond to specific situations at their site.
15 minutes – Comfort levels dealing with specific issues
Trainees look at their own personal comfort levels talking about issues raised in the film, including racial differences, gender and sexual harassment, and homophobia and anti-gay slurs. Discuss ways to increase competence talking about these issues with youth.
10 minutes – Two of the most common challenges from students
Brainstorm how to handle students who respond that the best way to deal with bullying is to fight back or to students who say that name-calling is only joking.
5 minutes – Other points to raise
Review steps for creating a safe environment and the importance of classroom management. Discuss additional resources and legal obligations if a student discloses thoughts about suicide or homicide.
15 minutes – Questions and next steps
What challenges do trainees think they will face using the film and guide with students? What are some sure-fire ways to create an effective classroom action plan? A school-wide action plan?
5 minutes – Evaluation of training
90-Minute That’s a Family! Workshop
15 minutes – Introductions, goals and ground rules
Trainers introduce themselves and discuss the goals and ground rules for the session, which can also be used for leading lessons or discussions with children. Trainers introduce The Respect for All Project, a program of Women’s Educational Media, and That’s a Family! Trainers explain the general content of the film and its purpose, issues that may arise as trainees watch the film, key concepts from the film such as using the metaphors of windows and mirrors, and set up post-film activities.
35 minutes – Viewing of That’s a Family!
15 minutes – Journal exercises and activities with a partner
Trainees use this time to reflect on the film and write down their thoughts, possibly with the aid of “sentence starters” provided by the trainer. Trainees share their thoughts with a partner. This activity replicates what adults can do with children to encourage discussion and writing.
10 minutes – Group activities
Trainer demonstrates group activities from the discussion and teaching guide that adults can use with children, such as window and mirror exercises or dialogue poems.
10 minutes – Introduction to discussion and teaching guide
Trainees break into groups and review sections of the discussion and teaching guide, including sections addressing general content and key concepts from the film, questions parents may ask, further activities to use with children around each type of family in the film, additional books and resources, and organizations to contact for further information.
10 minutes – Question and answer session
Trainer answers questions and facilitates discussion on what the school or organization can do on-site to use That’s a Family! to raise awareness of family diversity issues.
10 minutes – Training evaluation
