—
Safe and sound
For most, a home represents safety
and security. Without a home to go
to many young people must trust in
unfamiliar institutions and individuals,
which can be challenging and
frightening. The following activities
imaginatively explore what it’s like to
feel vulnerable and to be forced to
place your trust in others.
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Activity
Blind walk
1
In pairs, nominate one person to be
the Driver and the other to be the
Passenger. The Passenger stands
in front of the Driver with their eyes
shut, while the Driver has their eyes
open. The objective is for the Driver
to steer the Passenger around the
space while keeping them safe from
collisions and other hazards.
The Driver uses the following signals
to direct the Passenger safely:
— — Tap the right arm =
Turn 90 degrees right
— — Tap the left arm =
Turn 90 degrees left
— — Tap the middle of the back = Stop
— — Tap the back of the head = Go
2
Allow both players to experience being
the Driver and the Passenger, then
discuss how it felt as the Passenger to
entrust your safety to someone else,
and as the Driver how it felt to be
responsible for the other person.
—
Activity
Safe spaces
1
Nominate one player to be the Chaser
and another to be the Bulldozer, the
rest of the group are the players.
Each player places a chair somewhere
in the space, facing in any direction.
The chairs provide safety for players,
but they may only remain on the same
chair for five seconds before they
must move.
2
Players must try to move between
chairs without being caught by the
Chaser, whose objective is to tip as
many players as they can. Tipped
players are out of the game. The
Bulldozer’s objective is to turn over
empty chairs, reducing the number of
available safe places.
3
The game ends when all players have
been tipped, there are no more upright
chairs left or there is one player sitting
in the last remaining chair.
4
Discuss how you felt when you were
safe, and contrast this with how you
felt when you were vulnerable.