Become a partner in life coaching!
Friday is our life coaching day to equip the children with the skills, tools and networks to achieve their dream future! How? By offering them life skills activities, vocational training and individual coaching. Qualified coaches, guided by a child psychologist, guide the sessions. But we do not do this alone. We strongly believe in partnering with others to deliver these activities.
Life skills activities
Life skills activities offer all children a variety of workshops that teach them valuable life skills, using different methods and topics. Life skills include problem-solving, critical and creative thinking, decision-making, effective communication, interpersonal relationship skills, empathy, self-awareness building skills and coping with stress and emotions. Methods include yoga, mindfulness, computer literacy, environmental education, gardening, arts and crafts and music. A great example is a computer literacy class where the learners prepare a Canva presentation on gang violence, teaching them problem-solving, critical thinking and effective communication skills. Qualified yoga teachers (shout out to Holly Armstrong and Ewa) and local organisations, such as The Beach Co-op, Captain Fanplastic and Save our Seas Foundation, are some examples of key partners.
Vocational training
For high school learners, we facilitate vocational training in partnership with local and international professionals. The vocational workshops give the Surfpop learners an insight into different employment sectors and professions and show them what is needed to start working in those sectors. The workshops also widen their professional network, as experience has learned that many facilitators are keen to offer Surfpop learners who are motivated guidance or even employment opportunities after school. We carefully choose the vocations and topics based on the interests and skills of the Surfpop learners and the labour needs in the Western Cape. Some cool examples of the vocational workshops that we have done so far include:
- Tourism and hospitality with partner Southern Explorer Tours
- Carpentry and shaping with Burnett Wooden Surfboards
- Graphic design with professional designer Margriet de Gois
- Entrepreneurship and soft skills required for the world of work with professionals from Sweet Spot
Coaching
Life skills activities and vocational training are complemented by coaching: the third element of the magic triangle! Our holistic Surfpop program contributes to the mental wellbeing, resilience and social skills of the children, with surfing playing a key role. The coaching sessions, which can be group-based or one-on-one, are an important complementary activity to help the children strengthen their mental wellbeing, resilience, and social skills, discover their strengths and dreams, and set and achieve goals to reach their dream future. As the children grow older, these goals and dreams become more specific and develop into a roadmap on how to access tertiary education and/or employment in line with their unique interests and skills. We also link our oldest learners to career mentors to guide them towards their dream career.
Looking for partners!
We are incredibly grateful to all partners who have shared their skills and time with Surfpop! Would you also like to partner with us in delivering life skills or vocational workshops or would you like to become a career mentor? Reach out to us at info@surfpop.co.za!