Learning, growth & development can occur when a group is invited to reflect on their experience

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Many people confuse the learning style of ‘learning by doing’ with experiential learning, but they are not the same.

It is not possible for learning to occur simply by doing something. The simple act in and of itself does not cause the learning to occur. The key is the process of reflection.

As Albert Einstein once said “All learning is experience, the rest is information.”

This is to say, if information was enough to help us grow, learn and flourish as human beings, then we would all be super fit and extremely intelligent.

We all know how to be fit, and with the advent of the internet, we have access to everything there is to know in the world. But none of this knowledge (information) will make a difference until (a) we act upon it, and most importantly (b) we reflect upon this experience.

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All Learning Occurs Through Reflection On Experience

Consider the experience of a young boy learning to ride his bike, as described in the article What Is Experiential Learning. He did not learn to ride a bike by doing it (ie learning by doing,) rather he learned it by NOT doing it. The process of reflection (of what went wrong, and what worked well) helped him over time to learn how to ride a bike successfully.

To help your group learn, grow and develop, take a few minutes to read the following articles to guide your practice:

  • Why do we conduct debriefs? – the most powerful and rewarding reasons you should invite your group to reflect on their experiences.
  • How to conduct a debrief – a detailed step-by-step guide to help you lead successful debriefs or reflection activities.
  • Useful debriefing tips – seven practical tips to help you squeeze the most value from your debriefs or reflection sessions.

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Activities Which Invite Your Group to Reflect on their Experience

The images below provide links to a sample of simple, engaging and sometimes playful debriefing activities drawn from playmeo’s ever-expanding activity database.

Enjoy browsing to your heart’s content.

If you’re not yet a playmeo subscriber, sign-up today to unlock hundreds more group games and activities just like these.

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