Our Workshop Program
Bringing our mission into the classroom.
800+
Students Reached
25+
Workshops Held
800+
Cards Distributed
Homelessness: The Importance of Caring
First workshop
Project Empathic's workshops are designed for elementary-aged students, discussing homelessness through an objective lens, and are intended to evoke both empathy and understanding.
Each workshop runs for 60 minutes and is directed by a small team of specially-trained volunteers who contact teachers to integrate our program into their classrooms.
“Homelessness and the Importance of Caring” is the first workshop in our planned series, with both an intermediate and primary version available, and addresses:
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The definition of homelessness
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Common stereotypes
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Primary causes of homelessness
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And through interactive activities and discussions, the importance of developing empathy.
Currently, our team is developing follow-up workshops to create an integrated program that continues dialogue on homelessness both in and out of the classroom.
We aim for these discussions to spur independent change, as knowledge is a driver of empathy, and empathy is a driver of action.
Workshop Design, Background, and Curricular Connections
How we create each workshop, from start to finish.
Research and Consultations
As students ourselves, we recognize that we have significant learning to do before we can teach others. It is essential that we don't overshadow or ignore people who have lived or living experience of homelessness, and we represent their experiences accurately and respectfully.
Given this consideration, each workshop is created through an extensive research and consultation process, where our team consults nonprofit staff, frontline outreach workers, trauma-informed counselors, and most importantly, people with lived experience of homelessness to discuss their insights into our workshop topic. We then supplement our content with academic research to ensure our facts are objective and accurate.
We believe that experiences and stories capture the heart of the issue, while research allows us to delve deeper into the specifics of our content, which is why we heavily invest time and resources into designing our program and identifying key information to teach students.
One of our consultants captured this process beautifully:
“"As a person who has lived experience [of homelessness], I am choosing to share my knowledge and vulnerability. On the other end, I ask that you be invested in change—that you take this knowledge and share it."”
Curricular Connections
As classroom time is valuable, we work closely with BC-registered educators to review our workshop content so it aligns with the mandated British Columbia Ministry of Education curriculum.
Specifically, our program explores Grade 6 and 7 Social Studies content of global poverty and inequity, long-term cause and effect, and ethical judgment. We also discuss practicing ethical behaviour, acting against discrimination, and exercising leadership to tie into core Career Education curricula.
For further details and other grade-specific connections, please reach out to our team at projectempathicteam@gmail.com.
If you are interested in bringing Project Empathic’s workshop program to your classroom or are interested in volunteering to direct a workshop, then please visit our Request a Workshop or Volunteer with Us pages.
