Group Facilitation Reflection #2

My topic for group facilitation was grocery shopping. I started off group by introducing myself and explaining to everyone that this group was designed for people with a cognitive disability. I challenged the group to think about how the activities could be difficult for someone with a cognitive disability. I discussed the group topic and then gave a brief overview of the agenda.  The group started off with a warm-up activity that was modeled after the Price is Right game.  For the first activity, I handed out a map of a grocery store and a shopping list and I had the group members create a route through the store to get all of the items on the list. After the activity, each group members discussed one thing that they found challenging about the activity. Then, we discussed strategies and tips for planning a route through the store.  I tried to give clear instructions to the group using concrete terms.

For the next activity, I had the group members figure out where items are stored after they are purchased from the grocery store. The group discussed items that could be challenging for someone with a disability. We discussed tips for storing food and what to do when you're uncertain about where something goes. Because I used the ACL FoR, I didn't dive in too deep to the sharing, processing, or generalizing. The group as a whole seemed eager to participate and were active in sharing. At the very end of group, I summed up the main points from the group session and thanked the group for coming. If I could do the group again, I would probably design the group so that we went through all of the activities first before stepping outside the group and talking as OTs the challenging aspects that a person with a disability might encounter in the group. Overall, I thought group went really well and I have greater confidence in my ability to lead a group session.