Using the power of social circus - play, fun and informal education - we help develop self-confidence; physical, personal and social skills.
Since 2014 we have been delivering Social Circus workshops for children and young people in Yangon, Myanmar.
We deliver our work for free which is why we need your donations to support our work.
Almost all of the children and young people taking part in Social Circus Myanmar programmes are street kids, orphans, child labourers, children who have fled the conflict zone, children living with disabilities and children who can't go to school because they have to work to help their families.
We are teaching Myanmar people to deliver these workshops so that the project becomes fully led by Myanmar people for Myanmar young people.
"Social Circus" engages and empowers young people by giving them a chance to learn new skills, play and share together, develop their personal and social skills - making a positive change for themselves and inspiring others in their communities.
Social Circus activities are a form of 'informal-education' accessible to all and developing abilities to think-for-yourself, process change, problem-solve, use creative-thinking to find solutions and empathise with others.
Participants experience a real sense of achievement through improving their co-ordination skills and self-confidence, within an atmosphere of mutual respect and trust.
"These young people are seeing themselves progress, which is a gift denied to the disadvantaged too often.” – Supporter, Alex Mackenzie.
Why it Matters in Myanmar
Our motto is "Everyone Needs to Have Fun". We work with children and young adults living in a country struggling with the transition from decades of military rule; a country where child rights remain a big issue. Children too often bear the brunt of exploitation and violence fuelled by poverty and ethnic tensions. Social circus brings people together regardless of race, religion, gender or disability. In a society building a new future, the need for mutual understanding, equality and respect for one another is more important than ever. We hope to make a positive difference using Play and circus-skills to empower young people to learn new things, achieve more than they expect and by sharing in this experience they learn trust and respect for each other.
Who Benefits
Almost all of the children and young people taking part in our programmes are street kids, orphans, child labourers, children who have fled the conflict zone, children living with disabilities and children who can't go to school because they have to work to help their families.
Our training programme of circus-skills, play and theatre games nurture problem-solving abilities, co-operation and working together, gender-equality and understanding of differences and inclusion of people with ‘disabilities’; we empower children and young people to think bigger, learn new skills, to have fun together, and we believe that this helps them realise their potential beyond the formal education system (which many of them do not have access to).
“Before this they had no other activities – they go to class, come back to the hostel and all they can do is read a book, they didn’t have any activities or toys to play with. These activities are really needed and they are good for the children too" Dr. Mu Soe, Taung Thu Gone, Karen Hostel, Insein.
In the 2018-19 season we worked around Yangon with regular workshops
at
Mary Chapman School for the Deaf, Ahlon;
Eden Centre for Disabled Children, Insein;
Parami Monastery School, South Dagon;
Nyein Chan Thar Yar Islamic School, Thaketa;
Girls Islamic Centre, Thein Phyu Road;
Yadana Foster Home and Scholarships for Street Kids in Mingaladon.
and delivered one-off workshops, like this one for 82 girls!
“This kind of workshop is really helpful for our children… who have a strong desire to play sport and do fun activities. I believe it could be for pure enjoyment or to develop useful skills. It is such a great opportunity for them to feel the same as other children… It makes them value themselves” - Zami Saung, Physiotherapist, Eden Centre for Disabled Children.
Here's one of the places that we work - in VR/360° made by Impact Reality Have a look around.
Around the word there are over 500 different and unique social circus projects supporting communities in need of dynamic and accessible activities that are open to everyone in their communities. See social-circus.com for more information on Social Circus
Find Out More
Find out lots more detail
Read Reports on our project delivery.
Watch videos and photo slideshows.
Thank you, chin-zu-tin-ba-day,
merci, gracias, gràcies, grazie, dank u, danke, obrigado, tak, shukran, diolch,
dhanyavād / shukriya, děkuji, mahalo, hvala, M̀h’gōi, Xièxiè, kiitos, tack,
terima kasih, dziękuję, ευχαριστώ, köszönöm, arigatô, todah, tänan, takk, 감사합니다 choukrane,
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